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Many had every reason to fear Darkane was going to head down a Soil Flames (get it?) path after 2002’s Expanding Senses. The songs were a little commercialized and mid-tempo, and the blinding technicality of this troop was reduced to standard levels. To compound matters, drum lord Peter Wildoer was forced to the sidelines with a crippling condition in his wrists. All this seemed to provoke Darkane to unleash what will end up being their most daunting and elaborate album of their career. The proper companion piece to 1998’s classic Rusted Angel album, Layers Of Lies sees Darkane return to the house of blinding thrash and intensity, all but dusting the competition.
The first acknowledgment must be made to singer Andreas Sydow, who sounds more confident and honed-in than before. Sydow’s vocals have a piercing, grizzly quality to them that sets him apart from the typical Swedish screamer. His phrasing and vocal choices are top notch, especially in cuts like ‘Organic Canvas’ and ‘Layers Of Lies’.
Choice for thrash burner of the year has to go to ‘Godforsaken Universe,’ although the main riff does recall ‘Undead’ by The Haunted. A visceral, heart-racing song, Darkane creates an explosive canvas of technical riffs, blistering drumming by Wildoer and a chorus that can be sung along to. Elsewhere, the Meshuggah-esque stomp of ‘The Creation Insane’ will certainly go over well live, and ‘Secondary Effects’ sees Darkane branch off into quasi-melodic metal territory.
Probably one of the top 5 best albums thus far in ’05, everything Darkane does on Layers Of Lies is far too advanced and risky for their Ozzfest-bound contemporaries. There is nothing ‘nu’ or trendy about this album, proving that when in the right frame of mind, no one does Swedish thrash better than Darkane. » darkane.com
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