Uada – Djinn

Label: Eisenwald 
Release date: 25-09-2020

Intro

Uada ’s rise has been meteoric ever since they were formed in 2014. Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, the band quietly released their debut album, “Devoid of Light”, in 2016 through Eisenwald, and gained popularity in the scene. They are now back with the third full-length, “Djinn”. My first encounter with Uada was last year in Hamburg when they played as support act for Tribulation and Gaahl’s Wyrd. Their melodic black metal sound fascinated me. So, I had certain expectations and a bit of excitement with “Djinn” for sure. Let’s dig deep.

Review

“Djinn” consists of six tracks and lasts for 60 minutes. With this release, the band shows us once again how they interpret this genre in their own terms. They have a melodic approach to this style, with some spiritual elements here and there from time to time. In general, however, the tempo is quite fast with no build-ups or atmosphere. Some exceptions here are No Place Here and Forestless, where the composition is a bit different compared to the other songs. So, “Djinn” is dark and energetic, and will keep you hooked right from the start.

When we talk about black metal in this Uada record, the aggressive vocals and the riffs form the highlight; a great example of this is The Great Mirage. In particular, the vocals will captivate you and I gotta say this took me back to their live show and how I was impressed with the vocals coming from the heart! The band implements elements from other genres such as heavy metal, melodic death metal or even post-metal pretty well and does it in a straightforward approach. Having reviewed quite some black metal albums, I can say that “Djinn” has a refreshing sound to it with the band keeping it true to their roots. Some songs such as No Place Here or Between Two Worlds also stand out a bit more when it comes to their overall style.

One downside is the length of the songs in general. Even though this aspect is typical in this genre, there were repetitions in some songs, which disturbed the overall flow and magic of the album for me. I personally liked the first half of the album a bit more in this sense, since the songs flew better. So this could be something that the band can work on in future releases in terms of composition or songwriting.

All in all, I definitely recommend “Djinn” for the fans who like their black metal melodic, dark and versatile. Get it and enjoy the darkness!

Line up:

• James Sloan – guitars
• Jake Superchi – vocals, guitars
• Nate Verschoor – bass
• Elijah Losch – drums

Links:

Facebook
Bandcamp