Thron - Official Website


Dust

Germany Country of Origin: Germany

1. Dying In The Mud
2. Return...
3. The True Belief
4. The Golden Calf
5. Monologue
6. The Eve
7. Into Oblivium
8. In Tyranny Of I
9. Face Of Despair
10. The Wrong God
11. Martyr


Review by Michael on March 27, 2023.

The southern German black metal combo Thron caused quite a stir in 2021 with their album Pilgrim, which was flawless black metal to a point where some said band like Dissection couldn't have composed it better. Now the guys are back with their fourth studio album Dust. The question is: did they continue where they left off or has the band developed further? (Whereby further development can often be a synonym for disappointment).

Dust begins very classically with 'Dying In The Mud' and also the following song 'Return' poaches quite properly with Dissection and shows clearly the roots of the band. This is already a solid basis to continue the album successfully.
But wait, what is this? In the third song 'The True Belief' some unusual stylistic elements actually creep into the music. For example, 'The True Belief' starts off quite rocking and with a certain dramaturgy. The guitars are unusually catchy and in the further course also kept very quiet at first - Tribulation or maybe Cloak have also done similar things in their recent past. However, in the further course of the song it falls into the usual black metal frenzy, but you can still notice a certain change in style. Also 'Into Oblivion' goes in parts into the same direction. Airy guitars that spread a certain lightness and go hand in hand with icy black metal sounds and spread an oppressive atmosphere.

If you as an unbiased listener should take a song that sums up the album well as a sample, it is definitely 'Martyr', because here you really find everything from quiet passages, over highly melodic parts to the darkest frenzy, what makes the band.
However, the quartet has created the über-song par excellence, which creates an almost epic atmosphere, with 'The Tyranny Of I'. Dense, driving riffs determine the beginning of the song, again with strong parallels to Dissection, but suddenly the tempo is taken out and with the keyboards the band creates an incredibly spherical aura that gives the listener goose bumps. In addition, the absolutely fatalistic lyrics:

"Our Curse Is Existence
We're Prisoned By Our Fate
Our Curse Is Existence
From The Womb To The Grave"

There are no questions left unanswered. Also very interesting lyrics can be found in 'The Wrong God', which again starts very melodic and slightly ponderous, not unlike old Paradise Lost albums, but then transforms into a casual mid-tempo stomper. Here, too, the nihilistic aspect is clearly in the foreground in the lyrics and makes the song interesting not only musically.

Apart from the 11 songs, of which not a single one has a drop in quality to show, the production is also a completely round thing, in which one can find no fault. What is there to criticize then? Right, nothing. Album of the year? Maybe. Paving the way for greater fame? Probably. Did the band deserve it? Definitely.

Rating: 10 out of 10

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