Band:	Deinonychus
Album:	Deinonychus
Style:	Black metal, Doom metal
Release date:	2000
Guest review by:	scskowron

01. You Died Before I Was Finished
02. Inspiring Vulnerable Thought
03. One Day
04. Building The Paradox
05. This, A Murder Of Crows
06. Balaam Wore Black
07. The Hollow Cage Of My Ribs
08. Why Is It That Angels Speak Such Evil?

Deinonychus is a symphonic doom band from the Netherlands, formed in 1992. This is their second full-length release, entitled by the name of their band.

This album can be described as very weird and very depressing. Unlike anything I've ever heard, Deinonychus successfully combines death metal with slow and drudging doom metal to form a unique combination. It is my assumption that a first listen to this album may shock you and make you really listen to the bizarreness of it all.

First off all, the vocals are very original, unlike anything I've ever heard before. There are so many different vocal styles used on this album that it is hard to sum them up in one phrase. Overall the different vocals on this album produce a disconcerting effect most closely likened to Nattramn from the black metal band Silencer. The first style is a screeching yell, rather hard to describe. Some vocals are strained yells, conjuring images of a soul being tortured. Other vocals are just straight death metal vocals, except much lower. There are also vocals so deep they hardly sound human. Marco sometimes also talks in a very deep voice. Finally, there are clean vocals sung very deep, like Peter Steel of Type O Negative. There are so many different vocal styles on this album it's really amazing.

The songs themselves are incredibly depressing. The guitar work is nothing flashy or show-offy, but it suits the music well. The clean guitar parts and the bass parts are really what stand out. Periodically the drums and heavy guitars will stop and a clean guitar and/or bass will play some depressive but beautiful-sounding arpeggios. Subtle keyboards provide ambience in the background, though they are not overused or abused as some other bands do.
Nothing on this album is incredibly fast or heavy, but it doesn't need to be. The music fits exactly what the mood is supposed to be.

My favorite song on this album is definitely "Balaam Wore Black". The song begins with a deep talking voice with a tortured sounding voice mimicking the original vocals in the background, creating a very scary and bizarre effect.

The song names are very strange as well: "You Died Before I was Finished", "This, A Murder of Crows" and "Why Is it Angels Speak". The lyrics are mostly cryptic and depressing references to lost romance and pain. They are definitely original, although they are not the most outstanding thing about this album.

The cover art is rather disappointing - it is just the band logo on a purple background. It does nevertheless convey a sense of foreboding and foreshadows the ominous and gloomy atmosphere.

The production is pretty solid, as you can hear all the instruments well and there is a slight bit of reverb.

Overall this is a solid album with much originality. I rate it as an 8 because though it is not perfect, you will definitely want to play this again simply for its singular effect. If a gloomy, depressing, and bizarre atmosphere appeals to you, you may love this album. I would recommend this album to fans of Sins of Thy Beloved, Bethlehem, Nortt, My Dying Bride, Katatonia, and any doom/death band.