Deadwood – 8 19

Dark, dark, dark, Deadwood is pure darkness. The Swedes certainly do seem to have a knack for such darkness, which is just fine by these standards! With the 2005 album ‘8 19’ on Cold Spring, Deadwood deserves recognition as one of the better heavy electronics acts in operation.

The style of this album ranges from absolute power electronics to chilling black ambience. When vocals are present they are sometimes intense and screaming (like with the title track ‘8 19’, and ‘wither sith’), and other times they are closer to spoken word (like with the track ‘bitch on the…’). In both cases, the vocals mesh with the mix in a restrained way.

In fact, there is a restrained quality to Deadwood throughout this album. Even when the volume and noise are on the rise one gets the feeling that Deadwood is holding back, just a bit, in order to maintain control- to prevent from unleashing a complete and total chaos. This quality gives Deadwood a distinct and much appreciated character. ‘8 19’ will not disappoint fans of the darker genres.

artist: Deadwood
label: Cold Spring
details: 6 tracks, 59 mins 2005 [CSR53CD]