帝辛 or Tyranny in English is a one man Chinese symphonic black metal project. This year, 古蛇 returns with his second full length titled 末商志·下篇 or The Demise Of A Hymn · Part Two. This album is the second and final chapter of the conceptual story depicting the destruction of a great empire three thousand years ago. The album is eight tracks of pure symphonic chaos. There are perfectly crafted elements of evil and dark melodies that collide head first with strong and well written guitar riffs (not to mention some killer solos) overlaid with black metal screams that come from the bowels of hell. The drum work on the album is not repetitive and boring as some one man black metal projects can fall into but actually stand out on top as being technical at times, throwing in fills at all the right moments. The symphonic aspect seems to be the band’s strong point as they stand at the forefront of each song, sometimes even making it hard to hear the guitar riffs.
Now that does not mean the keyboards are the only instrument or make it impossible to hear all instruments but I will say I do wish they were a little quieter on certain parts because the guitar and drum work is really awesome. Tracks 金台拜将 and 封神 stand out as my favorite tracks off this album. All and all, this album is a great closer to the two album saga and also is an amazing symphonic black metal release. If you are a fan Dimmu Borgir, Limbonic Art, Gloomy Grim and Nightside Glance, then this album will be a great addition to your collection. I definitely enjoyed this album and look forward to future releases from Tyranny.
Overall Score: 9.0/10
Review by Neil Andersen
