Release Date June 19th, 2026
Format CD/LP
Genre Death Metal
Origin Italy
Into Darkness formed in Milan in 2011 and spent more than a decade building their name through demos, split releases and EPs before reaching a full length. Vocalist and guitarist Doomed Warrior has led the band since the beginning, joined on “Route To The Other Side” by guitarist Filippo and drummer Santo in a power trio lineup. Their roots sit deep in the early Dutch death metal school, with Asphyx, Soulburn, Pentacle, Sinister, Gorefest, Phlebotomized, Acrostichon and Thanatos providing useful reference points but also you can sense primitive Death. The connection lies in low guitar tones, doom shaped pacing, blunt rhythmic turns and vocals drawn from the grave, not in copied riffs or borrowed imagery.
Into Darkness uses astronomy as their central lyrical subject, dealing with actual celestial bodies, distances and planetary history. There is no astrology, Lovecraft worship or comic book science fiction behind it. The subject is treated through factual detail and poetic scale, giving the band a narrow theme with several directions inside it. Earlier releases introduced that approach in shorter form. This debut gathers it into a single concept and presents the current lineup with enough space to develop longer compositions.
“Route To The Other Side” examines the outer solar system, restores Pluto to planetary status and includes Halley’s Comet in its course. The concept could easily have turned into novelty death metal. Into Darkness stay rooted in riffs, tempo shifts and grave atmosphere. The guitars move between low dragging phrases, crooked tremolo lines and sudden lead breaks used as part of the songs, not as decoration. Doomed Warrior’s vocals remain deep and cavernous, sitting inside the mix while leaving the guitars exposed. Santo’s drumming gives the slower passages firm motion, then opens into faster attacks before the songs become static. Filippo’s leads add sour colour at selected moments, usually brief and slightly disorienting. The bass rests beneath the guitars with a physical pulse, most noticeable when the music drops into doom territory.
The production is powerful and professional, retaining a rough surface that stops the sound from becoming clinical. Guitar tones are low and severe, the drums have body, and the vocals seem transmitted across a huge distance. The mix has separation, though it never strips away the decay around the notes. Across the album, the pacing alternates between doom laden patience and old school death metal attack. Several passages stretch into long crawling shapes before the tempo rises. That contrast gives the album much of its character and supports the scale of the astronomical lyrics. The writing rarely relies on sudden tricks. Riffs develop, return in altered forms and connect the subject with the cold reach of the music.
The album recovers through riff changes and lead work, though the pacing would have gained from a more severe edit. The lyrics maintain their focus on real astronomy, separating Into Darkness from bands using space as vague horror scenery. Scientific language does not dominate the songs; it supplies images of distance, orbit, extinction and isolation. “Route To The Other Side” comes across as dark, heavy and carefully arranged. After years of short releases, Into Darkness has produced a debut with a defined subject, disciplined playing and riffs that deserve more than one pass. Severe death metal, doom in its blood, astronomy in its skull.
|8.0
Add comment
Comments