Band: Misanthropia
Title: Slang Des Doods
Label: Snakebite Records
Distribution: Rock Inc.
Release date: September 9th 2010
Review: CD

Misanthropia, how original. There used to be an Australian solo-project with this name, which changed it’s name a few years ago into Paroxysmal Descent (superior Funeral Black Grimness, by the way), and there was a Polish formation with the same moniker too, performing anti-religious Death / Black Metal (split up in mean time). Slang Des Doods, however, is done by Nijmegen, Holland-based Misanthropia, a band with Mephisto-members. Misanthropia were formed in 2001 as Throned By Tyranny; they changed name to the current one in 2004, and at the same time the Goth-influences became of minor importance. Slang Des Doods is the second full length, after the self-financed 2006-album Rise Of Necropolis.
Slang Des Doods (meaning: ‘snake of death’ in Dutch) was mixed and mastered by Mike Wead (King Diamond, Mercyful Fate, Witch, Firegod, Abstract Algebra, Bibleblack) and lasts for forty minutes. The album brings a freezing, mesmerizing and sometimes orchestral form of Black Metal, with lots of changes in melody and speed. The overall atmosphere is extremely darkened and suffocating, yet not of the suicidal or funereal kind. Besides, the band adds elements from Old School Thrash (eighties-oriented) and Doom (early nineties), and the use of symphonic or bombastic keyboards (and Hammond organ) interacts perfectly with the musical differentiation. Each hymn is nice to listen at, and in spite of the non-original approach, this album must be one of the strongest lately within its specific genre.
The band also adds some instrumental intermezzos, slightly symphonic / ambient, bringing sonic calm, yet no mental rest.
Bands that come to mind when listening to this album are: Vesania, Dimmu Borgir, Emperor, early Cradle Of Filth, Immortal Remains and Nahemah, or Dutch colleagues Apocrypha or Eternal Conspiracy, to name but a few. And qualitatively, Misanthropia easily reach the level of any of these comparisons.

88/100

Ivan Tibos.