PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
The internet is really a double-edged sword. There is more entertainment than you could ever imagine all in the palm of your hand. Unfortunately with that, there is a lot of stuff that is derivative and lacking any talent. On the other hand to get gems sometimes you have to go through mud first.German duo Albez Duz to me are one of those gems.
I knew nothing of the band, as such was completely open to what I was going to hear. Simply put its dark atmospheric doom that makes you pay attention and bask in its murky depths. Imagine a Type O Negative, Reverend Bizarre and early Paradise Lost party recorded inside Grave Miasma’s last album. I loved every bit of it. I’m not a die hard Type O nor Reverend Bizarre fan but Albez Duz have taken all I enjoy about those two bands and put it together to create something special. Songwriting is a skill that needs to develop with a lot of bands but all the cuts from ‘The Coming of Mictlan’ are spot on.
Well realised, well written and not a single track is rushed. Every song has a chance to develop. The album opens as it means to continue, eery and atmospheric with the vocals at the forefront. ‘Fire Wings’ is pure occult doom, teamed with an almost hypnotic guitar riff balanced with atmospheric soundscape keyboards. ‘Mictlan’ evokes the spirit of Pete Steele the most to me on the album. This doesn’t mean rip off but it almost sounds like something Pete would have written. “Feathered Snake” finishes off the first side perfectly. Eight mintues of ethereal doom. Side two opener ‘Drowned’ is a particlar highlight for me. A great blend of optimistic sounding melancholy. ‘Servants of Light’ is ten minutes of uptempo doom that can really envelop you if you let it. Finishing off the album is “Twist in my Sobriety”. Possibly a weaker track in the context of the album but at the same time it makes you pay attention again. Its almost being brought back out of the cave you have just been in. Its been a long time since I’ve heard an album that is a definite entity. This album has a beginning, a middle and an end. And it is a pr0per album, 7 songs with a definite sound that couldnt be in any other order. An experience.
To be honest this is superb. No gimmicks, just music. I am already excited about what else they are going to do.
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