Dance of December Souls

This album is just a great listen every time. I consider this a classic in whatever genre one wishes to affiliate it with. You could put it with Doom, Black, or Death, but probably not just one exclusively because there are heavy influences from all these genres which makes it hard to categorize. It‘s not too depressive or slow to be only doom metal, it‘s not evil or raw enough to be black metal, and it‘s not sick or in your face enough to be death metal. But one thing that I am sure about this album is that it has a great slow and depressive vibe that always catches the listeners attention and doesn't let go.

The one thing that this album should be most known for is the guitar work. Through the whole thing they perform fantastic melodies and harmonies, and, though minimal in various instances, they get the job done exceptionally. I can’t really compare the guitar tone to any other band I’ve heard. Of course it has distortion but it’s a very clean version of it with a little bit of reverb. The guitars are the leading component in the epic atmosphere that this album contains. It seems Blackheim wanted to make this album as complete as possible in regard to the guitar playing, and he definitely made some memorable riffs here that will be in your head for days.

I have not heard other Katatonia work in a while, but I remember there being clean vocals. Not here though. The vocalist Jonas Renkse has the perfect voice for this album. Raspy cries of anguish and hatred that sometimes end in a dying moan of agony. Every element on this album fits together like a puzzle in flawless fashion, and the vocals are no exception. The drums have the melow backbone feel on this album, and once again, fit the music perfectly. If you listen carefully, it’s hard to find two drum fills or patterns that are exactly alike. This adds to the range of the music and makes sure that nothing goes stale, giving the listener the ability to listen to this album over and over again without getting bored.

Dance of December Souls is a compilation of doom, black, and death metal elements. I would say doom metal fans would probably have the best chance at a great experience with this album. Black and death metal fans might think this kind of music is too “light” for them, but if you give this album a chance and respect it for what it is while having an open mind, you’ll find how wonderful of an album it is. The harmonies and melodies speak for themselves here.