Drakonis – As They Rot

It’s been a long day at the office, you get home, put your feet up and breathe a sigh of relief knowing that the day is over. While you are nice and relaxed you decide to put on some music, only instead of the soothing sounds of Mozart you are greeted to the ear bursting sound of Northern Ireland’s hottest black metal band; Drakonis.

As they kicked off their three track EP “As They Rot” with “All Is Still,” the five piece hellions will introduce the listener to the sound of their brutal, old school black metal style. From the guitar effects in the intro by guitarists Saul McMichael and Tommy Hewitt to the deathly sound of lead vocalist Cast Cassidy’s screeching vocals; there sure as hell wasn’t anything still about this band.

“Abundance Of Sin” was by far the strongest track, musically, as the EP grew a lot darker in sound and lyrics. Well, what’s black metal without mentioning the likes of demons and Lucifer? However, for me it was the pounding of drummer Lee McCartney who kept bringing the thunder behind the kit to which I am surprised he didn’t pass out after performing such a hellish song.

As the title track brought this work to an end, there was one thing that was apparent here (minus the sound of flies at the start) that wasn’t as strong in the previous tracks. That was the sound of bassist Stephanie Dickey, who had been given more room to riff in this track. Compared as well to the previous tracks this was not only more melodic in parts but the band were more experimental, primarily with the vocal effects and the usage of keyboards which helped create more depth to their sound.

While black metal may not be my cup of tea this reviewer was extremely impressed with the performance carried out by this unholy alliance of musicians that was strongly mixed and outstandingly composed. Hopefully there will be a full length album on the way next but until then if you ever see their name appear on posters, go and see them.

Track Listing: All Is Still / Abundance Of Sin / As They Rot

“As They Rot” will have a physical release via the band on the 28th October. They are also set to debut the EP at DistortionFest 2016 on the 29th October 2016. The night that will also feature Warrior Soul, Stormzone, Lord Vulture, Rabid Bitch Of The North and more.