DIABOLIC NIGHT
DIABOLIC NIGHT "Beneath the Crimson Prophecy"
By Dr. Abner Mality
DIABOLIC NIGHT is the creation of one Heavy Steeler and if that name doesn't give you a clue about what kind of metal he plays, just a few seconds of the music itself reveals that this is another tribute to "evil speed metal" of the 80's. I don't know if IRON ANGEL is back together, but if not, DIABOLIC NIGHT is a good stand-in. This is very classical sounding, to the point where it could have comfortably fit on Noise Records' roster in 1987.
After wasting two and a half minutes with an intro nobody cares about, Mr. Steeler rips right into "Tales of Past and Mystery" and you breathe a sigh of relief. This is der alte German speed metal right down to the "curly" riffs, blazing pace and touches of cold melody. One slight difference is that Steeler doesn't have the high pitched "yelping" vocals of classic speed metal but rather favors something deeper and gruffer. On certain tracks like "Starlit Skies" and the epic "Arktares Has Fallen", there's a touch of melodic black metal from the 90's added to the formula and even some somber and effective acoustic moments. I'm surprised the latter song worked so well, given that it's 8 minutes plus and such long tracks usually don't work that well for speed metal.
This DIABOLIC NIGHT is a warm and nostalgic trip to a certain fondly remembered period in metal history.