Antagonist Zero – Nighttime Harmony (2012)

Delivering one of the most interesting sounding EP’s we have received in quite a while, today we have Antagonist Zero and their 3-song debut EP “Nighttime Harmony”. Self-labeled as “Catatonic Metal”, the band mixes Doom and Death/Black Metal element in a very effective manner. With an excellent production behind this EP, the three tracks sound like a million bucks, and also left us wanting more from this young and promising band.

Opening with a very slow-paced jazzy intro, “AZ” is the EP’s first track that shows excellent musical skills since the first few minutes. Once the growls kick in, we are immediately sold on the band’s rich and powerful sound. The guitar riffs are excellent and the drumming is pretty well crafted, the melodic nature of the music reminds us of Insomnium, Swallow the Sun, and similar Finish bands.

“Nighttime Harmony” keeps delivering excellent guitar riffs and a perfect headbanging atmosphere that plenty of bands would kill for. It is very surprising to hear the maturity the band has in terms of songwriting and being able to differentiate themselves from the rest of Melodic Death/Doom bands from Finland. The crisp production behind the drums allows the listener to hear even the slightest detail with superb quality.

Closing in a more emotional manner, “Fading” delivers lush acoustic guitars accompanied with weeping electric guitars. The Doom nature of this track makes it very powerful and dense, just like we would expect from any band with years and years of experience. The use of clean vocals will surprise you a bit, but they are nicely done and fit very well with the music, they reminded us of Mystons for a second there. This is our favorite track of this EP, and fans of Death/Doom Metal should not miss it.

As a very small sample of their upcoming full-album, this “Nighttime Harmony” EP is an excellent way of showcasing the band’s abilities and excellent songwriting skills. We are sure this EP will generate great momentum and will have plenty of people waiting impatiently for the full-length release. If you like Melodic Death Metal or Death/Doom Metal, this is a release that you don’t want to miss.

Release: March 14th, 2012

Country: Finland