Seattle heavy metal practitioners DARK MEDITATION will release their Polluted Temples full-length via Satanik Royalty Records January 28th, today unveiling the record’s first single, artwork, and preorders.
DARK MEDITATION may hail from Seattle, but their sound is steeped in traditions associated with other corners of the globe — England’s working-class cities, frosty Scandinavian towns, Southern California meccas of the ‘80s. Or as the band puts it, DARK MEDITATION sounds like the bastard amalgamation of Venom and Judas Priest fighting it out on the Sunset Strip while Danzig and King Diamond cheer them on. While such reference points may suggest a nexus of evil kitsch and arena-level theatrics, the band’s debut album Polluted Temples comes from a place of down-and-out urgency and punk ethics, adopting the gloomy anthems and riff worship of heavy metal titans for their sonic exorcisms rather than their rock n’ roll panache. It’s an album that basks in big hooks, righteous guitar work, and an arena-level stomp without compromising any grit, grime, or guts.
Comments the band of first single, “Haunt Of Fear,” now playing at Decibel Magazine, “‘Behold the Devil and He appears’… ‘Haunt Of Fear’ deals with the concept of creating a ‘devil’ or a problem you may fixate on to serve as an invented boogeyman, where fear governs your mindset and instills hatred or provides a scapegoat on why you can’t move forward with your life. Musically, it’s a thunderous foundation of first-wave black metal riffage, wailing pinch harmonics, and dueling guitar solos.”
Adds Decibel, “‘Haunt Of Fear’… is more akin to Mercyful Fate musically, though without all the falsetto wailing. In fact, if you want solid reference point, consider Sweden’s In Solitude circa Sister, as there’s a bit of goth mixed into the trad metal mix, as well. This is a band that’s confident in the path it’s following, and it isn’t a well-worn one. Polluted Temples, which is set for release January 28, actually gives us hope that 2022 has some upside beyond, ‘at least it’s not 2021.’”
Polluted Temples will be released on LP and digital formats. Find physical preorders at THIS LOCATION and digital preorders HERE.
Polluted Temples Track Listing:
1. Horus Rising (Prelude)
2. Babalon.Money.Magick
3. Haunt Of Fear
4. Strange Caress (Of The Night)
5. Masters Coil
6. Desolation Days
7. The Howling Wild
8. Drink Of The Blade
9. Nocturnal Forever
10. Polluted Temples
