DIABOLICAL MASQUERADE — Nightwork (review)

DIABOLICAL MASQUERADE — Nightwork album cover Album · 1998 · Melodic Black Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
bartosso
Anders "Blakkheim" Nyström, lead guitarist of KATATONIA and death metal supergroup BLOODBATH(damn, that always gives me a chuckle) had once a side project called DIABOLICAL MASQUERADE. I really wonder sometimes, if it hasn't been his greatest achievement so far. This project, being deeply rooted in black metal, combine best features of the genre with heavy metal approach to melody and avant garde mood.

NIGHTWORK, is without any doubt, the most popular and accessible DM's record. Very melodic and catchy, this album abound with great riffs, placed somewhere between black and heavy metal convention. Every song is loaded with fantastic twists, symphonic bridges and tempo changes. The theatrical atmosphere of vampiric drama is highlighted with great screaming vocalz - which Blakkheim bawlz out with unparalleled passion and feeling - combined with nightmarish keyboardz, dreamy celloz and flute from the obzidian circuz...

À propos theatrical atmosphere... the ambiance and concept is particularly important aspect in the case of this record. That music is simply dripping with bloody air of some vampiric story set in Transylvania. Having said all that I don't want to mislead you, dear reader. It is not just an atmospheric record with nothing else to offer. The melodies created by Anders are catchy and set in a specific mood, but many of them reach the height of symphonic harmony and beauty which can't be underestimated.

NIGHTWORK is a an outstanding release with dense atmosphere of old-school vampire story. Just under 40 minutes of great melodic black metal with abundance of fantastic melodies and coherent concept.
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