Review by Krys on September 2, 2019.

It's one thing to call your band Slow, but on top of that to play funeral doom can quickly turn into a mockery, unless you take the base of your idea and make it greater than the sum of its parts, and this Belgian duo crushes the feelings of depression and hopelessness under the captivating and emotional new record, "Dantalion".  

There are tons of bands that play so called funeral doom but this one really is 'hit the snare and go make a coffee before next beat' kind of slow. Holy mother of all things losing the pulse and just about to die, "Dantalion" will suffocate you under its weight and end your misery while digging your grave with a smile. Right up front, I must admit that doom is something I don't listen too often since in a long run, slow tempos lose my interest and force my mind to move on to other things but this... this is so captivating and alluring that it grips my attention and makes me anticipate the next note even-though the wait from which it travels from the record to my speakers is excruciating. I mean, listen to 17 minutes 'Lueur' and when you think shit can't get any slower 'Géhenne' will crush you like a mammoth's feces falling on an insect from the height of a four-story building. But "Dantalion" is a lot more than just slow tempos, the emotional and elaborate soundscapes with beautifully haunting melodies build multilayered euphonic surroundings immersing dejected minds into the depths of empty subconscious. Skillful use of layered keyboards, orchestrations or just plain piano or guitar squeeze every last drop of your feelings until they burst in uncontrollable and distraught, frantic manner. 

One more element that has to be emphasized is the vocal performance of Déhà. The growls are unreal; deep, guttural and inhumanly prolonged, they erupt with menacing force for over 60 minutes of this opus. Last track, 16 minutes instrumental, 'Elégie' spares his vocal cords while the ship sinks to the deepest and darkest depths closing the one of the most triumphant chapters of the funeral doom metal. 

"Dantalion" is not only the slowest but also one of the best records of the year with massive and profound atmosphere, demonstrating Slow's mastery of the genre with perfect merge of might with heart-wrenching melodies. 

Rating: 9 out of 10

Review by Jeger on August 4, 2024.

Anal Allah? Sold! Shit dude, more of this, please. Fuck Christianity and you know what? Wait for it… Fuck… ISLAM! You know, the scum of ALL religions and a fucking cancer to the evolution of our species? As mega churches and mosques rapidly pop up and expand their message of lies and totalitarianism across the globe, we need black metal now more than ever. This is a silent war on the battlefront, but one that speaks loud and clear on the information highway and any other place where art/freedom of expression should be allowed to thrive. The artillery? The message behind the music as so blasphemously conveyed through desecrating black/death metal records like Rot’s (Pol) most recent LP, the ghastly and formidably volatile Messiah Death, unleashed in 2018 via the Demented Omen Of Masochism. 

A little sheep-fucking jab at Islam to merely peel back the first layer and then? Even further into the bowels of blasphemy do we descend to the sound of cute little nursery rhymes like 'Castration Of Holy God' and 'Church Burned Ruins = Invocation Of Sodomy Ritual' that homage the greats like Archgoat (Fin) and Profanatica (US), but at ten times the ferocity and with compounding levels of malice intended. Black metal is supposed to offend and appall, remember? Healthy doses of this shit happens to be exactly what the scene needs right now and ALL organized religions should be fair game. It’s fucking war and our battle-worn Damascus must always be as deadly as their refined steel. This is black/death for the glory of the horde and the slaughter of the herd… A throwback to old-school Blasphemy; something like if the huge creepy snuff dude from 8MM (film 1999) wrote a black metal album. 

All grotesqueries and desecrations aside, this is some pretty impressive music: modestly produced and altogether repulsive to the ear as far as tonality/mixing are concerned, but then there’s 'Throwing Into Hellfire'… Is this Rot or fucking Vader? Riffs like supercharged electric pulses straight up your ass, with much class and at a swift but gentlemanly pace… I would wager this album was recorded in the drummer’s spare bedroom and I wouldn’t be too far off. That’s generally the beauty of these types of blue-collar black/death metal albums. That and the sweet-as-honey blasphemy of it all. To the dogs with their prophets, to the torch with their doctrines, and straight to the cock with their nuns… 

Such vile crimes for such a holy country… That’s why Polska black just hits with a little more impact. A delving into the most unholy, most grimy corridors of black metal; shit for the veteran who possesses the ability to think for himself and to zealously embrace the adversarial path through the timeless art of blasphemy. Music for the torched pew that initiates the cathedral blaze. Music for the wolves and for the tearing through of sheep’s flesh: highly aggressive, basement filth black / death metal that sure as fuck shits on Christendom but only a tease in the trashing Islam department? As I said before, more of this is to outrage and to shock during what’s become an age when Islam apologist mentality trumps free and even rational thought. Black metal as a weapon, or possibly as the catalyst to some whiskey-induced vandalism or adrenaline-fueled pyromania - old-school black/death to go to fucking prison to… This particular school of blackened barbarism not going anywhere either, apparently, as evidenced by rising-from-the-pits, goat-fucking bands like Goatkraft, Weregoat, and Goat Semen who all give off similar, beyond brutal torture-fuck-the-virgin-Mary vibes. So, strap on a bunch of scanty spiked leather, rub a bunch of pig’s blood all over yourself, grab that battle-axe that you ordered from Bud K, and destroy something holy. Your secret’s safe with me… 

Rating: 7 out of 10