ALBUM REVIEW: The Fallen Leaves – Dwarrowdelf
Dwarrowdelf – the great dwarven city within the Mines of Moria where the Fellowship of The Ring come a cropper of a host of goblins and a mighty Balrog. DWARROWDELF however, is the name of a solo melodic blackened death metal project from the south coast. The Fallen Leaves is the fourth album release from multi-instrumentalist Tom O’Dell under this name. It is also a slight departure thematically; where previous works have drawn extensively from the works of Tolkien (as one would expect), The Fallen Leaves diversifies the source material and leads to a more enthralling sound.
The sense of scale and atmosphere that O’Dell is able to produce is immediately apparent from Within the Ashes, The Ember Still Burns. For those already familiar with the DWARROWDELF sound, particularly 2020’s Evenstar, this is what one would expect. For brand new listeners it is an absolute treat of an introduction. However, it’s The Journey To Dawn where things really start opening up. Building upon the foundational atmosphere of the preceding track, the instrumentation kicks it up a gear with chugging riffs and uncompromising rhythms. The harsh vocals fit perfectly, layering in with the aggressive yet still melodic musical backdrop. There is a sense of grand space that one would associate with melodeath yet there is a sinister blackened edge underpinning the whole delivery. This blend is intoxicating and creates a tremendous captivation.
With lyrical themes of sorrow and reality struggles, it would be easy for the music to slip into equally deep, dark territory. However, there is an overarching sense of alluring light to the whole album. The melodies are clear and at times uplifting, delivering a wonderful counterpoint to the heavier subject matter. This is achieved in part by the expert song crafting of O’Dell but also the chosen instrumentation of strings, pads and layered synths which create the harmonies and work to offset the crushing riffs and pounding rhythm section. Prime examples of this would be tracks such as To Dust We All Return and Deliverance. The former features some of the most colossal sounding riffs on the album coupled with unrelenting drum sections. However, the guitar melodies harmonise with those of the synth lines and uplift the whole feel of the track. Match this with the clear, clean vocals of the verse sections counterpointing the harsher gutturals of the chorus and this track is a standout in a host of memorable moments.
Deliverance is one of the two singles released and is a majestic opus illustrating what DWARROWDELF is all about. All of the aforementioned elements, from the lyrical thematics, song composition and instrumental collaboration are on display. The track initially begins with an unassuming acoustic guitar line before opening out into a magnificent piece of blackened melodic death metal. Whichever way you slice it, it’s a track of exceptional quality. Admittedly O’Dell is steering away from the Tolkien-esque themes, but Deliverance is a bit like that bit in the Fellowship Of The Ring where Gandalf illuminates the great hall of dwarrowdelf. That’s what this track does musically.
Sometimes a solo project can sound a little thin. Aspects can fall short when there is only one creative mind at the helm. However, this is not the case with DWARROWDELF and certainly not the case with this new album. O’Dell’s capabilities as a musician cannot be understated. The delivery from production through to the songwriting are of a scale that one would expect a larger compositional input from different sources. If this is indeed a new chapter for DWARROWDELF then it is definitely an exciting one and will lead to many more people looking to seek out these tracks. While the music of The Fallen Leaves has shifted away from the realms of Tolkien in terms of root inspiration, it is still fair to say that the wealth of Moria was not just in Mithril, but also riffs.
Rating: 9/10
The Fallen Leaves is set for release on February 2nd via Northern Silence Productions.
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