Review by Jeger on March 12, 2025.

Let's get into some solo melo-death. I've covered about a thousand solo black metal projects and the taste has gotten stale. What we have today is a much maligned melodic death metal scene with vanilla bands like The Halo Effect spearheading the movement as opposed to a magnificent ones like Omnium Gatherum or perhaps Buried Realm, out of Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA. BR is masterminded by one Josh Dummer who handles all phases except for guest musician contributions. It's the fucking cover art that got me though. Remember back in the day at the record store when you would buy an album solely based on its rad cover art? Sold! To the sucker in the Dissection shirt who stinks of weed and cigarettes… on April 4, Buried Realm will unveil its fourth LP, The Dormant Darkness.

Into Eternity anyone? Fuck if I didn't get a hard-on for the opener, "Bloodline Artifice". All the same sweet spots massaged: regimented double-bass currents, gravitational riffs, stunning cleans, striking leads and glorious melodic passages. Fresh like pancakes, man… There's a lot going on here. The album's aggression is offset by its sentiment. For every blazing, swirling minute of progressive/technical/melodic/avant-garde bedazzlement, there are equal parts heart & soul to be felt as well. I guess we're doing power metal stuff now during the intro to "A Futile Endeavor". What a nice touch with all the pinch harmonics. And then galloping along to some tasty chugs one minute and drooping your lids to some intoxicating melodies the next.

Such energy, like this guy gives a shit about what he's doing or something. This isn't some throw-the-major-label-a-bone LP, but a statement. You'll get it… An almost industrial vibe to "Where The Armless Phantoms Glide, Pt. II" as the rhythm section becomes something entirely too precise to be organic. Robotic rhythms drive forward chug-fueled leads as maniacal vocal tirades  somehow overpower it all. Man, George Kollias (Nile) would be proud of our boy here. Josh proving to be a formidable percussionist as well as a remarkable axeman.

As far as engineering, tonality and all that mumbo-jumbo, except a gargantuan sound, like Septicflesh or Belphegor big with every phase pulsating at surface level. Grab yourself by the balls and spit, because this is big boy melo-death, and yet so refined all the same. Somebody throw this dude a record deal. He's better than 3/4 of the schlubs you've got on your roster! Melodic death metal for transcendence beyond the status quo and to breathe some fresh life into the genre. It comes down to songwriting. A fundamental approach will always trump all the fancy shit: nice segmentation, anticipatory changes in tempo, reciprocity and choral. All the stuff that just makes for great music. All right here, my friends. When these techniques are combined with this kind of adeptness and imagination, the result is brilliant records like The Dormant Darkness. It's better because it's American! Just kidding, but seriously, you'll dig this one. Horns up!

Rating: 8.5 out of 10