Review by Greg on July 17, 2024.

Let's just take a second to appreciate the artwork. You would expect a scenario like this from an emergent German metal band in '84, or maybe coupled with a darker take on Scandinavian Europower, but I bet you're not thinking about the debut effort of a black/thrash outfit from China, of all places, right? Endless Witchcraft is, indeed, the first full-length of Demonslaught 666, a youngish outfit from the second-most populous country in the world.

Now, I've surely said several times that blackened thrash is a good time more often than not (exception made for Night Slasher's s/t, but hopefully I'll re-evaluate it too with time), and Endless Witchcraft does not confute the argument. Granted, it might not be the most visionary album you'll come across in 2024, it lacks a bit of memorability like Hellripper or UK's Devastator are masters at, the drums of A New Machine – yep, that's the dude's pseudonym – seem to know only one tempo (and you can safely guess which one), but dude, their name is fucking DEMONSLAUGHT 666, what the hell are you even asking for? Now that I think about it, I'm moderately disappointed they didn't manage to find a way to sneak an umlaut somewhere. There's still work to do, guys...

Nonetheless, there are a couple of deviations from the norm, above all 'Evil Hammer Force', which incredibly slows down at some point, delivering the only refrain that sticks out somehow – although it arguably helps that I can't for the life of me fathom what song it was lifted from, so my overall positive impression is safe, for now. I also feared the worst after spotting the mandatory 6-min closer, which however attempts only a lone minute of buildup before going back to the (Dem)onslaught, offering the album's strongest riffs (even if I particularly liked the bass-driven verses for some reason) and wrapping up Endless Witchcraft on its highest note, coming after the almost as good title-track and its loud as all hell gang shouts (sadly underutilized elsewhere) and the blasting 'Unspeakable Evil'.

There's plenty of things to like even on the less distinct numbers, starting from the powerful production, slightly modern drums aside (even if the frequent tom fills à la "Pleasure To Kill" were kinda funny), to Paravoid's vocals, taken straight out of the Athenar school, heavily echoed and mostly unintelligible, but strong nonetheless. He sometimes tries to accent a line with some squeaky yowls (not unlike what Darren Funk attempted on the latest Slave Agent), only that it feels so random that I can't help but picture somebody periodically poking him with a needle on his cheek during the recording sessions. Comical effect guaranteed, but it's no huge deal at the end of the day. I'm rather curious about the lyrics, since I expected top tier Engrish from an album of this ilk, but they don't seem to be available at the moment. Solos are totally optional, and I can't act disappointed with this many surprising riffs (check after the solo in 'Phantom Witch' for my absolute favourite one), but they're also far from offensive whenever they appear, although mostly courtesy of guest musicians.

Honestly, I'm happy to say I liked Endless Witchcraft more than Hellish Expectations, to say – more ferocious, and less conveying the impression of a quick jam session caught on tape. Although I can't rule out the possibility that my judgement might have been influenced by my total and utter lack of expectations, as throughout my whole first listen I was constantly waiting for the inevitable ugly riff to pop up, which, to my delight, never happened (save for the inexplicably cacophonic refrain of 'Banshee' where the members seem to channel their inner Captain Beefhearts and end up sounding like they're going each their own way), at the end, what Demonslaught 666 offers is simply a good, passionate album with a particularly strong ending streak. I don't have much more to ask from it.

Rating: 7.6 out of 10

Review by Nathan on February 28, 2024.

While I don't think anyone is considering the German scene to be their personal favorite, it's easily the most consistent scene out there, which is no small feat consider it's a markedly bigger country than, say, Poland. There's a lot more opportunity for generic bands to suck. However, I find it almost works out in the complete opposite way, because generic metal in Germany has assembly line levels of efficiency. I dunno if it's just because Rammstein is considered radio rock there, but there's a level of professionalism and dedication that you see in a band like Dauþuz that just isn't there in other local scenes. I dunno if it's just that the German miner lyrical theme adds a degree of "serious business" to the mix, but if this is bargain bin black metal in Germany, fuck, I should move to Germany.

Here's a little rundown if you're unfamiliar with this band (as I was prior to checking out this album). This is black metal that sometimes takes influence from more niche genres (the screams suggest a DSBM influence, while the prominent sense of melody can give off Pagan/folk vibes), but is otherwise straightforward. The drums have a simplistic, almost punk rock feel to them, which is already common in black metal – it's very reminiscent of a more European, slightly expanded version of El-Ahrairah's eponymous album when the drums fall back into a standard rock beat. The vocals are mostly a hollow, screechy howl, with some clean backups and double-ups sprinkled in there on occasion. It's not quite friendly enough to be classified as folk/black or melodic black, but it comes close. A slightly less upbeat Sargeist is a somewhat accurate comparison if you take the regional differences into account.

The building blocks Dauþuz uses are as generic as they come, as you can see, but they songs are arranged in a way that makes them memorable. This is a perfect example of a band not needing to reinvent the wheel because they've already got their formula down. The only thing that you can really do to improve is build on the chemistry you have, and Dauþuz recognizes this with Monvmentvm. They're sticking with the same themes and trimming the fat, and also try to create unique arrangements within the template they already have. 'Der Bergschmied' has a super cool harsh-vocal-over-clean-guitar part at the end that a lot of bands try but few can make work effectively. Because they've been hammering away at the style for a few albums now, Dauþuz knows what kinds of risks they can take within the songs, and they've also done a really good job of eliminating unnecessary filler riffs on Monvmentvm. Even the longer 8-9 minute songs don't drag. No sections ever sound like they're ill-fitting and they never repeat riffs for too long, which is significant in a genre that is supposed to be raw and minimalistic. Even the acoustic guitar passages, which usually function as little more than hokey interludes, do a lot to solidify the atmosphere and pace of this album. Nothing about Monvmentvm is different from the tens of thousands of other black metal albums out there, Dauþuz just takes a bit more time and care when they're composing, and the small investment pays big dividends. Although this is a 2019 release, the tight compositions and confident execution present makes it sound like these songs have been written for years.

Even as a black metal fan, it's possible Dauþuz flew under your radar. Naturmacht Productions has a somewhat insular family of bands, all content to dwell within their little German atmo-black circle. I can't say that Dauþuz stands out at all from that already-niche crowd, but that could be seen as a good thing or a bad thing, because nothing stands out in a sore thumb-type way, either. This is just a very sleek, meat-and-potatoes kind of black metal album that chugs along like a carefully crafted and well-oiled machine. It's simple and melodic enough that the riffs will stick with you, and if you don't need a lot of extra garnishes in your black metal to be satisfied this will be right up your alley. At first, I was confused as to why a folk-tinged black metal album would choose German miners as a concept to base a band around, but it makes a lot more sense when you see the words I'm using to describe Dauþuz - they're steady, efficient, and more about substance over style. Not unlike a German laborer slowly plugging away in a mineshaft, a tinge of hope gleaming in his eyes as he searches for a rare gold nugget.

Rating: 8.3 out of 10

Review by Nathan on February 28, 2024.

While I don't think anyone is considering the German scene to be their personal favorite, it's easily the most consistent scene out there, which is no small feat consider it's a markedly bigger country than, say, Poland. There's a lot more opportunity for generic bands to suck. However, I find it almost works out in the complete opposite way, because generic metal in Germany has assembly line levels of efficiency. I dunno if it's just because Rammstein is considered radio rock there, but there's a level of professionalism and dedication that you see in a band like Dauþuz that just isn't there in other local scenes. I dunno if it's just that the German miner lyrical theme adds a degree of "serious business" to the mix, but if this is bargain bin black metal in Germany, fuck, I should move to Germany.

Here's a little rundown if you're unfamiliar with this band (as I was prior to checking out this album). This is black metal that sometimes takes influence from more niche genres (the screams suggest a DSBM influence, while the prominent sense of melody can give off Pagan/folk vibes), but is otherwise straightforward. The drums have a simplistic, almost punk rock feel to them, which is already common in black metal – it's very reminiscent of a more European, slightly expanded version of El-Ahrairah's eponymous album when the drums fall back into a standard rock beat. The vocals are mostly a hollow, screechy howl, with some clean backups and double-ups sprinkled in there on occasion. It's not quite friendly enough to be classified as folk/black or melodic black, but it comes close. A slightly less upbeat Sargeist is a somewhat accurate comparison if you take the regional differences into account.

The building blocks Dauþuz uses are as generic as they come, as you can see, but they songs are arranged in a way that makes them memorable. This is a perfect example of a band not needing to reinvent the wheel because they've already got their formula down. The only thing that you can really do to improve is build on the chemistry you have, and Dauþuz recognizes this with Monvmentvm. They're sticking with the same themes and trimming the fat, and also try to create unique arrangements within the template they already have. 'Der Bergschmied' has a super cool harsh-vocal-over-clean-guitar part at the end that a lot of bands try but few can make work effectively. Because they've been hammering away at the style for a few albums now, Dauþuz knows what kinds of risks they can take within the songs, and they've also done a really good job of eliminating unnecessary filler riffs on Monvmentvm. Even the longer 8-9 minute songs don't drag. No sections ever sound like they're ill-fitting and they never repeat riffs for too long, which is significant in a genre that is supposed to be raw and minimalistic. Even the acoustic guitar passages, which usually function as little more than hokey interludes, do a lot to solidify the atmosphere and pace of this album. Nothing about Monvmentvm is different from the tens of thousands of other black metal albums out there, Dauþuz just takes a bit more time and care when they're composing, and the small investment pays big dividends. Although this is a 2019 release, the tight compositions and confident execution present makes it sound like these songs have been written for years.

Even as a black metal fan, it's possible Dauþuz flew under your radar. Naturmacht Productions has a somewhat insular family of bands, all content to dwell within their little German atmo-black circle. I can't say that Dauþuz stands out at all from that already-niche crowd, but that could be seen as a good thing or a bad thing, because nothing stands out in a sore thumb-type way, either. This is just a very sleek, meat-and-potatoes kind of black metal album that chugs along like a carefully crafted and well-oiled machine. It's simple and melodic enough that the riffs will stick with you, and if you don't need a lot of extra garnishes in your black metal to be satisfied this will be right up your alley. At first, I was confused as to why a folk-tinged black metal album would choose German miners as a concept to base a band around, but it makes a lot more sense when you see the words I'm using to describe Dauþuz - they're steady, efficient, and more about substance over style. Not unlike a German laborer slowly plugging away in a mineshaft, a tinge of hope gleaming in his eyes as he searches for a rare gold nugget.

Rating: 8.3 out of 10