THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER — Unhallowed (review)

THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER — Unhallowed album cover Album · 2003 · Melodic Death Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
UMUR
"Unhallowed" is the debut full-length studio album by US, Michigan based death metal act The Black Dahlia Murder. The album was released through Metal Blade Records in June 2003. The Black Dahlia Murder was formed in 2001 and released two demos and the "A Cold-Blooded Epitaph" EP before releasing "Unhallowed". The band are named after the infamous 1947 murder of Elizabeth Short (who was nicknamed "The Black Dahlia" by the press).

Stylistically the material on the 10 track, 36:30 minutes long album is melodic death metal with both high pitched screaming vocals and deeper growling vocals. Both vocal styles courtesy of lead vocalist Trevor Strnad. The music is highly energetic and predominantly very fast-paced and there is a good balance between the melodic and the brutal elements of the band´s sound. While there are clear nods toward Swedish melodic death metal, and especially an act like At the Gates comes to mind, The Black Dahlia Murder incorporate other musical elements, which ultimately mean they have their own relatively unique sound. The atmosphere of the album is dark and the horror tinged lyrics further enhance the gloomy yet also somewhat uplifting melodic tinged mood of the release. It´s an interesting combination of melody and energetic death metal brutality.

The musicianship is generally very impressive. High level performances on all posts and a convincing and passionate delivery of the music earn them plus points in my book. "Unhallowed" is also well produced, featuring a raw, powerful, and detailed sound production, which suits the material perfectly. The high quality of the product is actually a bit baffling considering that "Unhallowed" is a debut album, but there is a very little here to mention as issues. Maybe the songwriting could have been slightly more varied and as a result the tracks could have been a bit easier to tell apart, but it´s not a major issue, and "Unhallowed" is a high quality release through and through. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.
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