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 Dolorosa

“Summoning Ancient Bleakness” (Altare Productions, 2024)

Deep and Heavy is the opening track, a preparation for what is to come. Was not expecting this, honestly… Dolorosa is a band from Spain that released its debut album – “Summoning Ancient Bleakness” – through the Portuguese label Altare. If there is one thing I know, is that Altare is synonym for quality, and this is a great example of such. Spanish Black Metal has never been my favourite scene, although exquisite albums have come from the country next to mine, and this one might be setting out to be one of the best I have ever heard from my next-door neighbours.

Production wise, this is a tremendous record. The drums are almost in your face, setting the pace, slowly. At times I feel the music was built to be a sort of ritualistic mantra, d’you know what I mean? The whole album seems to be an emotional and spiritual experience, and I dare say I am not that far from the truth. Now that is a good question; might reach out to the main man behind the project to obtain a response to that.

In the meantime, back to the music. The vocals are pretty aligned with the music in terms of being the most adequate form for the music itself. The screams are not just screams; the deep vocals are not just deep vocals. The way all these elements were put together really resulted in a special “being”. And there is melody, profusely melodic. The moments of violence are set on a basis of melody, and it is quite interesting that these melodic moments derive from sonic explosions, withheld anger and rage. “Endless Dreams of Darkness”, the track that closes the ritual, has this amazing solo, not a long solo, just lengthy enough to give the track a rich instant. A very fine way to close the record, I might add.

Dolorosa Official Bandcamp

Altare Productions Official Bandcamp



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