Visions

Some things don't age well and it is difficult to explain why. The third Desultory demo ("Visions") is one such a thing. Each of the three songs on this recording would later appear on their excellent debut album ("Into Eternity"). The songs are good, the arrangements are identical to the album and the performances are similar. This demo also has historic value, being the most melodic of Swedish death metal before the arrival of the Gothenburg sub-genre itself. Anyone interested in the beginnings of melodic Swedish death metal should listen to "Visions".

But it isn't particularly good. The main problem is the sloppy, ill-fitting production. The Desultory approach to death metal was rooted in Bay Area thrash riffs and solos. They needed a crisp sound like the one they achieved on "Into Eternity". They didn't achieve that sound here. This is probably the worst production I've heard from Studio Sunlight. The biggest crime is the clicky, overripe bass drums. A poor bass drum sound can ruin a record because this drum is so fundamental to death metal. This problem is compounded by the loudness of the drums in comparison to the guitar. This leaves the solos, Desultory's unique selling point, hidden in the background. Unlike other Swedish bands who entered Studio Sunlight for power and 'crunch', Desultory needed clarity for their melodies to shine.

The musicianship is good. The Desultory brand of fast, thrashy death metal with blistering melodic leads is evident here. All three songs will be familiar to anyone who has heard "Into Eternity". It begins with "Forever Gone", perhaps the most recognisable Desultory song (the one that begins "Why, tell me why, we all have to die...", etc.). It is good but feels a little emotionally overwrought in retrospect. The drumming on that intro section is inferior to the album version which can be off-putting. The second song "Depression" is one of the band's finest. It delivers the melodic thrills that Desultory had been working towards. The third and final song is "Visions" and it follows a similar formula. Each song sounds more like Forbidden and Paradox than Grave and Carnage. One problem with all these demo versions is that the band are playing a smidgen too quickly, so they sound less controlled than they would on the album. This is not the best place to hear any of these songs of course, and these versions are not different enough to have a charm of their own.

This demo once served a purpose. It gave Desultory the opportunity to record an album with the famous Metal Blade label. Whoever signed this band must have seen their obvious potential. They had a more accessible sound than other death metal bands and they showed a clear link to the immensely popular Bay Area thrash bands. Desultory never achieved that level of commercial success and are largely forgotten nowadays. Looking back, I would highlight the "Death Unfolds" demo as a superior listening experience. It has more character than this one. "Visions" might have been the first melodic death metal ever to come out of Europe but it would soon be rendered obsolete, first by Desultory themselves.