Artist: Darvaza
Country: Italy / Norway
Label: Terratur Possessions
Formats: LP / CD
Year: 2025
In my review of ‘Ascending Into Perdition’, I wrote that this debut album by the band, released in 2022, proved that their formula, as presented on the first three 12″ EPs, has only deepened and gained in song quality. Now, a couple of years later, I think that statement still stands for the most part, but I think that, in all fairness, a footnote should be added. The band might have grown in terms of song writing ability, yet in hindsight, now a good couple of years later, that all came at the expense of the impact and overall intensity of the music. After reviewing ‘Ascending Into Perdition’ I haven’t ever felt the urge to revisit the album, which might say enough to start with, but now that I have listened to it again twice, I think it is fair to conclude that Darvaza is slowly losing its raison d’être.
That feeling is even strengthened after having ‘We Are Him’ a good couple of times. While it is absolutely not a bad album it never captures the attention completely. Not only because ‘We Are Him’ feels like a repetition of the things we’ve already heard on previous releases, but because there is a surprising lack of urgency in the tracks. Darvaza was never about stunning dynamics or versatility, but in the end these seven new songs go by without anything really memorable happening. In fact, and I don’t mean to sound all too rude or disrespectful, as a whole, the album sounds just tedious and tiresome.
And that idea is not focussed on the music alone, also Wraath’s vocals feel uninspired and even almost forced. It could very well be that ‘We Are Him’ is the result of both involved musicians simply having too much bands going. I can imagine that at some point it feels like a kind of obligation to come up with new material for all those bands and projects every now and then. This will undoubtedly put pressure on your inspiration and creativity. Of course, I can’t judge from the sidelines whether this also applies to Darvaza, but what the duo delivers with this album is barely acceptable and, to me, symbolises the slowly crumbling empire of this kind of modern Black Metal.
Simply put, I miss the intensity and unbridled energy that emanated from Sinmara or Celestial Bloodshed, for example. No one is forcing these same musicians to continuously start new bands and projects with each other and in different line-ups, or to bury these projects before their time.
