Album Review: Dynfari – The Four Doors of the Mind (Code666)

The Four Doors of the Mind is an 8 track journey through writer Patrick Rothfuss’ theory on the mind’s abilities to cope with pain by weaving it together with over 100 year old lamentations on human existence by early 20th century Icelandic existentialist poet Jóhann Sigurjónsson.

It is out on April 14th 2017 via Code666.

It’s a hell of an idea & a hell of a result. An album filled with atmospheric black metal sounds mixed with more traditional instruments (flute, accordion etc). It’s a sombre listen but one filled with imagination & it will leave you feeling inspired.

Opening with soft melody & spoken word, the intro sets up the 8 minute song, 1st Door: Sleep perfectly. From the moment the lovely guitar work kicks things off you know you’re in for a treat. It’s a start that instantly draws you in leaving you unprepared for the black metal assault that follows. It’s a shift but one that works so well as the melodic sounds exist in the background. It, like every song throughout, has big shifts in style but nothing unexpected.

The Four Doors of the Mind is one of the most impressive things to be released in 2017. It never gets stale, it never fails to live up to the promise it made at the start. Even when it’s just a song built around an acoustic guitar (Sorg) it just feels like the calm before the storm.

The word beautiful can be a bit overused when describing this but it’s the word that comes to mind when listening to the emotionally uplifting 3rd Door: Madness. A song that will put you in a pensive mood but leave you with a smile.

This stunning album comes to a close with 14 minute epic. 4th Door: Death. A slow start builds & builds before unleashing a much harder sound. Before you even know it, the next drop in tempo arrives & half the song has gone by. It’s simply amazing & the lack of vocals doesn’t dent it in the slightest. One final guitar led flurry finishes an incredible listen & you’ll be going start back the start as soon as it ends.

Dynfari – The Four Doors of the Mind Full Track Listing:

The Four Doors of the Mind
1st Door: Sleep
Sorgarefni Segi Eg: Er
2nd Door: Forgetting
Sorg
3rd Door: Madness
Bikarinn
4th Door: Death

You can buy/pre-order the album here & check out more of Dynfari’s music on Bandcamp here. You can listen to some Dynfari on Soundcloud & on TuneIn. Make sure you check them out on Facebook, on AboutMe & on Twitter. Finally you can pick up some merchandise here.