Tuesday, October 20, 2015

DEW OF NOTHING - Doubleueird (1998)


Almost like a (Daily) Dew


This title belongs to the big group of tapes I got from Joel Morales through the countless trades in the past. It has arrived without my order, being just another thing from the land of Mexico. And at once it intrigued me: strange band’s name and album’s title (try to spell it after fifth beer…), almost fairy front cover that should be proper for any Narnia-like tale. The opening track can lead someone into error, it’s a good tune for atmospheric or gothic outfit, fortunately “Seven Caves” blows it out. And yes, the whole can be described as death metal with melodic fragments done by means of some acoustic parts of guitars or keyboards, appearing in almost every track. The base here is rather fast tempo (but no blasts), riffs are expressive, sometimes catchy and supported by crushing, almost leading, bass lines occasionally, but as compared to melodic death crews from Gothenburg, the Mexicans are simply more brutal and ruthless.

If the realization of sound is concerned, I’d like to write it completely prepensely, as the whole is very similar to… “Prehispanic Beg” executed by Xipe Totec, even the cartoon-like drums (although I’m not surprised because one guy Jose Luis Ledezma Fernandez is responsible for that…). But the name of Mexica eulogists refers to music itself as well. I would say, it is not a surprise again, take a look on the line-up, two members of Xipe (Martin Martinez and Pablo Hernandez) are involved in Dew of Nothing. Granted, those musical similarities are obstacle to give “Doubleueird” more than good mark. All right, just take a listen to “Proud of Damned” with the riffs reminding me “Tzompantli”, or lead guitar part from “Nightmare’s Lake” very much the same as from the second lead of the title “Prehispanic Beg”. Or “Art upon Perception of Time” except for an interesting intro and acoustics. However I cannot say that this album is a copy. As compared to “Prehispanic Beg”, it is not so crude and bestial, without excursions to the Nahuatl world, with different appoggiatura I have just mentioned above that lead the band into something different. And for sure one track “Intruder and Holy Hate” shows a bit diverse face with clear signs of its own identity. Well, “Doubleueird” isn’t a title I listen to every week, yet of course I have still in my mind this release. Not an exceptional for Mexican scene, but a decent slab of death.  

Released by a small label (tape by Toaj Records and cd by Sempiternal Productions), this title came to naught I guess. The scene was overcrowded, even in Mexico, by the bands performing such a genre. As the last breath, the band managed to record one more Ep and split up at last. The musical pause has been lasting 13 years and Dew of Nothing has been born again in 2014. With different line-up, with new label, with new great (I hope) ideas as the band brings another full-length this year. So, let’s see what “Outsider” is all about…
  

70/100
- Tlacaxipehualiztli

(written in October, 2015)

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