Origin:	Norway
Genres:	Black Metal

Dismal Euphony

After repeated listens to all four of Dismal Euphony's full-length albums, they remain a difficult band to describe or pigeon-hole. Their early roots are clearly in black metal, but even Soria Moria Slott, the album with the most traditional black metal sound, doesn't fit the mold -- indeed, with its muted guitars, lush keyboards, and female vocals (clean, alternating with a black metal rasp by the bassist), this is one of the most relaxed and laidback black metal albums to be found. Autumn Leaves (the BNR pick for their best album) beefs up the sound, but retains the orchestration of the first album while beginning to distance itself from the black metal tag. Following some key lineup changes was All Little Devils, and here is where most of the black metal elements (save the male vocals) disappear, yet their style remains forceful and dynamic. Clearly not a band afraid of experimentation, as the techno of "Splendid Horror" (from Autumn Leaves) or the strange western flavor of "Flyineye" (from Python Zero) can attest. This is a band working on their own terms, and while the results are occasionally uneven, there are more than enough moments where everything does indeed come together. As the four albums are somewhat different in nature, it's difficult to pick one as the most representative of their style, but Autumn Leaves and All Little Devils might be good places to start. The group was never heard from following 2001's Python Zero and is now disbanded.