Shrouded in mystery and dripping with the kind of venom only found in the seedy underbelly of the British metal scene, the sonic offerings served up by the intriguingly secretive CAVE DWELLER are certainly not for the faint of heart. Sounding like an echo from some long-lost demonic purgatory, 'Chaos Pt. 1: The Night Mare' is a record designed to linger in the shadows of your psyche, never stepping into the light but making you fear whatever lurks in the corner of your eye.

It's clear from the opening few minutes that this is the darkest of black metal records, flowing from one devilish nightmare to the next with an eerie, almost hypnotic rhythm. A mix of furious blast beats and distant faded vocals transport you back to the early days of the genre, where atmospheric brooding was king and took precedence over the more refined, clean-cut production that we're now accustomed to. While this brings about some joyful reminiscing, this kind of production in 2016 has arguably surpassed its sell-by date. The crisp, sharp production jobs on the likes of Behemoth's 'The Satanist' have demonstrated that you don't need to stay firmly rooted in the gutter to sound disgustingly evil. 'Wherein the Darkness Dwells' is a prime example of this, as the gritty production does nothing but detract from the intricate musicianship and hides any quality that might be present under the surface.

There is some strength to this record however, and it lies in its ability to unsettle, creating a foreboding atmosphere that builds gradually throughout. That said, other than on the trio of instrumental interludes, it's often hard to distinguish any change in tempo from beginning to end. For a record that relies so heavily on encapsulating the listener in its web of darkness, there's very little here that would encourage repeated listens. Considering that elements of sludge, doom & death metal are all present and accounted for, the one dimensional nature of the record is as surprising as it is disappointing.

The musicianship on display is undoubtedly impressive; however there are more missed opportunities than there are successes. The aforementioned interludes for example seem excruciatingly drawn-out as they refuse to deviate from a distorted, single minded and almost painfully dull sound and structure. These pauses do nothing to aid the record and merely act as stumbling blocks for any hard-earned momentum. In the end only the most dedicated of metal-heads will be willing to stick with this record long enough to find the flashes of quality littered in the mostly barren wasteland of mediocrity. If you think you're up for the challenge then make sure you have plenty of time on your hands. You'll most certainly need it...