Desolation Angels - Burning Black Review

Four years ago we had the honor of reviewing 2018’s Desolation Angels “King” the comeback album after a long, but very long hiatus. Back then I was very anxious about reviewing the so long awaited album and I have to say it was kind of a deception. I was expecting the same sonancy the band had for their debut and self-tittled album “Desolation Angels” which I simply adore. I have to admit that most of the cult aura of “Desolation Angels” was its poor production from the cover to the music and, as a bonus, the poorly skilled musicians. It maybe a surprise for you my dear millenia fan but Metal music hasn’t ever had shredders filling the ranks. However, the songs were of a freshness, of a creative verve, of a wondrous taste that it was impossible not to forget all these and love the album. “King” had none of those. Thinking straight it’s funny to say that, isn’t it?

Ok, now we’ve got following album “Burning Black” which keeps the flame high. Alright, it’s not “Desolation Angels” but it’s a start at least at the personality level. “Burning Black” brings back the band’s personality that is doing the music weird as they like always thinking musically out of the box. “Burning Black’s” biggest pro is going back in that and bringing some 1970s influences from Heavy Rock and even from Deep Purple. I recommend my dear fan to right to “She Walks in Starlight” which is a power ballad but not in the same terms of the famous power ballads. It’s more a slower theme with a sonancy that reminds the good old times of Desolation Angels. Hard to explain but with the good old sonancy there was something missing. Not the estructures but the outcome. Something was out of place. That was the charm. It’s like when you’re trying to play your favorite song but you can’t make it sound right no matter what. That was Desolation Angels. “She Walks in Starlight” has this feeling. Opener track “Living a Lie” isn’t that promissing. Everything is okay and sounding great and that’s the problem. But then comes “Unseen Enemy” with Desolation Angels DNA. The 1970s vocals are kind of out because the guitars are pure 1980s Metal. Little by little the album recovers the old cult aura. “Hydra” has the same opaque guitars and the old feeling. Paul Taylor’s vocals slowly acquires more and more personality mixing influences from the 1960s and the 1970s. “Mother Earth” is kind of a The Birds mixed with Iron Maiden. In the background the guitars revive the good old times. It’s the sweetness and the tenderness the catches us as well as the catchy and singalong chorus “Mother Nature is crying… Mother World is dying”.

“Burning Black” brought back the old feeling, the old aura of Desolation Angels. Here the band could find the balance between the good production and the old charm because the good production almost always kills the vibe from cult bands. One thing I noticed is that there is no linear production in each track, I mean, they all have different sonancies. Maybe it’s the sign of a band that is trying a new sonancy. Or that the songs weren’t recorded at the same time with some hiatus between them.

Desolation Angels “Burning Black” will be released on August 26th via Skoll Records.

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