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| Dark Forest Releases “Land Of The Evening Star” LP Dark Forest, originally a studio heavy metal project performed solo by David Parks, has become much, much more live with their second full-length installment, "Land of the Evening Star." Although still the brainchild of Parks, himself, whose direction, orchestration and themes are the clear inspiration behind this new incarnation of Dark Forest, "Land..." introduces a lineup of performers to develop both their onstage and studio presence. Heavy metal has come a long way from its roots in traditional rock n' roll, so in describing an artist such as Dark Forest, one has a myriad of choices, some more applicable than others: speed metal, death metal, dark metal, black metal, or – as is more frequently the preference of the genre's performers – just plain heavy metal, which seems perhaps most credible. Dark Forest's, musical credibility, however, is not in question. Guitars thrum and chug like tonal, rolling thunder, choruses reverberate through snowy, seaside woodlands as if sung by druids, snares and symbols crack and crash in syncopated violence like the percussion of Napalm Death, only to sink back into the native war drumming of the ancient Nordic homelands. Since Parks began writing his music in 2003, it has been his fans who have clamored to hear the project performed onstage. Parks' own vision has been one not only of metal, but of nature, history, and heritage. Song titles such as "Northmen of the New World, " "A Few Acres of Snow, " and "Bjarn Herjulfsson" (Norse explorer who discovered the Americas five centuries earlier than Columbus) showcase the passion Parks' taps into when writing such epics. "Vesperia" and "Hearth" mark a deep respect for these noble themes of antiquity. Dark Forest remains mainly the creative output of metal demigod David Parks, himself, but is also the result of his collaboration with rock titans M. Zemlak on guitar and vocals, T. MacLean on bass, and D. Horrocks on percussion. write your comments about the article :: © 2012 Jazz News :: home page |