Review Summary: A refreshing avant-garde cocktail.
DIM is the project of Canadian artist Josiah Wilkinson, who has become one of the better-known names in the dungeon synth scene since his debut in 2017. Initially, the project gained traction in the enchanting, dreamy realm of medieval ambient (similar in style to the American act Fief), which was encapsulated in a four-album series (the “Compendium” albums). However, subsequent releases marked a stylistic shift, with easily digestible medieval melodies giving way to a more experimental dark ambient phase. A standout from this era is the album
Steeped Sky, Stained Light, which incorporates church choirs, lending the work a unique, "sacred" atmosphere. This year, however, DIM has “kicked the door” on the followers, as what materialized in
Dark Age Decadence was… well, unexpected, to say the least.
To sum it up:
Dark Age Decadence is an avant-garde album. Sure, that doesn’t say much, right? By avant-garde’s very nature, it’s hard to pin down these seven tracks, as some drastic genre contrasts may cause mild shock more than once. But let’s take a closer look at what we’re dealing with.
The album opens with “The Weeping”, which begins as a blend of sound samples, ethereal choirs, and simple percussion instruments. But before the second minute hits, chaos erupts: screams, black metal vocals, and dissonant violin strokes shatter the idyllic “sound painting.” And just to make things even stranger, a little bit of downtempo emerges mid-track, inviting us to nod along to the gently flowing rhythm of the chaos. A similar cognitive whiplash is caused by the second track, the aptly titled “Gilded Lambent Black Metal Offering”. Firstly, I always welcome the use of black metal within an avant-garde context as it pairs surprisingly well with other genres. But still… I never thought I’d hear a genre fusion of raw black metal + folk + downtempo. This “genre-shock” was somewhat eased by “Clergy's Lamentation”, a magical and beautiful piano piece (in which I could detect hints of Joe Hisaishi’s style). A similar, though more melancholic serenity is presented in “Full of Blood, Sealed Well”, which most strongly recalls the “old” DIM and its playful neo-classical sound. And between such lovely and light pieces, the raw black metal tracks can hit with brutal contrast: “Fra den hellige lidelses jord” and “It Kindly Bent (Angel's Bloom)”. And none of these are just “puritanical” blast-beat-fueled assaults. The former, for instance, features the aforementioned church choirs toward its end, while the latter comes to life as a strange mix of raw black metal and synthwave. And for anyone who felt a genre was still missing, I’d recommend “Look into the Jaws of Existence”, a mid-tempo track that closes the album like a warm and thorny hug (like the charm behind blackgaze acts like Deafheaven).
In summary,
Dark Age Decadence can’t be faulted in terms of genre diversity. But that alone doesn’t necessarily make an album good. However, I believe DIM has met the challenges of avant-garde. This is most evident in the album’s incredibly smooth flow: not a single track or a single moment feels forced or inaccessible, and I’m still amazed at how seamlessly such distant genres like raw black metal and downtempo have been merged. All in all, this album is a “bizarre” experience… but it’s refreshingly exciting.
