Dragged into Sunlight, Hatred for Mankind
Originally released in 2009 on Mordgrimm Records, Dragged into Sunlight’s debut effort “Hatred for Mankind” will now see a much wider distribution through Prosthetic Records — an event that could very well see an increased wave of suicide attempts over the next couple of months. The crusty, blackened doom cacophony that encompasses the 50 plus minutes on this album is depressive, dark, evil and down right fucked-the-hell-up. Needless to say, I love it!
Grabbing the likes of Eyehategod and Neurosis by the balls, this UK band has combined those influences with discordant and densely textured guitars, scattered, clattering rhythms and plenty of audio samples to produce a sound that is thick, suffocating, despondent and on the verge of revolutionary in terms of its unnerving uniqueness. Hatred for Mankind is delivered with such a ferocity that it just plain sounds mean. Like kick-you-in-the-teeth-mean as you bleed out from self-inflicted, precise incisions along vital arteries.
Opening up with the violent “Boiled Angel” you now right away that these guys aren’t going to waste any time fucking around. A brief sound byte introduces the album as massive, doomy riffs rumble from the speakers as a swell of textures and buzzing destruction come in with the distant, snarling vocals — which vary throughout the album from incoherent shouts to gurgling growls right out of the pits of Hell. As clever as the first song is, it’s not until the awesome “Buried with Leeches” that we really get a taste of the mayhem these guys can produce.
Through someone messy production, the layered elements of Hatred for Mankind are piled on top of one another as “Buried with Leeches” erupts out of the gate with blasting drums and one of the more hellish screams I’ve ever heard. This is a disturbingly evil sounding song that is packed full of shrieks, pounding drums, suffocating atmosphere and an unflinching dedication to delivering one hell of a violent song. Throw in a few samples and you’ve got yourself one of the several highlights on an outstanding album — and that’s only the first three minutes of the song.
“Volcanic Birth” is a pretty damn good song, though at nine plus minutes (only the third longest track) it’s a bit of a bear to handle after the first two songs. Dense guitars, clattering drums and vicious growls fill your skull with bleak visions of destruction and despondency as these guys pound out crusty, blasting mayhem like no tomorrow. “To Hieron” is a short-lived, blasting affair. At just under three minutes in length it’s direct and to the point — a very bloody, gore encrusted point. It could very well be the most violently delivered song on the disc.
Even though it’s ten and a half minutes long, “Lashed to the Grinder and Stoned to Death” ends up to be one hell of a song. Mid-tempo doom, sound clips and the kitchen sink all clammer together to see who can stand out the most through the din of static and denseness. It’s a monstrous song that demands a good deal of attention to detail, else you’ll miss some tasty bits.
Following up one ten minute song with another is ballsy, especially when you’re playing some of the nastier, crusty doom available, yet that’s exactly what Dragged into Sunlighthave done with “I, Aurora.” This eleven and a half minute ballad to all things evil starts off slow moving with massive riffs before settling into a mid-tempo chugging gallop into the mind of the deranged. This song is almost too much to handle — pounding drums, vicious vocals, driving riffs and more than enough tempo changes to give your ADD a run for its money. Holy hell the sequence of “Lashed to the Grinder and Stoned to Death” and “I, Aurora” is an immense stroke of skull crushing genius. These two songs alone have more to offer in their combined 22 minutes than most full length albums.
One look at Hatred for Mankind’s track list and album artwork (by Justin Bartlett) should be enough to let you know what you can expect upon hitting that play button. But they’re not. There’s nothing about the outward appearance that can effectively prepare you for the gloriously evil music that’s contained within these seven songs. Nothing about the disturbing artwork can prepare you for the mind melting crust-and-blast, textured atmospheres or the maniacal vocals that accompany this mass of blackened doom and grind. Holy shit, this album is impressive.