I personally have a love for one man metal projects, especially black metal but we all know that some have that bedroom dungeon quality and some can be high end studio quality and I usually appreciate both. Duskseeker is a unique project as it incorporates experimental and progressive moments that sound futuristic and symphonic black metal. There is a lot going on here behind Duskseeker’s music as there are so many levels of complexity to this album. Spiralscape is the first release since 2017’s Black Wolf Nightmare and may I say this is true progression. There is a lot more risks taken on this album than previous works and it paid off like a jackpot in Las Vegas. The mix of multiple different sounds, genres and ideas just make this a very experimental journey through space and time.
Tracks like The Ghost Of The Machine and ___[i]___ are so diverse and unique. The guitar riffs are memorable and progressive, not just sticking to the classic black metal tremolo recipe. The vocals stand out heavily on this release as they sound very otherworldly and almost unhuman and more machine at times which is very unique and fits with the whole of this project. The synths and orchestrations through out the album give almost a old sci-fi movie soundtrack kind of atmosphere because they add so many different textures to the overall sound achieved by Duskseeker. There are a lot of atmospheric passages and interludes that adorn this release and I believe that is the icing on this progressive, experimental and heavy cake.
If you love your metal a little weird, different and just pure thought provoking, then I would definitely check out this album. It feels like the result of Arcturus, The Kovenant, Limbonic Art and Diabolical Masquerade having a second wave of spatial and experimental black metal sound. This will definitely be in my top ten albums list for this year and I suggest you stop reading this and go give Spiralscape by Duskseeker a listen right now!
Overall Score: 10/10
Review by Neil Andersen
