Black Dahlia Murder really isn’t a band that needs an introduction. The Michigan based melodic death metal band is one of the most widely successful extreme metal bands in the United States, and their eighth LP Nightbringers peaked at 35 on Billboard’s top 200 making it the top-selling album in Metal Blade’s history upon release. Despite this, and my general love of death metal, I am just now discovering them. I'm starting with their latest release and going backwards (probably a bad idea, but it's something I decided to do and I'm nothing if not stubborn). The good news is even though I’m late to the game I can still read the score. Black Dahlia Murder are the reigning champs of this generation of melodic death. To clear any doubts, Nightbringers is a tornado of fire and fury, scorching expectations in its path with the band’s brutal combination of beastly melodic Swedish death metal and British grindcore delivered with transgressive punk attitude. The album begins promisingly with the eerie grooves and barreling charge of the appropriately named “Widowmaker” and progresses through the melodic death-grind furrow of “Matriarch,” culminating in the deathly hollow-eyed waltz of title track “Nightbringers.” Other highlights include the barbarous aural conflagration, of the medieval-meets-urban warfare “Kings of the Nightworld,” and the spry and nimble guitar work of the epic blackend death descent of “As Good as Dead.” I’m really feeling these guys and can’t wait to check out their later releases.
Grab a copy of Black Dahlia Murder's Nightbringers from Metal Blade Records.
