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Dead As Dreams - Their Steps Become Unbearable

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 April 15 2010 at 01:28:49 PM



To quote Aquarius Records, “you could do a lot worse than look to Weakling for inspiration.” As one can surmise, based obviously on the band name and some graphical elements found throughout the CD layout and adverts, Dead As Dreams are quite fond of Weakling. To be truthful, based solely on the above, I was ready to dismiss the disc before it even landed in my CD player. It's true that Weakling are a huge inspiration to Dead As Dreams and while there are similarities, they're not a blatant rip-off.

The sole track, 'Fading Vision', is a plodding 24+ minute, mid-tempo journey with nary a dull moment. Things never really float above the mid-tempo stride, but they certainly get slower throughout the track and finally in the last four minutes before everything blurs and burns into oblivion. The tortured, shrieking vocals add sharp, jabbing crescendos and are befitting of the overall atmosphere. They also add some range to the somewhat monotonous, yet invigorating song. Some might find this EP be a chore to get through due solely to it's length and stead-fast tempo but others may bask in it's very subtle (and perhaps unintentional) drone qualities.

In terms of production, it's not overly massive nor incredibly slick but certainly not raw. It's not shimmery nor bassy but certainly not flat. It's hard to define what exactly the production sounds like other than it is what it is... it just works and works well. In particular, I dug how the drums are treated. The guitars and vocals sound like they were recorded in a studio where as the drums sound as if they're from a demo recording. They sound flat and almost lifeless yet deliver enough punch and presence to really drive the entire song.

Despite there being no huge amounts of shifting textures, there is still plenty to keep one occupied. There's countless dynamic passages and riffs, none of which recycled, yet everything is so damn cohesive and works exceptionally well. Ideas successfully fuse to one another keeping the listener's attention in anticipation to the next twist. Usually when cramming too many ideas into one song, things can get ugly quick but it's quite the opposite here. Everything is masterfully written. What really grabs my attention on this EP more than anything are the melancholic passages: Catchy yet not wimpy, weepy or sappy. Just random spurts of sullen dirges which sorta act like segues into new territories of the song. Some of these 'territories' contain nods to Darkthrone, Weakling (duh) and Dissection or even a clean passage highlighted with acoustic guitar. The songwriting is engaging and well executed and is sure to bring one back for repeated listens.

What Dead As Dreams has created on Their Steps Become Unbearable is nothing earth shattering nor upping the “black metal bar” by any means. Make no mistake however in thinking Dead As Dreams is just another run of the mill BM band. They're not. Sure they emit copious amounts of Weakling fanaticism and inspiration graphically and through strong structure, but what BM band hasn't copped from previous generations? Besides, imagine if you will, if Crebain acted as their stimulus... Moving along, Their Steps Become Unbearable is limited to a scant 500 copies and quite frankly, I don't see it being around for much longer so get it while you can.

[-c]

Dead As Dreams
Their Steps Become Unbearable
2010
Goatowarex
type: reviews    keywords: black metal, lhp037,   

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