Band:	Dusk
Album:	...Majestic Thou In Ruin
Style:	Death doom metal
Release date:	1995

01. ...Majestic Thou In Ruin
02. Paled
03. Thy Bitter Woe
04. The Transfiguration (And It Was So)

One year after the majestic debut mini-CD "Dusk", the doomsters from USA unleashed their doleful melodies of deep mourning once again and for the last time with their second mini-CD "?Majestic Thou In Ruin".

Dusk, this time, show a more doom oriented face, lessening the pure death metal references of their debut mini-CD, paying tribute to ominous and depressive soundscapes that can haunt the listener any time. Stare carefully at the cover of "?Majestic Thou In Ruin", this is where you will drown once the melodies of Dusk start echoing in your solitude, in an everlasting gloomy lake where the waters no longer shiver, yet they keep secrets of sorrow and mourning for you to cherish, under the imposing withering trees whose lamenting beauty reflects on those bitter waters.

As mentioned above, this time Dusk compose more doom oriented music, the guitar riffing is slow and mourning, evoking a threatening feeling in the air, strengthened by the menacing keyboard melodies that float in air the from time to time. Well, the fact that the death metal moments are not that intense or not as many as on "Dusk" doesn't mean that the band has forgotten about them, such moments are vivid here and there making the overall atmosphere more intense and powerful. The production this time is better, yet the misty and obscure aesthetic of it remains since it's a part of Dusk's sound. The rhythm section is deeply imposing, with the drummer torturing the drums, showing no mercy with his bombastic approach, while the bass lines lend their nocturnal and dying pulse in the bleeding atmosphere.

The grunting vocals for one more time sound so vivid and so raw, echoing in the core of the soul of the listener, haunting his darkest inner chambers. In "?Majestic Thou In Ruin" there are some vocal passages where the singer interprets in a cold reciting way with clean vocals, making the overall death-like feeling all around more alive, keeping in motion the desperate nightmarish movie that passes before the eyes of the listener. A beautiful addition is the ethereal female vocals that make their appearance on "Transfiguration (And So It Was)".

Only four songs consist of "?Majestic Thou In Ruin", yet this doesn't affect the overall outcome since the album's length is around 33 minutes. All you have to do is to remain "Paled" under a mourning sun and cry "Thy Bitter Woe" as your "Transfiguration" will drown you in a world of utter oblivion and sorrow. Embrace the melodies of "?Majestic Thou In Ruin" and let them travel you in a world of darkness, there where only Dusk wandered?