DC Dark Nights: Death Metal Soundtrack

Uniting artists from across the genre spectrum to create his own Justice League of heavy music, producer and composer Tyler Bates curated an unexpected and eye-popping soundtrack for DCs Dark Nights: Death Metal project. On par with the best of the 90s genre-blurring soundtracks -- think Spawn, Judgment Night, and The Crow -- Dark Nights effortlessly joins disparate acts from the worlds of metal, industrial, punk, indie, and hip-hop, maintaining a dark and haunted mood that fits with the tone of the source material. While theres not much actual death metal on display, the 15-song set is plenty heavy. Mastodon kicks off the album with Forged By Neron, a nod to the titular demon lord of the comic (the bands Brann Dailor also provides the voice for Darkseid in the online narrated video clips). Chelsea Wolfe -- the voice of Wonder Woman -- delivers the standout Diana, a cacophonous lurcher that introduces the eponymous hero and her perspective in this series. Other highlights include the pummeling ANTI-LIFE, a NIN-like collaboration between HEALTH and Deftones frontman Chino Moreno; the clattering punk blast Bad Luck by rappers Denzel Curry and PlayThatBoiZay; and Skull with a Forked Tongue, a symphonic black metal epic by Carach Angren, which comes closest to the mood suggested by the projects name. Fans of Dillinger Escape Plan will also be pleasantly surprised by Now Youve Really Done It, which reunites Greg Puciato and Gil Sharone. Other surprises emerge on Berserker, which joins British synthwave outfit Gunship with Slayers Dave Lombardo, and on the soaring Meet Me in Fire, which features Maria Brink (vocalist of In This Moment) and Andy Biersack (vocalist of Black Veil Brides and the voice of Batman). There are plenty more gems to be discovered, and each listen reveals additional unexpected delights from the likes of Manchester Orchestra, Starcrawler, Soccer Mommy, and Grey Daze, the late Chester Benningtons pre-Linkin Park group. Like the comic, Dark Nights: Death Metal is cinematic in scope and grand in ambition, a thrilling experience that warrants both applause and attention. ~ Neil Z. Yeung