At dawn it will all be over, the birth of a new day which can lead a sudden change in the surrounding scenery, unknown whether for better or worse, foundation or ruin, uncertainty serves as the blackened prophet for a future too mysterious or complex to comprehend. After thoroughly observing the progress of the German melodic Black / Death / Folk Metal entity carrying the emblem of CRAVING for the past five years since their debut EP, "Revenge", as with any band out there, there have been signs of growth, improvement and maturation. Slowly absorbing the finer elementals of Folk Metal, CRAVING issued their second album in two years, and also their sophomore, "At Dawn", via Apostasy Records. Ivan Chertov, guitars and vocals, at the helm of the band, along his peers, forged a foothold with their multiverse texts of English, German and Russian, with the ability to reach out to various audiences, in conjunction with enhancing their scruffy blackened musical origins into a polished spectacle of melodious magnetism. Nothing too enigmatic or uncanny as CRAVING appeared to be proclaiming more than a handful of alignments of other icons such as EQUILIBRIUM, ENSIFERUM, WINTERSUN, NORTHER and AMON AMARTH.

In comparison to last year's "Craving" release, which inhibited re-recorded tracks of the favored "Revenge" EP, "At Dawn" turned out to be the true rightful course of CRAVING for the future to come. Following their longstanding energetic vibe, their execution of the Folkish vibe elevated their musical procedures with various of performances growl and clean vocals, strong armed keyboards halo, and by far their utmost impressive implementation of harmonies riffing that assimilates the band's long felt coldness with parches of light within the deep clouding of grey. Naturally, as also a melodic Metal fan other than a riff warmonger, I could easily enthrall the band's riffery doctrine. Furthermore, deep within the songs, "At Dawn" paved the path for a vision of clarity within the rupturing scenery that CRAVING created. Up and about the mayhem of the Black / Death Metal speedy machine gun onslaught, I caught glimpses of catchiness with an ability to sing along in a language that I barely have knowledge of (Russian and German). The "In Die Nacht Hinein" epic of over 8 minutes, translated as "Into The Night", felt like a breath of bloom. Beyond its fast paced melodic tremolo picking and the constant shifts between a roughened and a slicker state of affairs, transpired as a hymn in German that I could rapidly muster after listening to it twice. The semblance around the chorus, sharing melodic guitaring and harmonious keyboards, is simply outstanding. "Garden of Bones" and "Dance with the Wind" attack with a ferocious mayhemic tornado of pure menace stacking fast paced riffing with ounces of melodies, yet keeping the sing along vibe intact, achieving a quality of the song's delivery and comprehension. "Sons of the Rebellion" and "Targaryen Wrath", could have easily be a part of the ENSIFERUM legacy, memorable riffing, impressive acoustic passages, the latter demonstrating an incredible soloing feature possibly by Chris Caffery (guest performance), hymns within a flow of massive energy.

On the other hand, with my positive impression of "At Dawn", it was hard to deny that there have been musical implementations that sounded so hackneyed and rather commonplace for this transfusion of genres, in particular the Black Metal segment of it. Of course that were repetitions within the melodies and riffs, but at least the most of them were carried out in class. Furthermore, I appreciate Chertov's vision for trilingual Metal album, yet sometimes it was overbearing to withstand. Therefore, maybe an album totally in English is in order. Generally, "At Dawn" is quite a journey through the midst of society along with a mythical spirit as guide through the nastiness of it all. CRAVING instigated themselves as a melodic extreme presence, bursting in flames and conviction, I believe that the only way is up.