Ravenous Dusk - The Dead of Night
Hey There Glorious Ones,
I rarely get to see a dusk, but I do hear the dead of night calling me, just about every single evening. Have you ever heard dozens of grown men cry themselves to sleep?
Ravenous Dusk released The Dead of Night in March 2022, and I have had it on repeat since I received the iPod you sent me. It is a quick listen at 21 minutes, so I can play it four or five times before Penceworth tells me that my time is up. He is a hard but fair officer, whom I have come to respect.
The Dead of Night is one evil demo; however it doesn’t sound like your typical low-fi demo; it is very well put together and I do like the production on this. They have put a lot of work into the atmospheric soundscapes, which ties the whole EP together. I gather that the band are quite experienced as it does not sound like they are putting together their first release. This is pure black metal with a very sinister blood thirsty vibe. I can visualise Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise drinking the blood from my neck as it rings out in the background. Interview with the Vampire style!!
A clean ominous guitar section opens Tongues of Black Flame while the symphonic atmosphere builds. It has an epic 90’s movie soundtrack quality to it. The percussion gradually creeps in as you await an explosion; and when the crushing black metal force comes in - it is fast and thoroughly rewarding. The track ebbs and flows through different tones of evil, and that is what I enjoy about The Dead of Night - it is not one shade of darkness. It is black metal songwriting at its best, which dare I say has an Emperor feel to it. There is not one track here that couldn't fit nicely on In The Nightside Eclipse.
Matriarch of Hell continues the assault, with slightly off-kilter tremolos that bounce nicely off blast beats to accentuate the truly vile vocals on display. The track has an eery piano section that leads into organs before a slab of Tombs like riffage rattles the ears. At times I can visualise walking through a cave with its pit being a pile of skeletons. So when I heard the instrumental track Animam Agere - my jaw dropped. I hear dripping water and a match being lit, and the Halloween like section that leads into more organs is frightening. The Dead of Night is dynamic in its ability to shift you into a very dark universe, and it is authentic as well.
Here you go, have my last breathe, take it and use it for yourself. That is what I think about when I hear Poison Shadow. Ravenous Dusk give it everything here, and it sums up everything that the listener has experienced before it. I just want to hear more of this band - it is too short!
Lastly, I want to let you know that there is a writer on this project that is not who he says he is. I hear him plotting new ways to unravel hell every night.
Phillip Turner
Thank you Phillip,
Is anyone who they say they are? I will do some digging though. I am glad that you enjoyed The Dead of Night as much as I did. You are correct that the musicians are not starting out. Ravenous Dusk is Wraith of Nazxul playing everything but bass, which is Balam from Pestilential Shadows. The demo was recently released on Seance Records, and you can buy it here: