On December 4th 2020, DENDERA, hailing from Portsmouth United Kingdom, released an E.P. entitled "Part II: Reborn Into Darkness." This E.P. continues the sequence from the June fifth, year two-thousand seventeen E.P. release entitled Part One:  Blood Red Sky.    June twenty-second, year two-thousand fifteen saw DENDERA'S full length release entitled Pillars Of Creation. This followed the May sixth, year two thousand thirteen initial full release entitled "The Killing Floor. "We Must Fight," DENDERA'S maiden recording initially met public ears on September first of year two-thousand eleven after DENDERA's year two-thousand seven inception.

The first album track, "Insurrection" opens with the produced and engineered crescendo of a cymbal roll - that climaxes to a pause of silence:  accidental piano notes above softer synthesized minor chords.  Sporadic crescendos including cymbal rolls, of synthesized supertonics are dubbed over the main track.  Drums enter quietly but with a subdued intensity - and mark the time while listeners await. Further synthesizers create (background) trumpets and similar fanfare - announcing the next track.

"The Void" - is the second album track and first formal song. Rhythm guitars sustain with string ring - while higher unwound guitar strings resound with dominant (i.e.- fifth scale above the tonic root) though speedy double stops - for about six seconds - and the magic of this music follows quickly.  Bradley Edison's bass bears a pleasantly audible presence in this mix; and I for one am glad to have him grab me by the ears and rock me!  By about ten seconds into the tune - the guitars of David Stanton & Stephen Main with the aid of Ashley Finch begin to pound the riff through my head - and my attention is obedient to this collective command. This is a complete band - with each & every instrument, whether two rhythm guitars together or playing different parts; or divided between rhythm and lead; at every point, all instrumentation is played perfectly - and still the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. After the guitar solo, perfectly musical & stylistic - and lacking any form of pretension-the song progresses forward, replete  with key changes. Ashley Finch & Bradley Edison keep the song progressively interesting. This is musical talent developed by a lifetime of practice.

"The End Of Days "- the second album track - and one that features guest Tom Barber of CHELSEA GRIN adds the initial angry metal voice to introduce each verse is never far from thrash, without completely committing to it-nor ever avoiding it - the rhythm section of Ashley Finch & Bradley Edison deserve individual recognition; yet together, their duality is that much the greater.  Bradley Edison deserves an award even for both the musicality of his sound - the raw & meaty sound of his fingers grabbing the bass strings-not all the amplified sounds or PA systems thought the world can replicate this musical ability.  His bass lines are musically melodic and I can't underestimate the depth of value he brings to the band.

This media presentation is a holiday gift offered to you by DENDERA.  Listen to "The End Of Days" in its entirety.  Listen particularly at about two minutes forty seconds-as the perfect clarity of Ashley Edison sings-then begins to yell a reminder to us all during this plague "...we were born to die this way / Now we stand before The End Of Days!"  The band then just decides to thrash for a bit.  You'll notice the speed and technique of Ashley Finch-and these are moments for which metal heads live:  but before they do they'll prepare you by taunting you with the rhythmic bursts that slowly, ferociously ascend the harmonic minor scale - then with use of the minor third betwixt the submediant and the leading-tone (inverted) - as only a metal head would do.    You have nothing to do but feel the energy conjure within you - and the guitar (so musical!) - just a beautiful haunting melody floating on high like a raven descending upon her victim-so perfectly epitomizes the plague form which we now suffer through The End of Days.   The song ends with beautiful dissonance - just delicate, prestige ornamentation by additional albeit subtle leads of Stephen Main.

"Reborn "- the last album track features C.J. McMahon - Vocalist from THY ART IS MURDER. The song begins with a short guitar riff that is quickly & harmoniously accompanied by a second guitar; and this plays the part with a glorious areggiation of dissonance among distorted guitar strings.  At about three minutes thirty-five seconds - C.J. McMahon enters with guest vocals: "I'm broken by your god / My darkness / For forgiveness / Your honor / My torment ...". Stephen Main adds a nice solo - entirely devoid of pretension. DENDERA is a highly skilled heavy metal band of both technical prowess & complex, yet always tasteful, musically melodic capabilities.   As heavy as any thrash band - they also bring subtle musical melodic innovation into every song they play.  DENDERA is at the forefront of the heavy metal world - and I wait with anticipation for their next release.