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Dark Millennium - Acid River review




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Band: Dark Millennium
Album: Acid River
Release date: January 2022


01. The Verger
02. Godforgotten
03. Threshold
04. Lunacy
05. Essence
06. Vessel
07. Death Comes In Waves

Seven deadly sins, Seven ways to win, Seven holy paths to hell, And your trip begins…” Oops, wrong album! But the trip is guaranteed nonetheless.

An album of seven songs, clocking in at seven minutes each, released on the 7th of January. I am surprised that Dark Millennium didn’t wait until July to release it but I am sure glad they did it now so that you and I have the opportunity to start the year with such a great piece of music.

Dark Millennium go far back to the early ‘90s and their debut, Ashore The Celestial Burden, is a must-have for fans of progressive death metal and doom death metal. Unfortunately, they disbanded after their (very experimental) second album but resurfaced in 2016 and Acid River is the third full-length of their second phase as a band, and, in my opinion, their best since that amazing debut.

Acid River is not a concept record as such, but it does feel as if a river of acid runs through the album connecting its songs. Musically, it is intricate, heavy, and sombre, showcasing numerous twists and turns throughout its runtime. It is primarily a progressive death metal album that often embraces the doom death metal style. Dark Millennium do have their own sound but I enjoy hearing elements from a few of my beloved bands during the course of Acid River, from Disembowelment to Phlebotomized and from Voivod to Death. As far as the vocals are concerned, I expect them to be an acquired taste for many people, sounding like someone put the cords of Chuck Schuldiner, Martin Van Drunen, and John Tardy in a blender.

The general feeling of Acid River after many careful listens is that it moves forward without repeating itself, in the sense that there is something new appearing from every corner. That said, if there is one flaw that I found in the album, it is the fact that at times it feels as if some segments are being played out for longer than they should, only for each song to be able to go just past the 7-minute mark. But I cannot say that this took away much from my general enjoyment of Acid River. It is not an album of obvious hooks as such, but it mostly relies on its multifaceted character. My impression is that gets better as it goes along, with “Threshold” (the first single) being a song that truly stands out, “Lunacy” going for a more carnival-esque and spooky mood due to its use of keyboards, and the album peaks with “Essence”, which is the song that is perfect from start to finish. The closing track, “Death Comes In Waves”, is the most atmospheric one and a wonderful conclusion.

I shouldn’t forget to praise the sound and production; the band went full-analogue for the recordings and they also used their original equipment. As a result, the music feels warm, organic, and enveloping.

So, the first worthwhile progressive death metal of the year is already here, very early on in the year. Do check it out.

“A long cold winter
In our world begins…”





Written on 15.01.2022 by Only way to feel the noise is when it's good and loud!


Comments

Comments: 8   Visited by: 142 users
15.01.2022 - 11:59
Rating: 8
RaduP
CertifiedHipster
Aaaa what's in the box??
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Do you think if the heart keeps on shrinking
One day there will be no heart at all?
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15.01.2022 - 16:22
nikarg

Written by RaduP on 15.01.2022 at 11:59

Aaaa what's in the box??

You had to say that. Now I feel compelled to watch the film again for the umpteenth time.
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15.01.2022 - 20:30
Bad English
Tage Westerlund
Nik - in what city did you listened this album

Good reviev, like this album,
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Life is to short for LOVE, there is many great things to do online !!!

Stormtroopers of Death - ''Speak English or Die''
apos;'
[image]
I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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16.01.2022 - 05:22
Lanthros

Written by nikarg on 15.01.2022 at 16:22

Written by RaduP on 15.01.2022 at 11:59

Aaaa what's in the box??

You had to say that. Now I feel compelled to watch the film again for the umpteenth time.

You would never be wrong to watch thar movie again.

As for the review, your description of the vocals intrigues me. Especially since I blew out my voice trying to sound like Tardy.
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18.01.2022 - 01:19
Batlord666

I'm curious as to how this compares to another 7 songs at 7 minutes each progressive doom death album, the one by Monolithe! I'll definitely give this a listen.
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18.01.2022 - 08:44
nikarg

Written by Batlord666 on 18.01.2022 at 01:19

I'm curious as to how this compares to another 7 songs at 7 minutes each progressive doom death album, the one by Monolithe! I'll definitely give this a listen.

That's a good point, I had forgotten about that Monolithe album. Apart from the fact that Monolithe are death doom and Dark Millennium doom death (yeah, poteito-potato, I know, but there is a distinct difference in sound), I think the two albums are progressive in a different way from each other. Nebula Septem is also a very good album though.
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05.02.2022 - 15:33
X-Ray Rod
Skandino
Gotta thank Radu for reminding me of this album (listening as I write this btw) and thank you Nik for the review! You definitely nail the aspects I was enjoying but couldn't express properly. It really does have the off-kilter tune of Phlebotomized adding that wackiness of Voivod. Seriously, that TAN TAN TAN melody in the beginning of Godforgotten caught me off guard and made me laugh, in a good way.

The vocals are fucking amazing btw. Your comparisons are on point, once again. I also thought of Absu due to the viciousness presented. Specially in the very beginning of the album. Very energetic!
There are plenty of classics I haven't checked out yet but I'm extra surprised I did not know these guys at all considering I love every band you mentioned. I must listen to the first two. I'm sure it'll be right up my alley.

Edit: Just wanted to add that the last two tracks floored me. This is some advanced shit, man. Coining the term that Joe used once: This is Death +
The experienced folks really know how to show them young bands how it is done. Jeez.
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Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29
Like you could kiss my ass
Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
Rod, let me love you.
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13.05.2022 - 18:06
Rating: 8
tintinb

Godforgotten is such an awesome song. Love how unique this sounds.
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Leeches everywhere.
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