There is an inexplicable link between Heavy Metal music and horror, be it in the imagery, or the songs, and in the case of some the lifestyle. The symbiosis is obvious, Metal feeds off Horror, and in some cases vice-versa.

To their end DETHONATOR have not only not only embraced one Metal trope, horror, they have done it with the other Rock music staple, the concept album. "Race Against The Sun" is a faithful musical rendering of probably the most well known of the Gothic Horror novels, Bram Stokers' Dracula. This album cries out to be put out on Vinyl, as it is best listened to as a single sequence of music track one to track 7 in order. Not only that a limited edition blood splattered 12" LP would be very tasty.

In one respect this very nature makes it hard to write a traditional review, the this track is better than that track approach is rendered obsolete, although there are different tracks, you need to really think of them as segments of the whole, and as such the album lives or dies as one.  Luckily in this case, and to steal a line from a different horror masterpiece "it's alive!".

First of all it is as close a faithful recreation of the source material as you can get with 40 minutes of music, more than most cinematic or TV attempts manage.  Secondly this is a fine slab of traditional, yet with modern touches, banging Heavy Metal.  The guitars soar and wail, the drums pound thunderously and explosively, the bass underpinning it all, and the vocals handle the different voices in the story excellently, operatic in places, balls out Metal elsewhere, all with amazing clarity, and you can see where ADZ's "Growls" come in.  Plus all the other little touches, the spoken parts, the sound effects, which go to make up the full story telling experience.

And yes the piece works as a whole.  All is very good, there are passages that are great, such as "Wreck In Whitby" or "Blood Of My Blood"  and "Transylvanian Ways", oh and the whirling weirdness of "A New Kind Of Maniac", a tasty two minuets of Metal Musical Theatre!

A highly satisfying complete album.  Listen to it properly, in sequence to really get your fangs in to it.  Now I'm back off to my dirt filled coffin. Renfield! Come your master needs you!