Pronounced Dauthuz
Release date: November 12, 2021
Dauþuz call Germany home, and are on Amor Fati Productions. Formed in 2016, their name can be pronounced Dauthuz. I was unfamiliar with them, but their name came across the new release list, so I decided to give it a listen. Instantly I was taken back to the late 1990’s black metal, and reminding me of bands like Nargaroth, and Barathrum, but with melodic sections that remind me of old Enslaved and Old Man’s Child. This album also includes slow doom sections that recall Candlemass and Pagan Altar.
Dauþuz have a real mixed bag on this album, Vom Schwarzen Schmied. This album is a real mixed bag. On song Der Bergschmied IV: Zauberwerk, it’s furiously fast, but has epic chorus parts, not unlike Bathory’s Hammerheart. The vocals can vary from screechy high pitched black metal (think early Abigor). The production is clear, but still the vocals are dripping with reverb. There are a few welcome acoustic parts. Der Bergschmied VI: Cognitio is a full acoustic song with 2 acoustic guitars playing at once, and it’s a beautiful piece. That song clocks in at 3 and a half minutes, but really takes you on a journey.
Overall, I would say this Vom schwarzen Schmied by Dauþuz is good, but will I be thinking about it a year from now? Probably not. It really has some epic stuff, but the riffs are a little too dull, and not very memorable. The black metal vocals are serviceable, but really are not distinctive from any other run-of-the-mill black metal band. I will say that I will be looking forward to their next album, as they seem to have a really strong base for something great in the future.
Find Dauþuz at Bandcamp, Facebook, Spotify, and YouTube.