Cycle

Endark The Brightness is a two men band/project hailing from Switzerland and playing some kind of atmospheric black/death metal. They released their first full length just two years ago and from a very quick listen to that one it seems to me that they made a huge step forward with their second full length “Cycle”. While having kept their love for epic and melodramatic soundscapes they ramped up the metal portion of their music presenting an album full of uplifting chords and glorious harmonies having been merged into something unique and fascinating.

The classic tremolo lines are in full force and there are a lot of the typical epic and often melancholic melodies that we all know from the Scandinavian bands of the second wave of black metal. There are glimpses of the more minimalistic approach that used to define black metal in the beginning but also a lot of bits that have a more laid-back and less adventurous feeling. Atmosphere is something that is important for each black metal outfit but Endark The Brightness have put in additional effort to make sure that “Cycle” presents an eerie and gloomy trip through dark soundscapes going to haunt the listener even once the record is finished.

The drumming is often fast and sometimes slightly technical but there are enough sections in which the tempo is slowed down to give the listener a chance to breathe and enjoy the moody moments. Don’t get me wrong – the backbone is still some aggressive metal music but you can clearly see that André and Stephan have put a lot of emphasis on writing nicely flowing songs with a lot of atmosphere. Things never get too hectic or chaotic and even in the speedier parts there are clearly identifiable patterns making the music even more enjoyable. The lead harmonies constantly dwelling in the background serve as melodic counterpart to the riff attacks and the blast-beat sections.

The vocals have a certain desperate character switching between classic black metal screaming and a deeper kind of growling style. The production is perfectly serviceable with all details being audible without problem. I personally could have done with a bit more Oomph! but taking into consideration that this is a work having been redorded at Ares Studio Basel by the two guys more or less by themselves (with only the mastering having been done in the Iguana Studios in Germany) the end result is pretty impressive. Rounded off by a really great looking cover “Cycle” is highly recommended to open-minded fans of black metal looking for something a bit different.