Dawn Ray’d – Behold Sedition Plainsong (Review)

This is the second album from Dawn Ray’d, a black metal band from the UK.

Dawn Ray’d play classic, second wave-inspired black metal, with moments of folk interspersed here and there. Violin features prominently, and enhances the music in unobtrusive ways.

The core of the band’s black metal is harsh and unforgiving. Raw fury and unfettered anger power these songs, and the music drips with venom and bile as the playing time rushes by. This is tempered by a mournful, despondent feeling, almost as if hope is being lost. The violin carries a lot of responsibility for this aspect of the songs, but it’s not the only component of Dawn Ray’d’s music that conveys these emotions.

Occasional acoustic forays highlight the folk side of the band’s sound, and these work effectively with the main blackened assault to produce engaging and compelling music. A Stone’s Throw is the main exemplar of this, eschewing the black metal approach totally, whereas all of the other songs incorporate folk into the music less explicitly for the most part.

Dawn Ray’d have crafted an album of character and power, and I urge you to check out Behold Sedition Plainsong.