Originally formed in 2012, Dance with the Dead has quickly become one of Synth-Metal’s top performers. The creation of Guitarist Tony Kim and Keyboardist Justin Pointer, the two long-time friends always shared a passion for music and cinema. Influenced by similar forms of music, such as Heavy Metal and synthesized movie scores from classic ’80s Horror films, they mashed them together into something authentically effective. Standing out because of such attributes, it is also hard to ignore the imagery of many of their EP and album covers. Reaching new heights with the 2018 album Loved to Death, where they teamed with an artist named Marc Schoenbach, it became evident that Dance with the Dead was every Dark Rock and retro Horror movie lover’s dream come true.
Remaining independent from the start, in total, Dance with the Dead has released six original albums between 2013’s Out of Body and 2022”s Driven to Madness, a remastered edition of Out of Body in 2023, plus three EPs between 2014’s Into the Abyss and 2020’s Blackout. Each is entirely instrumental, but in 2024, they present listeners with their first-ever collection of songs with vocals for the EP Dark Matter. Released independently on October 25th, Dark Matter consists of six tracks that take the sound of Dance with the Dead in a completely different direction.
Calling on a list of vocalists to be featured on the material, naturally, the song structures are centered around the vocal performances, and this may take some fans of Dance with the Dead for a loop. Not to worry though… because the musical intuition of Kim and Pointer is as impressive as ever. Comfortable working together on songs without the concern of building them around singing, Dark Matter presents entirely new challenges. With this in mind, the song compositions are rich with texture, ebbing and flowing with subtleties, along with heavier guitars as each guest’s vocals fit flawlessly over the top.
Seemingly picking perfect voices to add to the sessions, they brought in Lebrock’s Shaun Phillips for the soaring “Cold as Hell” and emotional “I Want Blood,” Ateryu’s Brandon Saller for the powerful “Neon Crosses,” Gunship for the perfectly executed “Wolf Pack,” and Kat Von D for the haunting “Whisper’s End.” Each cut offers something a bit different in terms of mood, what is even more striking is the inclusion of some blistering guitar work by Beast in Black’s Anton Kabanen. Beyond these contributors, you also have to draw your attention to the sole instrumental of the EP, “Rust,” which brings on the exceptional guitar work of Cole Rolland.
Overall, Dark Matter marks a new era for Dance with the Dead. Does this mean the band will seek out guest vocalists for their recording from this point forward in a similar fashion to an Apocalyptica? Not necessarily, but it does mean that they have proven they can easily do so in the future if the music calls for it. Exciting, colorful, and surprising, CrypticRock gives Dark Matter 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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