DAWN OF EXISTENCE's unique brand of metal manifests from members Votan and Astor's life-long obsession of dark and heavy music. The result is an alchemical mixture of themes and moods that can and will vary greatly from track to track, while always remaining cohesive, melodic, and memorable. Their self-produced and engineered demo "Pale Mythos", serves not only as material for public consumption but also as pre-production for an even grander work to come. Guitarist and writer Votan states, "Once Astor and I decided it was time to sit down and start seriously working on this project, we drew upon both old material we had stockpiled as well as brand-new ideas in order to bring the demo to fruition."

Working from their respective dwellings as well as coming together frequently, the two proceeded to craft their sound and design a workflow that allowed them to get ideas out and into production quickly. Bass player, vocalist, and writer Astor explains, "We had a lot of material to work with, and each of us brings a uniqueness to the writing. We immediately started working out arrangements and then just started recording. Once we had the drums worked out, we took some time to develop the guitar tone, ultimately going for a blend of old-school Swedish and Traditional Death."

He continues, "Most of the recording happened at my place. A few times Votan would try to finish something at his place and then come back with a whole new song idea! It was great to be able to have so much material to choose from. "This project has always been about us creating the type of metal music that we like to listen to with themes that we consider interesting and intriguing. Astor and I feel we are as creative and talented as the top metal bands in the world and this demo is only the beginning of what we are capable of. We hope listeners will find something in this demo they enjoy and will leave them wanting more." The album contains five tracks.

"Marble Garden" leads off the EP. The vocals are deep and dark, but the music features twin guitar harmonies, like old IN FLAMES. Though the Death vocals keep a pretty steady presence throughout the song, the guitars bring melody to the mix. "Toe up" has a slower and more grinding rhythm, with some dissonance in the guitars. The vocals venture into upper ranges and then those harmonic guitars come in and fly over top. The juxtaposition of the two elements are the key to the sound. It also has a darkness weaved throughout it like Gothic music does.

"Mystic Serpent" opens with what sounds like the gentle crackling of a fire on a dark night full of stars, with footsteps approaching, and the sound of laughter. Keys lead the charge along with guitars, and deep Death vocals. Again, a fascinating temperance of aggression. If you were to lift the vocals off it's a totally different sound. Add the vocals back in, and you have that keen sense of two competing elements going head to head. A lovely stringed interlude towards the end adds to the ominous sound of the track. "Skoda 14" goes for your jugular from the start, before settling into a mid-tempo pace, with eerie vocals and background ambiance. It has a thick, harrowing sound overall, going for broke with the evil and ominous qualities.

"Meet me at the Stake" closes the album. It has a steady pace, fueled by rich Death Metal vocals and melodic guitars. They create a very listenable song amidst the raging Death vocals. This isn't your dad's Death Metal...it has evolved into so much more. Each track brings something different to the table, and that is perhaps why the EP is so well done. Diversity is key to the band's sound. They aren't afraid to experiment at all, while keeping true to the sentiments of Death Metal as a whole. Creative songwriting and creative use of instruments brings this album to another level. You surely don't want to miss out on this!