A collection of tales from the crypt, Are You In A Cult?, is a pleasantly dark release from the Rock band calling themselves Dead Posey. Consisting of Lead Vocalist Danyell Souza and Multi-instrumentalist Tony Nova, the new, up-and-coming duo is known for their gothic imagery and raging Dark Metal that touts themes of the undead from all the horror stories of times past. Since forming some years ago, they have built up a respectable image as a group proud of their nightmarish image, flaunting it in their lyrics and photoshoots. Released on October 18, 2024, through Position Music, their debut album is an exciting continuation of their work filled with pre-release singles.
An amalgamation of their work since 2022, Are You In A Cult is more of an anthology of past songs than something entirely new. This could lead some to draw conclusions too early and say that this band lacks the creativity and ingenuity to release a completely new album, but that would be wrong as this is the first album ever released by the band which only formed in 2016 and has only put out a small selection of singles and EP’s until now. The Los Angeles band is looking to turn heads and cement themselves as a part of Contemporary Metal music in a scene that is expanding quickly. This is a role they can most definitely fill with a prolific stat sheet leading up to their first release. The duo uses the skills of Tony Nova for their drums and guitar and the vocals of gothic daydream Danyell Souza. Their powerful sound has already enabled them a spot at Download Festival in 2022. Commercially, they have been featured in media for Fox’s Lucifer, MTV’s Teen Wolf, Marvel’s Cloak & Dagger, CBS’s Fire Country, and Netflix’s Jack Whitehall: Travels With My Father. Along with these, their single “Don’t Stop the Devil” was the theme for WWE’s Elimination Chamber. It is apparent that this band has a powerful sound that many people want to hear.
The sound of the Dead Posey’s is definitely in the Heavy Metal camp. Filled with thrashing guitar from Nova and some electric screaming vocals from Souza. They use this sound to build songs that are full of energy and quake with power while discussing themes of horror and the dead. There is no melancholy to be found here, a lot of musicians who rely on goth as their identity lean into ambient music and a hollow “dead” sound to build their songs upon. With harrowing guitar strings as the sole backbeat or chilling bells and cymbals to create a spooky effect. Think Siouxsie and the Banshees or Bauhaus for the old-school Gothic music. These piledrive the listener with reverb and flanger pedals which muss up the sound. For Dead Posey, however, this sound is not synthesized with the power of a pedal, it is instead powerful in itself. Drawing on the heavy sound of the electric guitar to build its landscape rather than any ambiance. For the most powerful of their sound a la ’90s Punk Metal, listen to “Russian Roulette,” “Darkside,” and “Can’t Take Me Down.”
While this is exciting and can pull its weight, especially in songs like “She’s Gone Bad,” it would be nice to see a future for Dead Posey that pays homage to the past of dark Goth Rock. This is something that could align with the ballads of Type O negative who trod the line between Gothic music and Heavy Metal in the ’90s. This slight disconnect between image and sound is not a reason to deduct from Dead Posey and their powerful sound, in another light it is exciting to see Heavy Metal music take an expressionistic approach that goes further than just death itself. Giving style to the undead rather than relishing in its chaos. You have to love the power in each song and how they are introduced with a drumline and chord progression full of gusto.
This is especially true in “Zombies”; a headbanger with an earworm for a lyric. If a gothic singer isn’t ‘only down with damned or the dead’ then they do not know what they are doing. Furthermore, the confidence exuded by Souza is what makes the album worth your time. She sings with an aura of omnipotence, making you submit to her voice as she sings about being a “novacane bitch” or how you “Can’t take me down can’t take me down/ ‘cause they all love me now.” Simply put, the hot goth demoness of any twisted human dreams is alive and kicking in Are You In A Cult? and she is as compelling as ever.
Overall, Are You In A Cult? is a powerful and charismatic mix of music. It is exciting to see this type of production and the future of Dead Posey looks very bright. This is especially if they can continue their Punk Rock sound and find innovative ways to mix more Gothic spirit into their music. For this reason, Cryptic Rock gives Are You In A Cult? 4 out of 5 stars.
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