DEMON HUNTER  "Summer Of Darkness"

Dall’America la proposta di gruppi metalcore ed hardcore cristiani è molto ampia e varia. Tra questo filone si distinguono i Demon Hunter, che nel 2004 pubblicano il loro secondo album, ovvero “Summer Of Darkness”. La proposta della band americana è appunto un hardcore che a volte tocca sonorità più metalcore, forse più commerciali.
Comunque i nostri tengono sempre molto viva la parte melodica, senza strafare però; infatti tutti i brani di questo lavoro sono grintosi al punto giusto. Altra caratteristica dei Demon Hunter è il doppio canto, ovvero le due voci quella growl e quella pulita che si alternano nei vari brani del CD. Il mix delle due voci in pezzi come ‘Our Faces Fall Apart’, ‘I Play Dead’ e la finale ‘The Latest And The Last’ risulta davvero ottimo, ben riuscito.
Fuori dalle linee invece è il brano ‘My Heartstrings Come Undone’ che anche se più melodico degli altri pezzi riesce a mantenere il forte impatto sonoro, colpisce l’assenza della voce “sporca”. Belle anche le parole del testo: "Oh, my heartstrings come undone / I will wait for you, pray for you / Before i make my final run / I will stay with you, decay with you / I know i'm not the perfect one, the pain has just begun / It's something i already chased, i already chased / You bring me to a better path, it's everything i asked / It's something i don't wanna face, i don't wanna face / There's nothing left! The fear is gone / There's nothing left! The fear is gone”.
Invece è più presente il lato hardcore in brani come ‘I Play Dead’, o nel pezzo seguente, ‘Everything Was White’ dove le chitarre svolgono un grande lavoro con i riff, e di cui citiamo parte del testo: "With every word I breathe out / I feel it escaping from my soul / With every thought created / Omission leaving me so cold / I've seen inside the downward fall / Remember all the filth I saw / I've seen inside the downward fall / Remember everything I saw”.
Da citare ancora ‘Anihilate The Corrupt’ brano veramente ben riuscito, dove melodia e sound più aggressivo si intrecciano creando un’intesa veramente speciale: “I am the face of your afflication. / Feeding new life through the cracks in your skull. / I am the pain of your conviction / Stabbing you right through the back of your soul. / This is life, this is love”.
Infine la conclusiva ‘The Latest And The Last’ che è un gradino sopra gli altri pezzi, grazie all’alchimia creata dalle due voci specie quanto cantano insieme. Da citare anche parte del testo di questo brano: “Before you break your silence, before we tear this open... / We'll count the dead and hopeless for every word unspoken. / Thoughts, like blood, run (forever staining our hands) / Mouth like cold gun (before the barrel we stand) / The latest and the last (you put a price on my head) / The latest and the last (the worst is already said)”.
Comunque nei testi di tutte le canzoni o quasi, è molto forte la presenza del dolore e della sofferenza presenti nel mondo.
Quello che colpisce di più in quest’album è la parte melodica ma l’intrecciarsi delle due voci (growl e pulita) riesce molto bene e produce risultati più che ottimi! Anche il sound più aggressivo è azzeccato e trova l’amalgama giusta con le parti melodiche; questa si può dire che è una costante del gruppo, un suo punto di forza.
Però forse manca un brano che sia dall’inizio alla fine veramente “pesante” che metta da parte per un momento le melodie per dar vita alla potenza del gruppo. E questa “monotonia” a livello di sound può far si che quest’album non incida più di tanto.

Tommaso “tonno” Benedetti
Voto: 6,5/10

In America the christian metalcore and christian hardcore bands are a lot and various. Among them there is Demon Hunter, that in 2004 produced its second album, "Summer Of Darkness". The proposal of this American band is an hardcore that handles sometimes metalcore sonorities, maybe more commercial.
However this band keeps alive the melodic part, without exaggerating; indeed all the songs of this album are gritty at the right point. Another characteristic of Demon Hunter is the double singing, the growl and clean voices are alternated along the CD songs.
It’s a mix of the voices that in pieces like ‘Our Faces Fall Apart’, ‘I Play Dead’ , and the final ‘The Latest And The Last’ results really excellent and well made.
Out of lines is the song ‘My Heartstrings Come Undone’ that even if more melodic of the other songs, it’s able to maintain the strong impact of the sound, it’s impressive the absence of the voice “dirty”. Beautiful also the words of the lyric: "Oh, my heartstrings come undone / I will wait for you, pray for you / Before i make my final run / I will stay with you, decay with you / I know i'm not the perfect one, the pain has just begun / It's something i already chased, i already chased / You bring me to a better path, it's everything i asked / It's something i don't wanna face, i don't wanna face / There's nothing left! The fear is gone / There's nothing left! The fear is gone”.
Instead is more present the hardcore side in the songs like ‘I Play Dead’ or in the following piece ‘Everything Was White’ where the guitars make a big job with riffs, about which I cite a part of the lyric: "With every word I breathe out / I feel it escaping from my soul / With every thought created / Omission leaving me so cold / I've seen inside the downward fall / Remember all the filth I saw / I've seen inside the downward fall / Remember everything I saw”.
I should cite also ‘Annihilate The Corrupt’ , song really well made, where melody and sound more aggressive are interlaced creating a real special mutual understanding: “I am the face of your afflication. / Feeding new life through the cracks in your skull. / I am the pain of your conviction / Stabbing you right through the back of your soul. / This is life, this is love”.
Then the ending song ‘The Latest And The Last’ which is a step over the other pieces, thanks to the alchemy created by two voices above all when they sing together. I want to cite also part of the lyric of this song: “Before you break your silence, before we tear this open... / We'll count the dead and hopeless for every word unspoken. / Thoughts, like blood, run (forever staining our hands) / Mouth like cold gun (before the barrel we stand) / The latest and the last (you put a price on my head) / The latest and the last (the worst is already said)”.
However in the lyrics of all the songs or almost at least, is very strong the presence of the pain and the sufferance present in the world.
What it strikes more in this album is the melodic part but the interlacing of the two voices (the growl and the clean one) is succeeds very well and it gives very excellent results! As the sound more aggressive that finds the right amalgam with the melodic parts, and this, I could say, is a constant of the band, a strength point. But maybe it misses a song really “heavy” that puts apart for a moment the melodies to give live to the power of the band. And this “monotony” at the sound level could make the album not impressing so much.

Tommaso “tonno” Benedetti
Voto: 6,5/10