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Track Listing: Between Infinity And Oblivion Where Dreams And Darkness Unite The Warriors Return A Tragedy Befallen The Unrelenting Surge Of Vengeance Bound By Blood, Fire And Stone Lord Of Pestilence Dismembering The Fallen The Final Stand Omega,I

First Impression: It's been very very annoying to see album updates for the past few months and not hear anything from the album besides a few clips. But I finally got my hands on the album on Wednesday thanks to Daniel. We all have sky high expectations from Demonic Resurrection because they are (at least in my opinion) the best metal band in India and one of the best in the world. The album delivers everything it promises. It is an Epic conclusion to the Darkness trilogy. I applaud DR for this masterpiece. Had it been completed in 2009 I would have included it in my albums of the decade. Anyway time for the details now.

The Package: the first thing to note about the black box (the box is called a black box. It is similar to the behemoth evangelion box set released earlier in 2009 by DSR) is that it is very good quality and the general feel of it makes you grin from ear to ear. The glossy finish is a very nice touch. Now the box set contains 2 plectrums (very nice touch) (one with the new DR logo and one with the portal to summon demons). These plectrums are a heavy 2mm and are the same ones used by front man Sahil Makhija. The sticker is the new band logo in black and white. The poster is beyond epic. If you think it looked awesome on the promo of the box you've got another thing coming. I can't wait to get this thing on my wall. The box contains one more item that will be revealed to you when you get the box set. I don't want to ruin the surprise for you. Finally the box set contains the cod in a standard (high quality) jewel case. The thing I would like everyone to note here is that the place where the booklet sits in the box has the long edges and not the sharp ones that ruin the booklet. Very nice touch. This cd would fit perfectly well in your international metal band cd collection. 10/10

The Art: The art for the album and box was done by none other than Michael 'XAAY' Loranc of Nile, Behemoth, and Karl sanders art fame. The art on the front of the box is the same as the art seen on the band's official website. It has the portal to summon demons from other realms with the album name on the front and the bands logo with track list at the back. Now comes the best part of the art. The album cover for The Return to Darkness is one of the best album covers ever. It is comparable to artwork for maiden albums done by Derek Riggs. The album also, unlike most metal albums today, has a beautiful inlay. It really goes well with the rest of the art. The cd label features the portal again. The booklet is printed on high quality paper and features different artwork on every page. The lyrics are printed very clearly and well. Basically the artwork gets a good review in my book. Mephisto (jetesh) has dedicated the album to his mother. The last page of the booklet features the bands endorsers and contact information. 10/10

Album: Here's a song by song breakdown of the album (although you should really listen to the album as one complete song to end the darkness trilogy)
1. Between infinity and oblivion (instrumental): This is the intro to the album. It has some music you have already heard. The clip that plays on the bands official website is from this song. It features some brilliant work by mephisto and viru on drums. You could call it the calm before the storm. But don't go by what I say about the calm. Close your eyes and listen to this and I promise it will take you to a dark place. I hope this is played live and not as a pre recorded clip. One of the best album intro/openers I've heard in really long. The best part about this song is during the last few seconds you feel something building and it's about to explode. 9/10

2. Where dreams and darkness unite: The song starts instantly with the guitars and Viru's blast beats. Sahil (whose vocals have improved a lot since ADD) comes in with the first line "this starting confusion of where I am..." the song features amazing riffage and the atmospheric effect provided by Mephisto makes you wish this album was available in 5.1 . At about 1:32 into the song the insane section starts. This gave me goose bumps when I first heard it. I know most of us had seen this song live at I rock and maybe Deccan rock in Bangalore (I wasn't there for this one) but the album version is beyond words. The song is different but similar to stuff on ADD. One more thing to note at this point is the genre for this is more progressive demonic metal than just demonic metal as the band calls their genre. If you're expecting the standard fast drums and growls with a stupid solo thrown in you have the wrong cd. This song features clean vocals by Sahil. Lyrically this song is about the struggle and confusion faced and the decision to return back to the darkness. Between infinity and oblivion going into this song will be brutal live. This song is a must see live. For all you DR purists out there, you could call this the dreams of the dead of this album. 8.5/10

3. The warrior's Return: Song no 3 starts off with mephisto and viru with the atmospheric effect. This song reminded me of the march towards battle in all war movies. Daniel and Sahil come in blazing with their cut throat riffs. Mephisto's keys go very well with the riffs. The growling in this song has been taken to a whole new level. Mephisto really stands out in this song. The drums are absolutely insane in this one. At about 2:45 the song has a break where Mephisto comes in with his beautiful piano melodies. This part is eerie reminiscent of old opeth. Daniel comes in with a brilliant solo here. Not the usual shredding nonsense. This song is very progressive. You shall be thrown into battle again after the solo section. For fans of double bass drumming, this song and the one before will be a double choc chip sundae. The song is called the Warrior's return but with this album I think the warriors have returned with a new found brother. Just when you think the song is just about over Daniel comes in with a blazing guitar solo that will melt your face right off. Again the solo has soul and feel to it. It's not mindless riffage. Power metal fans would like the solo. It has a very Adrian smith influence to it. 10/10

4. A Tragedy befallen: We all heard the clip on MySpace but believe me that does no justice to this song. This song features excellent lead parts on both the guitar and the keyboard. Sahil's clean vocals really shine on this one. I would've liked the entire song to feature his clean vocals. The guitar + keyboard harmonies really make this song stand out. This song features many sections as well. This may be a live favourite. It's definitely one of my favourite songs on the album. The second section in the song is the one that is featured on the MySpace clip of it. It has the catchy chorus as well that everyone will sing along to. The chorus I'm talking about reminded me of the part in apocalyptic dawn where he sings "the shadow of darkness has fallen before us, this war is won..." Daniel's first solo of the song follows the chorus. It is not a long solo but an apt one for the occasion. The section after this solo is my favourite. It features my favourite riff on the album. This song becomes maiden meets death metal now. Mephisto's keys here akin to dark tranquillity songs lead into Daniel's final solo which is one of the best solos I've heard in long. Nice sweeping. The song ends with a clean riff and Husain's bass really standing out here. The bass mix is a little low in most parts but not here. The clean riff ends with a harmony leading into the next song. 10/10

5. The unrelenting Surge of Vengeance: The song everybody has heard and talked about. It's the first single and has a brilliant video. The riffage is mad here. It's a monster of a song. Sahil and mephisto seem to be working together here. They complement each other on this track. This song was seen live by whoever went for the Deccan rock festival. The keyboard section in the middle leads to more riffage. A nice groove riff here. The drums on this one again are brilliant. My only complaint about this one is the absence of a guitar solo. I guess the band felt it wasn't needed. It has already got more than 6000 views in 6 days on YouTube. It's not my favourite on the album but nevertheless it is a very good song. It's the weakest song on the album in my opinion and that's a very good sign of the things to come. 7/10

6. Bound by blood, fire and stone: This song starts off with some nice 6th string chugging leading into Sahil coming in with the vocals and Viru's drums again. This song is another one that features clean vocals but not in the foreground. The foreground has the growls and the clean vocals sound like they're coming from far away. I cannot stress enough on the keyboard effect on this album. It really shines. This song features very nice bass lines as well to complement the guitars. The stereo riff effect in the middle is a very nice touch. It features some nice blast beats and sail's soft growls (as I call them) akin to dani filth. The rest of this song is very proggy and I love it. I had heard a very early of this song at sahil's house long ago and I'm happy with the final result. I love the vocals on this one. 9/10

7. Lord of pestilence: The intro to this one has a very frozen portrait feel to it. (Don't get excited. The rest of the song is nothing like frozen. Thank god). Once the clean vocals come in I am reminded of the song "and the dream will cease to exist" from the BTD EP. This song is what will bring the band into a whole other league. It builds up like a volcano about to explode. The clean riff and sahil's vocals are an excellent combination. At about 3 minutes into the song, it undergoes a complete phase shift with sahil's coming in with a spine crushing growl. I'm not a big fan of the vocals in this section but the instruments have done a brilliant job. Is it overkill if I say this song is very proggy as well? I was quite sceptical after hearing there was going to be an eleven minute epic on this album because I had heard only short songs by DR before but the song put me in my place. I knew the song would be good but I did not expect this. The next section is what I call the Opeth Watershed section. It reminded me too much of that album. Daniel's solo is very akin to an opeth solo from watershed. In fact his playing on this section makes this song listenable over and over again. Again this is not an opeth rip-off it just shows the influence. The harmony at the end of the solo before the vocals is beautiful. Sahil's clean vocals add to the effect. At almost 8 minutes into this epic we move to the next section. Mephisto begins this one followed by the guitars complementing his playing and viru + Husain very nicely adding to the rhythm of the song. The last 3 minutes of this song are progressive death atmospheric metal. Let's leave it at that. This song is exactly what I wanted to hear from one of my all-time favourite bands. All I can say now is that this will be the song everyone looks forward to seeing live. Bravo Sahil et all. 10/10 (understatement)

8. Dismembering the fallen: The first taste of RTD that we all got last year. The song has been mixed and mastered properly and does not sound like a demo/rough mix anymore. I really like this song. This song features nice guitar + keyboard harmonies as well. I love Husain's bass lines in this one and can't wait to see them played live. It's a very melodic song and it features clean vocals as well. The call and answer riff (guitar plays something and keyboard follows) has been modified slightly and features a pinch harmonic now. There's not much else to say about this song besides the fact that Daniel has 2 solos on it. One solo is reminiscent of Cryptopsy or so I've been told. I really like the solo. The riff's here are very catchy and yet intricately placed. When you least expect it Daniel's second solo arrives. It is a very short one but placed correctly. The song ends with the intro riff fading out. You can really hear Husain here. 9/10

9. The final Stand: This song is a gem. It's my favourite song on the album right now. It begins with a keyboard and drum intro. Very nice keyboard parts. This song should have been the first single from the album in my opinion but I guess it was too long for a single. Sahil's vocals really shine on this one. Clean vocals followed by growls with the same lyrics. The main tune reminds me of an old sci fi movie but the name evades me. I love the lyrics on this one. The second section here is very melodic and atmospheric. The best part about this section besides Daniel's solo is the keyboard and bass backing the solo. The tempo changes midway through Daniel's solo. This is my favourite solo on this album. It has a slight john petrucci feel to it with an Adrian smith influence again. I know Daniel will deny the petrucci influence but I felt it here. The final section here features a nice effect on the same bass keyboard backing making it sound more and more atmospheric. This continues to build for the album closer. 10/10

10 Omega, I: This song is the only one that features a lyrical contribution by Daniel (The rest of them were done only by Sahil). I said a lot of the songs on the album were proggy but none as much as this one. There is something about this song that makes you want to listen to it over and over again. I don't know if it's the lyrics or the guitar melodies or the keyboards. This song also features a 14 second growl by Sahil. Bravo Mr Makhija. Another thing to note here is growling harmonies with nice music always work. The riffs on this one are some of the best that I've heard in a long time. I think the band will need a sheet of paper next to them for this song for all the different sections in it. 5 minutes into this song you will really feel sad. I say that because this is the best close to an epic album ever. I'm not joking. There is bass tapping here. This is what great songs are made off. Sahil comes in with a nice vocal harmony while he and Daniel continue to riff. This part features some of the best work on the album by all members. The song slowly starts to fade with one of the best riffs ever and goes into something familiar. It took me a while to get this one. The song ends with a section lifted off the song Beyond the Darkness from the EP with the same name. This is a sign of the bands direction in the future. The darkness trilogy has ended and they are moving beyond the darkness. This is one more part that I hope is played live and not just on the PA. 10/10

It's definitely worth more than a listen. I think this album is going to be a breakthrough album for the scene here. The artwork was already done by the famous XAAY. It's just a matter of time before the band is signed to an international metal label. They're already playing the brutal assault festival with the likes of cannibal corpse, Devin Townsend etc.

I'd like to end this review by requesting everyone who has read this far to go order the cd if you haven't done so already. A lot of hard work has gone into its creation and it is really a brilliant album. Do not download this or encourage piracy in the music scene here. People put in their blood sweat and tears into their music and deserve album sales. SUPPORT INDIAN METAL.