Dungeon Keeper – Chaos Sorcery Strike at Midnight (Review)

It started with an indistinct rumour that passed our Transcended Music Blog team chat. Name-dropping occurred several times and eventually, an unpolished recording most probably stemming from a rehearsal session was thrown into this chat and we were all able to experience what the latest Black Metal outfit Dungeon Keeper was going to sound like. And we all liked the vibe that was brought across. This all took place just a few weeks before the release of Dungeon Keeper‘s debut release Fortress of Evil that came via Kellerassel Records and immediately caught my attention. We’re talking about one of Osnabrück’s latest offsprings that goes by the aforementioned name and immediately stirred up the scene. The raw and unpolished sound on Fortress of Evil that heavily emphasized the Punk roots of Black Metal by revolving within the spheres of 1st Wave Black Metal – most notably and most evidently Hellhammer and Celtic Frost. What a blast! Just a year after the release of this EP, those sorcerers dwelling in the city of Osnabrück return and instantly go for their full-length debut Chaos Sorcery Strike at Midnight.

Simply following the self-description of the band is actually pretty fitting and helps getting quite a solid impression of what their sound is like. As stated on their bandcamp page, this sound seeks inspiration from early Isengard, Darkthrone and “other Morbid Tales.” Hidden as a not-so-hidden secret within these lines is the most evident impact that the sound of Hellhammer / Celtic Frost showcases. However, do not be mislead thinking that this is just a mere copy of bands that played your favorite music back in the old days. When referring to the aforementioned bands, this can rather be understood in order to get the impression of specific elements that build the foundation of the sound of Dungeon Keeper.

When getting into Chaos Sorcery Strike at Midnight, the intro track “Hexenwerk im Flüsterwald” sounds like a mixture of entering a fairy den when playing Zelda, ominous Dungeon Synth and the introduction to a mid 90s Dimmu Borgir album. This is then interrupted when “Chaos Sorcery Strike at Midnight” kicks in that immediately convinces the listeners that the furious energy of Fortress of Evil is still more than present on this full-length debut. When recapitulating the aforementioned inspirations, I’d say that pointing at early Darkthrone would probably be best to describe the force of this aural jackhammer. Although the attentive listener might come up with Hellhammer quite immediately, I don’t think that this fully captures the sound that Dungeon Keeper is in for. While the allusion at 1st Wave Black Metal is blatantly present, the harsh undertone that is brought across still positions this overall tone somewhere in the earlier phases of 2nd Wave Black Metal as well. 

I feel as if this is way too much name-dropping – enough with the bands, let’s just take a closer look at what it is that gets you going on this album. What I mean when trying to point towards Darkthrone is the fact that Dungeon Keeper skilfully assemble the raw and unfiltered tone of Black Metal with the pure energy of a Punk foundation thus ending up with a sound that is destined to be played at live shows. Both guitars and vocals move within the spheres of what you’d immediately denote as Black Metal while the drums roam within the realms of gateway Punk influences on their way towards Extreme Metal. Especially this undertone that the drums bring forth is what builds strong synergies with the raw sound of vocals and guitar thus establishing one hell of a energy throughout the entire album. If you ever succeeded seeing Dungeon Keeper live, you are probably well aware of the fact that especially this energy is able to unfold even more furious when seeing this band on stage. Apart from that, a larger share of the tracks on this album also cherrypick Punk elements when taking a closer look at the sound structure. Especially the heavily invigorating “Chaos Sorcery Strike at Midnight” as well as the band-titled “Dungeon Keeper” return to the almost ritualistic reiteration of the song title during the chorus. This rather minimalist structural element however has massive impacts on the appeal of these tracks. The audience only needs to have listened to one of these tracks once in order to be able to join those recurring shouts at a show.

The aforementioned influences that Dungeon Keeper offered themselves are occasionally revealed more obvious yet also sometimes remain further in the background. The clean vocals that can be spotted for example on “Lord of the Wasteland” and “Finsternis Grausamster Zauber” immediately have you think of Isengard while other influences rather impact the basis of the sound. This certainly generated one of the most refreshing Black Metal sounds I experienced in 2024. Seemingly, Poison Drinker has become the one and only go-to person if you are in need for lo-fi yet on-point sound productions. This strong balance between raw and unpolished overall tone yet tight production that still blasts while playing at high volume certainly adds to the experience of the entire album.

Underground legend Chris of Fucking Kill Records apparently knows exactly when to enter the game, because he was once again quick enough to be involved releasing this absolute gem. The first press was released on a limited to 100 dark purple opaque and limited to 100 black pressing. However, this is sold out already. The second limited to 100 dark black pressing is still available, though! The CD was released via Iconoclasm Conquest and is still available as well. None other than Lower Class Kids Records and Low Fidelity Assaults themselves are in charge for the tape version that is soon to be released!

This is pure energy! After having listened to this album for the first time, I wasn’t even able to name a single song that I liked the most, since you just rampage through this album while being steamrolled. Not only is Chaos Sorcery Strike at Midnight one of the major highlights of 2024, but it also showcased that you should make damn sure to keep Dungeon Keeper on your scope for live shows and future releases!