Demo Review: Dionysian Rites "Kriegsanleihe" (Nihilistic Noise Propaganda) by Devin Joseph Meaney

Band: Dionysian Rites

Country: US/Australia

Genre: Black/death/doom metal

Demo: Kriegsanleihe

Format: Cassette (limited to 60 copies), digital

Label: Nihilistic Noise Propaganda

Release date: February 19, 2020

I have been reviewing a steady stream of grindcore, gorenoise, and goregrind, but I honestly have been straying away from other genres recently. Due to this, I got it in my head that I wanted to listen to some black metal or something similar. I did not have time to listen to an hour-long full-length, so after some searching, I settled on a demo from the doom metal/war metal band Dionysian Rites. Not exactly what I was searching for, but hell... this demo is twelve minutes long, so it is worth checking out, right?

This demo is titled “Kriegsanleihe” and appears to be quite the volatile (in a good way) blast of doom-laden revelry. Doom metal and “war metal” are not genres that I frequent, so I am at a loss as to what I could compare these tracks to. One band that I notice a similarity with is the band Gravewards, a doom metal band that features my friend Henry Peachey. Either way, the tracks, although slow in comparison to what I am used to, manage to keep my interest peaked throughout the entire listening experience.

All tracks on this seem to be of the top tier variety, but my favorite would need to be the third track “Slaves of Divinity.” This song is a tad more upbeat than the previous two tracks, and speed-wise it is more up my alley. The first vocals on the first track also need mentioning though, as they really suck you into this gruesome release.

This band is from Australia/USA and this is their debut demo. Now that I know this is a debut, I will for sure take the time to check out more of their material as it becomes available. Released on February 2020 (limited cassette format) by Nihilistic Noise Propaganda. This release was great (although out of the ballpark for me personally) and I suggest that fans of this kind of thing give these tracks a spin. –Devin Joseph Meaney

Lineup:

Vardlokker: Vocals

Krigsgaldr: Guitars, bass, drums

Track list:

1. Cerebral Poison

2. War on Angels

3. Slaves of Divinity