One of those bands that if you haven’t listened to yet, you are making a mistake. That is exactly what we could say about DIAGOR. Coming from Ukraine, the cradle of Black and Pagan Metal, we could say that! Bands like Nokturnal Mortum, Khors, Kroda, Drudkh brought a new perspective to the underground and raised it to a new level, with that, the emergence of new bands there would be inevitable, and Diagor was one of those pleasant surprises! They come from Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, in the southeast and it a very busy and modern city. Tradition and modernity walk side by side. And maybe it describes Diagor’s music.
Their debut album “Ненависть к живому” was released in 2016 by More Hate Prods from Russia. They deliver a sophisticated Atmospheric Black Metal. The debut album has around 43 minutes and they do what they should do: quality music in every track. And why did it take so long to the new album see the light? We asked them and you will have to read the interview at Black Metal Terror Magazine to find out!
The good news are: They are BACK! And with a new album with ten tracks. The new album is called “The Ruining World” and the Gnosticism, Philosophy and these kinds of themes from the previous album they’re still there, but I think this album is a little darker than the first one. But make no mistake: THE ATMOSPHERE is there, the guitars are pretty symphonic and a strong point through the whole album. Here we have something similar to the debut album.
With a brief introduction to a space climate, Diagor brings atmospheric heavy weight to extreme metal. One thing that is different are the voices. The first album has more Nokturmal Mortum or Drudkh-like voices. Now the voices are deeper and darker, guttural sometimes. This was the impression on “Infinite Space“. On the other hand, the groovy “Insomnia” has some elements that make us think of Dub Buk, that is a strong influence here, in the arrangements, in the voices, this could be a track from the album “Мертві сорому не ймуть”.
In Monster” we have excerpts with spoken voices, but the rule is screaming and sharp vocals , piercing instruments in our ears. “Eternity” and “Realist” have interesting elements, both songs look more melodic, but heavy. Specially in “Realistic” the chorus is a powerful tool. The guitars are pretty technical and the keyboards put us into a cyclical atmosphere. “Dead Light, Living Darkness” has a metal pace, like bands from the 80’s or even Nevermore and the whole technical guitars and excellent drum work prove to us that it is possible to mix a bit of traditional metal with Atmospheric Black Metal and have an extremely satisfying result without escaping your identity.
“Barely Audible Scream” is a summary of the album, this track connects all the elements of Atmospheric Black Metal with Black Metal itself, coming to blend them and make it sound natural. And you see, I’m not a fan of Atmospheric Black Metal. “From the Earth” starts with roars and blast beats. It’s the most Black Metal track on the album, but don’t get me wrong, we have the atmosphere, but here the keyboard interludes are complementary and serve to realize how heavy the track is. And what a track! A kind of a choir in it? Yes, that’s for sure! Why not? Diagor proved since the debut album that they know what the fuck they are doing! You gotta trust!
“The Ruining World” is the last track on the album and the guitars here are the epicenter. twin guitars match a devastating vocal work. I’m going to take a risk and make a comment that accompanies the ten tracks. Diagor is a Dub Buk heir, it is his atmospheric response and this album has consolidated them as one of the great revelations of Ukrainian extreme metal of the last decade. The album ends abruptly like a good metal album, I recommend you activate the “repeat” function on your cd player. “The Ruining World” is a mature album of a young band. A band that had an excellent debut album. The depths of the Ukrainian underground did Diagor well and marked the right time for the maturation of an album that deserves to conquer the world and together with the ISO 666 quality from Hammer Of Damnation on their hands, there is no limit for those Ukrainians who are writing with blood and honor new pages of Ukrainian extreme metal music!
Rate: 666
You can buy the album HERE!
You can buy the T-shirt, poster and the CD HERE!
