Dimlight Released First Installment, “King of Horrors”

Dimlight

The Greek symphonic death metal band, Dimlight, released “Kingdom of Horrors” this past October 27 — the first installment of their latest full-length work. “Kingdom of Horrors” is much more than “just an album”; in fact, it’s a multiform conceptual release scheduled to come out in two parts and centered around an original dark-fantasy storyline. Following up and expanding the standard they set with their previous album, “The Lost Chapters”, this time Dimlight have created an entire world to set their new album in:

Kingdom of Horrors

“Kingdom of Horrors” is set in a fantastic high antiquity, right after mankind rose again from the destruction of a devastating global cataclysm. In this harsh world of sorcery, corsairs and warlords, where a tyrannical empire rules with god-like impunity, a young man by the name of Athanor is caught up in his own, personal tragedy. He loses all that he loves through forces beyond his control and ends up wandering and devastated, looking for some way to dull his pain. Pursuing old legends, he manages to find an unholy way into Irkala Kar, the Underworld, where the deformed dead dwell. There, he is forced to face nightmarish creatures in the hopes of being reunited with his lost loved ones; but only too late will he realize that the worst monster of all down there is his own self…

The Empire of Nemorensia

Welcome to the empire of Nemorensia – a vast realm spreading over the face of an earth newly resurfaced from the tumultuous waves of the Great Cataclysm which swept into oblivion the race of the Pangeans and their gods. Now, Nemorensian force rules over the land; the old gods have been replaced by the might of the sword and the dread inspired by the Magian order. Peace, however, was not brought by a dove, but by a raven instead. Vast expanses of land and jagged mountain ranges are all under the yoke of tyranny. The air in the cities and villages of the empire is heavy with suspicion and rank with fear. Villagers toil their lives away under the watchful eye of the agents of the Magus Emperor who are everywhere and swift to punish treason. The only shred of light in this dismal and oppressed world lies across the glimmering horizon, where stretches the Iovian archipelago in an expanse of shimmering azure and green, reminding everyone of the freedom they can only dream of… and aspire to, in death.

In this world, Athanor, a young fisherman who never wished for anything more than a hefty at the end of the day and a smile on his wife’s lips, finds himself struck down by tragedy. All that he held dear on earth is torn to shreds by cruel forces he cannot comprehend. Thus, he finds himself heavy with sorrow and burdened with guilt, wandering throughout the land in search of a balm that can put his tormented soul at ease. Following the trail of an old legend, he arrives at a forlorn forest shrine where the ministering priest is a raving madman, consumed by the desire to kill or be killed. When Athnor involuntarily grants the old priest’s wish, he finds out that he is to be his replacement – for all eternity. A new, supernatural vision is given to him through the brutal rite of anointment as the Red King of the Forest and he comes to know that there is a way to be reunited with his loved ones Dimlight album coveragain: a way that goes through the dimension of death, Irkala Kar, where the desperate dead are consigned and the forgotten gods of yore maintain the balance of the veil which separates the living from the deceased. Black basaltic gates, guarded by deformed monstrosities, honeycomb Athanor’s path through Irkala Kar. Drawing strength from his incessant yearning for revenge against his own former self, the self that was unable to stop tragedy befalling his wife and children, he engages these ghoulish guardians and slaughters one after the other. The more their blood stains his hands, the more powerful he grows even tough madness and bloodlust set in and his soul becomes tainted by unholy cravings; before long, he forgets everything about his lost family and becomes entrapped in his own blood lust. He hates it and loves it at the same time. He fights to escape from it, yet the more he fights, the more immersed in it he finds himself. Athanor knows that his fate lies in the Hall of Judgement, where the Gods Below will cremate his shadow body and from his ashes draw forth a gem, which must then be examined and found pure and transparent. He knows that the gem left from his remains will be black as night and then the gods will sentence him to a dumb, mute and blind eternity in Irkala Kar. He is on the brink of despair, when he is approached by Sarkany, a fiendish elemental entity, the very soul of the Underworld personified. Sarkany, just like Athanor, yearns to escape this womb of torments and emerge on the surface world, where he can wield his powers unchecked. He strikes a bargain with Athanor: to merge their beings and thus become an Unholy One, the only being able to tear through the veil of the Underworld. Athanor, in the red haze of his agony, agrees. He tricks the Gods Below into thinking that he comes alone to the Hall of Judgement, and when he’s about to embrace the flames that would consume him Sarkany emerges out of him and wreaks havoc among the gods, thus allowing Athanor to escape and make his way towards the Bay of Yss, where the Soul-Boat lies – the only vessel daily traversing the route between the two worlds. Concealed inside a chest on the boat, Athanor is once more reunited with the gaseous darkness that is Sarkany. Once these two are soul-bonded, Athanor perceives that the boatswain is none other than his own self, the self he so loathed for being a coward and a thrall to the whims of Fate. He goes berserk, fueled by a power and a lust for revenge more than his own, and the Soul-Boat of Yss turns into a Athanor, the sole survivor of the slaughter, is left breathing heavily, now fully immersed in blood and madness, as he emerges into the outside world.

The Red King

Start your initiation into Dimlight’s new offering of horror, grandiose madness and brutal adventure by witnessing the rise of the Red King in the band’s latest video, “The Red King”, directed by Dimitris Kostoudis:

The first part of this release is comprised of three pieces: first, the “Kingdom of Horrors” album, delivered in Dimlight’s signature heavily orchestrated brand of death metal with a strong mix of female and male brutal vocals on the forefront. Majestic and atmospheric arrangements mix with aggressive riffs and pounding tempos at full speed, to create a chilling and insanely triumphant vibe. “Kingdom of Horrors” was mixed and mastered at Dark Cortex Studio by Invoker Peter, while the cover artwork is a creation of Mathos Stergiou (Manster Design). Then there’s the “Realm of Tragedy” album, a trippy, post-rock instrumental release, providing soundscapes to describe Dimlight’s post-cataclysmic concept. “Realm of Tragedy” was mixed and mastered at Dark Cortex Studio by Invoker Peter, while the cover artwork is a creation of Achilleas Xydis. Finally, there’s the “Bowels of Madness” horror-adventure novella, a paperback publication in which the entire concept of the release is laid out in detail.

About Dimlight

First formed in 2006, Dimlight are highly active in live performances worldwide, touring from Europe to the Middle East and sharing a stage with such talent as Arch Enemy, Lacuna Coil, Epica, Septic Flesh, Firewind, Annihilator, The Haunted and many more. Their first album, “Obtenebration” debuted in 2009, followed by “Psychosynthesis”, in 2012. Despite a rising tide of difficulties and misfortunes that would have justified any band to quit, Dimlight pressed on through the storm and in 2015 they released their concept album “The Lost Chapters”, confirming their resilience, passion and dedication to delivering high quality extreme music which always pushes the envelope with each step of the way.

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“And of madness there are two kinds; one produced by human infirmity, the other a divine release of the soul from the yoke of custom and Convention” – Plato, “Phaedrus”

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