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Album Details

• Artist: The Devil
• Album: The Devil
• Label: Candlelight Records
• Year of Release: 2012
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: solitaryman on 2012-11-26

Intruiged in succession by the name, cover art, and press bio, London-based newcomers The Devil have served up a veritable buffet of food for thought with their self-titled debut. "Newcomers" may or may not be the truth, considering the 6 members of the band remain anonymous, their images cloaked in robes and individually unique masks. This image of anonymity and facelessness tends to increase the credibility of the focal point of The Devil's musical direction.




That direction, simply put, ends up manifesting as a spotlight and soundtrack on a wide variety of human drama, conspiracies, mysteries and possible myths. Combining symphonic backdrops with melodic, straightfoward traditional metal passages, the music works to emphasize the various tape samples throughout the record. These samples touch on a wide variety of topics, from UFOs and ETs ("Universe") to the events of 9/11 ("World Sorrow"), atomic bombs ("Extinction Level Event") and the lives of several prominent social and political figures, including Martin Luther King Jr. ("Intervention") and John F. Kennedy ("Devil And Mankind"). The true brilliance of The Devil and their first collection of songs is how they subtly nudge at your consciousness, directing one not to believe one way or the other, but simply to question some of the things we fear to even consider, let alone decide upon on way or the other. At times, the samples dissipate, and the band work solely on creating an atmosphere with surprising success. Eventually, these moments give the entire record a much-needed cohesiveness in the face of such a wide variety of topics.




A debut that should leave a very distinct impact in certain circles, The Devil has already been tagged for a couple of it's tracks, to be used in the soundtracks for upcoming feature-length motion pictures. This, in fact, is perfectly suitable praise for The Devil, who have immediately shown a knack for creating sweeping pieces of soundtrack-ready music, highlighting some of the most discussed and debated topics in human history in the process. A simple yet highly effective direction to take. I have little to actually compare this to, beyond various soundtracks. I also am note sure who to recommend this to, besides those who have taken the notion of "think for yourself, question authority" to heart. Even if you don't believe in the various conspiracies and half-truths The Devil present, one can respect the unbiased presentation of the material, leaving the final decisions to the listener's discretion.

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