Review by UnhinderedbyTalent for Deadlife - Between Hatred and Melancholy (2018)

Prolific artist, Anders Nord is the driving force behind Hermóðr (atmospheric black metal) and Mist (another depressive black metal outfit) as well as Deadlife.  With nine full-lengths, twenty-two Ep's and nine splits in twelve years, he's a busy chap (his output with his other two bands is equally exhausting).  As such, I would expect a fifteen-minute single length track to perhaps sound a little tired.  In fact the exact opposite is true, considering this is depressive black metal it feels more positive than I would first imagine it should.

Elements of atmospheric bm seep into Between Hatred & Melancholy almost organically.  Without getting all sweeping and whooshing, the tension it builds does serve the depressive tag reasonably well at the end of the day but there is an ever present uplifting element to a song that has such a negative title.  It is like the basic elements of Coldworld blended with the lusher parts of Drudkh on Autumn Eternal or Forgotten Legends.  There is no sense of let down with this Ep though, desite it not being what I first thought it is well arranged as a single track and holds my interest well enough for the duration.

It is a great accompaniment on a long walk out I discovered today but is equally just at home being played in my lair at home.  Relying on whispered, ghastly vocals in the main, the track does allow some more calming chant-like accompaniments in towards the final third of the track.  Although it varies little in terms of the instrumentation, this repetition works well alongside the aforementioned atmosphere and the track feels like it has a real depth to it overall.  I am unlikely to visit it often but it was a neat discovery off the back of the Review Draft this month.