Dum Spiro Spero

Nihilo

So here we go again; another Death Metal album, another review. What's different about this […]
By Jacob Dawson
January 5, 2015
Nihilo - Dum Spiro Spero album cover

So here we go again; another Death Metal album, another review. What's different about this particular Death Metal album? Well, not a lot really (except a 20 minute song!), but what it does do well is the things which you would expect to find in a typical Death Metal album. While most tracks conform to the standard structure of using very fast guitars and mad drumming along with some brutal vocals, they also manage to go through certain phases within each song so that each track carries enough variation to keep you engaged.

Another thing that separates it from many other Death Metal albums is the song lengths, which are relatively short in comparison to the 7 or 8 minute epics that often define the genre. Clocking in at an average of 3 or 4 minutes, they're fairly digestible and, as I've already said, carry an impressive amount of variety for the genre in the form of lots of audio clips of interviews and speeches, as well as the occasional solo from the lead guitar or bass.

The audio clips all seem to carry the same sentiment; that of anti-financial fascism. It's fairly safe to assume, then, that this is the theme of the lyrics, too, although this can't be confirmed since it's impossible to understand any of the lyrics for the vast majority of the album. Not only that, but they also seem to be out of time on the odd occasion, as in the sixth track "Death Swamp".
Thankfully, the rest of the band are quite tight and manage to hold the rest of the album together, with the possible exception of the final titular track "Dum Spiro Spero" which drags on for an unnecessarily long 20 minutes, half of which is simply the same section over and over again and positively screams BLACK SABBATH. No piece of music should ever be that long, unless it's a piece of choreographed theatre music that you're watching while sat down somewhere.

On the whole though, this is an album that more than ticks the boxes for most fans of the genre. It has suitable dark and multifaceted album art that you could stare at for hours, and definitely has (more than) enough length to satisfy buyers. It's just a shame that it is let down by lacklustre vocals and occasionally unimaginative guitars (oh, did I mention the 20 minute long track?).

6 / 10

Had Potential

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"Dum Spiro Spero" Track-listing:

1. Intro
2. On The Brink
3. Infected
4. Last Man Standing
5. Risen From The Ashes
6. Death Swamp
7. Homicidal Pleasures
8. Lethargy
9. The Shield Of Justice
10. Dum Spiro Spero

Nihilo Lineup:

Adrian - Bass
Ragulan - Vocals
Damiano - Drums
Nils - Rythm Guitar
Nicola - Lead Guitar

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