Shadowreaper by Night in Gales

Since their ‘return’ with 2018’s “The Last Sunsets”, NIGHT IN GALES are consistent in the best sense of that word. They constantly deliver melodic death metal that stays not only true to the core of the genre itself but is also on par with its classics. And another detail will catch the attention of everyone checking their album titles: There is something more about them than just the absence of light. The “Shadowreaper” symbolizes the final stage of the finiteness of all existence: it shreds the lost souls - aimlessly caught up in “The Black Stream” – so that nothing remains. He is also the incarnation of our nightmares: a stalking horror made of shadows and burnt remains, longing for us all in the final hour.

Musically speaking, “Shadowreaper” is the next logical step after “The Black Stream” and kicks right in with ‘Into The Evergrey’ which opens with tasteful acoustic guitars that lead into a driving monster of a song. The following ‘The Horrors Of Endlessness’ feels like a relentless warning against the idea of eternity. While NIGHT IN GALES keep the overall speed quite high, they are also able to take the foot off the gas pedal to allow mellow moments e.g. in ‘The Nihilist Delta’ to shine through all ongoing darkness. While ‘Spirals’ creates an irresistible groove, it’s ‘Sculptures And Defleshed’ that bundles all the band’s strengths in perfect manner. The closing ‘Walk Of Infinity’ leaves the listener behind in complete darkness, with no light in sight. And yet a few things are different with “Shadowreaper”. After they did four albums in a row with Dan Swanö, this time the production has been entrusted to Fredrik Nordström, the man who created the great formative classics of the genre in his infamous Studio Fredman in the Nineties: “Slaughter Of The Soul” (AT THE GATES), “The Jester Race”, “Whoracle” (IN FLAMES) and of course “The Gallery” (DARK TRANQUILLITY). The end result sounds extremely brute and unpolished by NIGHT IN GALES standards and delivers the much-coveted 'live feeling'. It's almost as if you open the door to the rehearsal room or concert hall and expose yourself directly to the action and the huge wall of sound.

The creation of the cover artwork for “Shadowreaper” was put into the hands of Italian artist Paolo Girardi, who has made a name himself in the international extreme metal scene with his work for INCANTATION, POWER TRIP, CRYPTOPSY and THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, among many others.

The year is 1995 and all great melodic death metal tunes came from Sweden. Well, not entirely…A band from North Rhine-Westphalia was able to shake the metal underground. NIGHT IN GALES unveiled their 9th album “Shadowreaper” dec 6th '24 via Apostasy Records.

night-in-gales.com