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NO DAWN
Dark Aura

WormHoleDeath (2013)
Rating: 6.5/10

It’s been three long years since Norway’s No Dawn have put anything out. 2010 saw the release of their Drain To Revive EP, which for the most part was a solid five-tracker that didn’t really break any boundaries.

Norway is of course known for its hellish black metal bands, but No Dawn, despite the moniker, are of a more deathly stature, and combining brutal rhythms with a technical thrash approach too.

There’s certainly no doubting the talent of the musicians here; whether it’s the destructive drumming of Kent Skjeflo, the twin guitar assault of Paal André Sandnesmo and Andreas Bruheim and the deep, hurtful bass of Ludvik Brandsegg, the band slip effortlessly between clean, cutting pounding death metal brutality and harsher, yet equally melodic periods which touch on a more polished black metal approach and jarring thrash techniques.

Dark Aura offers us ten face-melting tracks, which are given a more devilish turn due to Tor Erik Simensen’s lethal vocal sneer, which often comes across as a throaty rasp – the sort of grating bellow one would find on a modern, albeit meatier black metal opus. However, Simensen, just like the rest of the bunch, are able to shift effortlessly between extreme metal styles; the title track, alongside ‘The Human Curse’, ‘God Ov Torment’ and ‘Hail The Burden’ are prime examples of this dazzling flexibility.

Of course, No Dawn have only one real intention; to bash the crap out of their chosen instrument and reduce the listener to a pile of ash on the carpet. And this is easily achieved with such clinical compositions, like the brilliant ‘Terror Divine’; a cold yet complex head-smasher that keeps the guitars heavy and yet the ears guessing. This track sums up the album, showcasing the talents of a quintet who quite clearly aren’t interested in sounding overtly old school – No Dawn move with the times, and belch out meaty metal that sounds very different to when they began life back in 2002.

Strangely, despite being from Norway, there are elements of Florida death metal kings Nocturnus in some of the more intricate parts of the opus, mainly due to the more obscure injections of orchestral atmospherics and Simensen’s almost watery vocal sound. This most certainly isn’t a bad comparison, as for me Nocturnus were a fine act, but No Dawn are certainly less jazzy and intricate despite the superb ‘Inevitable Downfall’.

Although Dark Aura is a pleasant listening experience, it’s not the sort of death metal opus that’ll have you picking your teeth up from the floor despite its mix of melody and weight. No Dawn certainly have the potential to stand out from the crowd, but despite its more interesting moments I’m finding that this album grows rather tired all too quickly. The production isn’t fantastic either, which never helps, but on the whole then, Dark Aura has its ups and downs; when it’s good, it’s extremely well executed, but there are times when I find myself drifting, searching for something more refreshing.

Neil Arnold

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