The kvlt of black metal remains alive and well. As technology for home recording grows increasingly affordable and accessible, the allure of lo-fi muddiness persists as a hallmark within the genre. On their debut release, Rehearsal Demo, Dying Fortress wears the charm of stripped-down production like a badge of honour, embracing the grim, raw, unfiltered spirit that defines black metal’s enduring mystique.
This cassette-exclusive release is exactly what it claims to be – a raw and unfiltered rehearsal demo. Steeped in the kvlt exclusivity of black metal lore, Rehearsal Demo rejects modern conventions by shunning streaming platforms and all forms of digitised listenage. Recorded over the summer of 2024 in a warehouse in Oakland, California, the setting may not be an icy Nordic forest, but a dark stuffy industrial space will need to suffice as our Californian equivalent here, complementing the limited analog only format.
The release itself comprises three tracks over an unbroken 14-minutes – a black metal dirge that drags the listener through a harrowing landscape of agony and bleakness. Brief moments of reprieve surface like gasps for air, but these only serve to prolong the overarching atmosphere of torment. The English presentation belies the Spanish lyrics of the release.
From the outset, track one, ‘Stealing The Fire From Heaven’, establishes the core elements of Dying Fortress’s sound: slow, tortured black metal screams, frostbitten riffs, and symphonic keys that occasionally pierce through the murk. The raw, underproduced quality of the recording conjures vivid parallels to the hyper-kvlt exclusivity of Les Légions Noires black metal movement from Brest, France. Simultaneously, the music’s anguished tone and oppressive weight call to mind the more introspective depths of DSBM pioneers like Leviathan and Xasthur.
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The demo’s second track, ‘Out Of The Flesh’, introduces a stark contrast, as quiet, contemplative strumming transitions into a blistering assault of blast beats, lightning-speed riffs, and even more guttural black metal shrieks. Rays of synth occasionally shimmer through the cacophony, offering brief glimpses of light amidst the chaos. This climax descends into an eerie wash of feedback and noise, reminiscent of Finland’s Ride For Revenge and their fusion of power electronics with lo-fi black metal.
As the demo winds down with closing track, ‘The Eye Of Ecstasy’, the return to quieter, atmospheric strumming offers a surprising sense of triumph, blending the raw ethos of second-wave black metal with the broader expansiveness of post-black metal.
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Here, Dying Fortress demonstrates their commitment to the raw ethos of the genre while crafting a piece that transcends its lo-fi trappings. Rehearsal Demo doesn’t merely replicate the past – it conjures a distinctly modern iteration of black metal misery, drawing on both second-wave conventions and post-black metal open-endedness, albeit with a deliberately harsh presentation.
For fans of unpolished extremity, this release is both a nostalgic nod to the roots of the genre and a reminder of its undying relevance. While its limited format and single-track nature may alienate some, for those willing to embrace its grim vision, Rehearsal Demo offers a suffocating yet strangely cathartic experience.
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