DAMMERFARBEN was founded in Germany in 2005. The name translates to "(shadow's winds) twilight colors. They are a Black/Folk Metal band. They didn't release their debut full length until 2011. "Des Herbstes Trauerhymnen MMXX" is their third full-length and contains five lengthy tracks.

"Herbstsonne" is the first track. Charming clean guitars lead off the album, leading to a majestic sounding distorted riff. The melody is then taken over by strings, and a new sound develops. The vocals are scratchy and deep, and then yet another riff takes over. This is Black Metal, but not your dad's generational style. They work in many different elements...take the clean guitar notes in the background that sound like little bells ringing at a funereal of a venerated citizen of a small village in the East. There is beauty in the sadness.

"Des Herbstes Trauerlied" is a thirteen-minute beast, opening much in the same way as the previous track, with light and airy clean guitars. Then, the drums, guitar and bass roll in, with a steady dose of double bass, but still with that Folky feeling wrapped around you. Solemn tones develop from the main riff, and it's not until close to four minutes in that the vile vocals appear. I like how the song focuses more on the intricate instrumentation rather than overloaded vocals. The mood changes several times throughout the song, and they never seem to run out of ideas. Another light instrumental occupies much of the mid-section of the song, then it's back to the fuller sound, ending on a beautiful note of dualing clean guitars.

"Schattenwindes Dammerfarben" is eight minutes in length, again opening the same way as the previous two tracks. I am sensing a pattern here. The main riff drops and then the guitars roll in with harsh vocals, creating a wall of sound that you usually associate with Black Metal. The pace hastens and then the final two minutes are a slow grind with a regal sound. "Auch das Letzte vereght" opens with light clean guitars and a solemn tone. Distorted guitars roll in along with thick, raspy vocals as the drums begin a machine gun attack. An ambient passage of clean guitars rolls in unannounced, providing a ray of light to the stormy sound. That cello really comes in and drops a despondent tone of an end-of-the-world scenario.

"Herbstpfad" closes the album, opening the same way as the previous tracks, with doleful clean guitars. The strings continue on here in a melancholy way...as I mentioned before, there is beauty in sadness. The harmonic clean vocals really put a stamp to a fitting ending on the album. It's a way out of the harsh tones of the earlier tracks. Overall, I very much enjoyed this album which, at its core, was Black/Folk Metal, but I was impressed at the variance of sound and the right turns that the band took without losing the foundation of the album. The guys are serious musicians who crafted a wonderful story here, and there is a little something for everyone.