Into Darkness - Into Darkness (2012)

   Since in the late '00s it became widespread that demo releases often having so great sound quality like ordinary album releases, and sometimes even sounding better than some (black metal) studio records. This tendency had stimulus effect by the way more enjoyable sound quality, cause more fans became interested to add demos into their collections, and it wasn't only the intention of the most obsessed collectors anymore. Furthermore, demos started to have further releases, on CD and vinyl too. The same happened with Into Darkness' first demo, even though it was basically released on tape by following pretty old school fashion.

   Not only it's sound, but the music in general had made it reasonable that the interest kept staying around the self-titled demo. The band operated with quite simple, repetitive themes, but they've been embedded into such catchy sludgy / blackened atmosphere, that the main impression didn't become monotonous. Also the mixed influences had quite good and (according to this musically minimalist style) diverse effect. Similar to old school death/doom bands, their music doesn't lack intensity either, in the second and fourth songs they show, that slow, heavy themes and devastating speed do not exclude each other. Maybe because some specific features, like the basic themes, the higher toned female vocal style and the almost narrative vocal performance, their music might remind to Mythic. But Into Darkness is far not that primitive and their music is introducing a wider perspective to the listener. Since it was not only a pretty stunning demo for a debut, but musically diverse too, it could become a potential favorite for wider extreme music fan audiences too.