Rising Sunset- De Mysterium Tenebris

A pleasant surprise! Ascending from the ever growing Maltese metal scene, a symphonic blackend death metal gem stands out with Rising Sunsets’ 2020 release entitled “De Mysterium Tenebris” on Wormhole Death Records. Rising Sunset is a band that has seen quite a bit of evolution over the years, originating in 2001 as a symphonic power metal band, later moving towards a more dark and gothic symphonic feel, to where they have seem to now find their niche; symphonic blackend death metal.

De Mysterium Tenebris displays the bands focus on composing great symphonic-based pieces that help create a dark atmosphere to take the listener on a euphoric journey. The Orchestral pieces really tend to stand out on this album, they are not over the top, but complement the melody and lyrical themes quite nicely. As in the album title, these lyrics accompanied with orchestral pieces really do lend a hand in creating a mysterious atmosphere. I cannot help but compare this album to the likes of bands such as Septic Flesh, Dimmu Borgir as well as Rotting Christ. This album can definitely hold its own amongst bands like that, at the same time it has its own sense of originality. De Mysterium is very dark and melodic, I would refer to it as easy listening, in the fact that the arrangements flow very well and that’s just what I am looking for when listening to a melodic symphonic band. When listening to songs like “Serpents of Eden”, its very easy to let oneself become amerced in the beauty of the composition and atmosphere. There are some awesome leads on guitar in this tune and the drumming is exactly whats needed to complement all of the ‘moving pieces’ evident in this song. Sometimes the best musicians display restraint in their abilities to help the composition as a whole.

As stated above, this album was a very pleasant surprise, I could definitely see this band jumping on some upper-mid level festivals in 2021, if festivals are a thing anymore. This album is a must have for fans of Septic Flesh, Be’Lakor, Dimmu Borgir, Rotting Christ and even Carach Angren. You won’t be disappointed!

Reviewed by: Ian

Rating 8.5/10
Label: Wormhole Death
Country: Malta
Release Date: 8/5/2020

Lineup:
Carlo Calamatta – Rhythm and Solo Guitars, Death Growls, Drum Compositions
Joseph Camilleri – Rhythm Guitars, Black metal Scream Vocals
Clifford Smith – Bass
Ian Spiteri – Keyboards

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