Dodsferd/Mortovatis: Until Your World Go Down

Dodsferd is a one man Greek black metal band who have four CDs available through Moribund records. After so many releases it is unusual for an outfit to be involved in a split CD with another band, in this case Mortovatis. However all becomes clear when you discover that both bands are in fact the same person – Wrath.

Dodsferd have three of the four tracks on the disc, the opening two are exclusive studio recordings, while the third contribution is a live version of "You Called It Resurrection, I Call It Fairytale For Human Parasites" which originally featured on the Cursing Your Will To Live album. Both studio tracks not only follow in the tradition of ridiculously convuluted song titles, but also in Wrath's penchant for tortured vocals and pneumatic guitars that pummel the onslaught into your head and the pair are above average black metal that while adding little to the genre that hasn't already been heard, do so with conviction and a ragged imprecision which is actually very effective. The live track unfortunately comes straight out of the saying "you had to be there", as the actual sound quality leaves you trying to decipher whether it is drums or guitar that is assaulting your senses and while it is possible to almost touch the energy in the performance, most of the impact is lost due to the sub-standard recording. The sound of roughly seven people clapping at the song's conclusion also adds little in the way of atmosphere.

Mortovatis are immediately a different proposition, not least in the fact that unlike the majority of extreme metal acts, it is actually possible to read the band logo! Musically "Rebirth 349" is dooming space rock, as a huge slab of guitar is only broken down by wailing feedback and some foreboding reverberations that add some dark atmosphere to the depressing backdrop. The problem arises though when you realise that the basic theme introduced in the first thirty seconds of the song, barely alters once over the twenty minutes it is stretched out to. What could have been a killer of an extended intro or a five minute track slowly begins to grate on the nerves before eventually just slithering into boredom. If Wrath is to make the same impact with Mortovatis that he does with the two studio tracks from Dodsferd, then he is going to have to bring much more focus to the music and find a way to at least slightly vary what they offer.

Essential for those already enthralled by Dodsferd, but for the rest of us there's not enough here to get excited over.

Track Listing
01. Dodsferd - Only Thorns Can Embrace Your Condemned Throne
02. Dodsferd - Another Two Of Your Scars And The World Is Dead
03. Dodsferd - You Called It Resurrection, I Call It Fairytale For Human Parasites (live)
04. Mortovatis - Rebirth

Added: May 27th 2010
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Moribund Cult Records
Hits: 1820
Language: english

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