Dim The Lights
Self Titled
6.5
Though the prospect of yet another growly, crumbly, screamy, breakdowny, At The Gates-y, myspace deathcore band will make most cringe, Pennsylvania’s oddly named Dim The Lights, deliver a promising self released demo that should get the interest of one of billion deathcore/metalcore record labels.
Truthfully, I have actually monitored Dim The Lights for quite some time now, as they were one of the first myspace bands to befriend me and ask for a review when they got a demo out. And when compared to many other like-minded bands I’ve been approached by, (i.e bands like Arbiter, Moria, Clouds Turned Black, Trenchhead, A Stained Glass Romance and countless others), Dim The Lights are actually one of the better ones.
Immediate comparisons that came to mind for me were the likes of Antagony, Veil of Maya, The Concubine and The Storm; a hefty dose of death metal, some melody and a bit of experimentation. The vocals are the expected screams and deep pig squeals, but they are done well enough. Musically, the band suffers from the same youthful vigor that plagues many of their unsigned peers, in that they just need to tighten up a bit. The guitarists seem to be deft, but the rhythm section could use a little work. What sets bands like All Shall Perish, Misericordiam and As Blood Runs Black apart is their ultra tight delivery. Dim The Lights, even with some creative song ideas, are a bit sloppy at times. And of course this 6 song EP is self produced, so lacks the sheer destructive clarity of a Zack Ohren production.
However, song-wise the band does do some interesting things within the realms of the genre. Amid the expected hurly, burly, semi melodic, rumbling of tracks like “Born4War” and “Boundaries” which are perfectly acceptable as the genre goes, Dim The Lights throw in curve balls like “Characterized By Anger”--which, with its many musical and vocal tangents, is one of the better deathcore songs I’ve heard recently--the dramatic opening riff of “New Armor”, a programmed interlude like “Destroy Everything” or even a tribal drum solo at the end of the closing hidden track.
Whether you check this band or not depends on your tolerance for this style of music and the kids playing it. I personally don’t mind either, and Dim The Lights has a promising EP here that should garner them some label interest if the genre holds out.
