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 DOM DRACUL: THE RETURN OF THE RETURN OF DARKNESS & EVIL
By Nathan T. Birk
Black metallically speaking, Sweden’s on fucking fire right now. No, we’re not talking the post-Dark Funeral school of blast-boredom. Rather, we’re talking real, deep-underground BLACK fucking METAL. But maybe you know that already. If not – get with the times, already!
Of all the Swede-hordes making the UG rounds and stirring shit up, one dark horse in particular has belched forth a sickening brew of gutsfucking sounds in the past year: the one-man Dom Dracul, headed by lone wolf Lord Therramon. Debut demo Genocide in the Name of Satan bulldozed forth with earth-rumbling, soul-scar(r)ing resolve inna most Joined in Darkness-era Demoncy stylee, and that was merely during the summer of last year. Now, just 12 months later, a fully realized full-length tape album flames forth under the handle Attack on the Crucified – and surprisingly, finds Therramon finding his own (still-sickening, gutsfucking) voice. No less bulldozing but perhaps operating at a brisker, more rockist gait, Attack reminds of debut-era Bathory both delving deeper into The Rock whilst locating a genuinely, ideologically more Cult resonance; still, these songs are fucking ace, and Therramon can well ‘n’ truly vokill. Above all, ably utilizing the space he allows his oft-ghostly riffs to roam before returning to rock action, Dom Dracul cements a musty, lusty, wholly arcane BM aesthetic that’s as infectious and at-odds as they come. Amen!
“True black metal is the essence of pure evil, music for those that have been enlightened by Lucifer’s light. You must be a Satanist to play black metal!” proclaims Therramon, taking aim at what inspires him. “My music is created just like it was meant to be. I feel the most powerful black metal is the way the old bands played it – old-school black metal or nothing.
“I worship Satan, and the destruction of the current cosmic order,” the mainman warms to the (cold) theme. “When this eon is destroyed, chaos will reign once more and true freedom will follow. My lyrics are simple, old-school and raw just like the music, so the message is totally clear and more people can begin opening their eyes and join the war.”
Compared to the aforementioned Genocide tape, this Attack one is a bolder statement – or is that “boulder”? – yet equally orthodox; a more dynamic listen with its ghostly-yet-gnarly Wall of Sound approach, able to communicate on both more levels and on deeper ones. With this resolutely stripped-down approach able to bring greater resonance to Dom Dracul’s already-considerable power, there's just no denying the hypnotic, mesmerizing might of Attack coupled with the man’s grim incantations.
“I feel that true black metal can put you in a trance-like state,” concurs Therramon. “When I write and record my music, I must enter an altered state. This can be done with meditation or rituals. You must be totally dedicated and loyal to Satan to be able to create serious, powerful, destructive black metal, and you need to get into an altered state to be able to write pure Satanic music. Destroy all of the cosmic chains that are keeping you restricted – unleash the beast within, unleash the chaos!”
Getting more obtuse, maybe, is Dom Dracul more a physical manifestation or a mental one?
“Both,” Therramon estimates. You must affect the mind to be able to affect the body and sometimes vice versa.”
More obtuse, then: How much does your music aim for physical annihilation vs. mental annihilation?
“The aim with my music is the destruction of the current existence of everything.”
So, these above points considered, how much does Dom Dracul aim for a total experience – transcending being “just music” vs. being a (hypnotic, mesmerizing) platform for your lyrical/philosophical message(s)?
“The music has a very important role as well as the lyrics,” the mainman sizes things up. “The important thing is that it’s all done with 110% dedication; only then you can feel the strength of true black metal. When a song is perfectly written, it contains indescribable and unthinkable powers.”
All too true, and all too rare. Still, to return to that earliest point, when quizzed about Dom Dracul’s relation to his native UGBM scene, Therramon shrugs, “Personally, I don’t listen to any new black metal bands. I feel that there isn’t any new band that can give what the old bands already has. And the underground scene here [in Sweden] is a bit lame – too scattered, no places to do serious gigs, and too many bands that start playing black metal without being true to what black metal should be about.”
But with a rather dire world outlook and a concerted importance on his own message in relation to his medium, Therramon’s approach to “preaching to the converted” (or not) is refreshing: “If it reaches the greater mass, it could open eyes and the Satanic movement can get even stronger. The more allies in the struggle against the current cosmic order, the sooner the death of this eon comes.”
www.satanicpropaganda.cjb.net
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