Named for death and entrenched in a fantastical, romanticized vision of the history of mining in their native Germany (and mainland Europe) for nearly a decade now the prolific efforts of black metal duo DAUÞUZ now arrive upon a work which details the tragic and destructive early days of Uranium mining through the atomic age as they return for this fifth full-length album. Offering little sense of tone with its title, ‘Uranium‘ more often than not conveys the perspective of the working class, the victims of lands stripped of their resources who’d been damaged and displaced by the at-times forced process of securing them. Though a unique theme is always of interest we find this work is more important as a next chapter for the band’s work which combines the breakthrough myriad sound and vocal oeuvre of their most recent album with the over the top aspects of past work unto an idiosyncratic yet not entirely unheard of atmospheric black metal record.

Dauþuz formed as a duo back in 2016 between Aragonyth S. (Seelenfrost) and Syderyth G. (Wintarnaht) and their intent seems to have been unflinching in connecting a theme of industrialization and strife built upon an atmospheric but otherwise stoic form of black metal. Depending on what point of entry and context is available to the listener I’ve seen folks compare the early work of the band to the more atmospheric side of Mayhemic Truth and Lunar Aurora as often as the earlier 2010’s era of Horn and Imperium Dekadenz, though some manner of depressive black metal howling is to be expected from main vocalist Syderyth, who is otherwise known as Grimwald depending on the project. Their overall personae would change quickly over time but we can expect the foundation of their first three releases to be referenced within the work of ‘Uranium‘.

Per my own tastes the first two releases from the band are their most likely go-to releases for their consistency, starting with the contained vision of ‘In finstrer Teufe‘ (2016) and the more rowdy, violently shook ‘Die Grubenm​ä​hre‘ (2017) where the real pain is brought. No doubt this isn’t the era of the band you’re most familiar with as they’d been most recognized to date after signing to Amor Fati and releasing the visionary ‘Vom schwarzen Schmied‘ (2021), a concept album which introduced direct narrative, bolstered folken muse, and an exceptional treatment of vocal arrangements and all the bells and whistles which were missing from their stripped down trio of introductory records. It was a breakthrough record, a bright idea, and one which they’d boldly returned to soon after, remixing and re-recording with clean vocals (‘Vom schwarzen Schmied – Bergkges​æ​nge‘, 2022). I personally prefer this pagan metal sided vision of that album for its dramatic appeal but either way that record and its two versions are the main reason most will be hyped up for what comes next.

To Hell we’re going. — Folks indoctrinated by the previous album will find a combination of that dramatic vocal range and the style of atmospheric black metal found on Dauþuz‘ first three releases on ‘Uranium‘. Though most all of the six total songs included veer into chorales and shout-along pagan metal style, such as the middle portion of “Wüst die Heimat” and the ~3 minute mark of “Ein Werkzeug des Todes”, the shrieking raw aspect of their vocals likewise returns. This’d (initially) been a difficult thing to sit with, especially when passing through the seeming regressive and cringe-worthy ranting found on “Radonquell 1666” for the first time, but I’d ultimately found this brought some unusual character, or, some of the only exaggerative notes available to the otherwise dramatic tone of the full listen.

The group-sung movements on ‘Uranium‘ were by far their major strength wherein the points which do reprise the sound of ‘Vom schwarzen Schmied‘ certainly stood out for my own taste though the occasional melodic arcing of their riffcraft was ultimately their best trait flexed. “Wismut »Justiz«” offers perhaps the cleanest most brief exercise in that direction, a piece which they bash through in the most raw and shrieking sense to start before a whoa-whoa level chorus writ in polyphonic arrange allows for more than the rhythm guitar layers to present their melodic statement. The more time I’d spent with ‘Uranium‘ the more this direct relationship between the quasi-choral vocal melodies and lead guitar lines became the defining trait of the full listen, at its best within the more adventurous lines of songs like “Uranfeuer 55” and “Ein Werkzeug des Todes” which retain a folken trod to their step. Though the spectacle of a few shrieking verses was more ear-catching up front this treatment of lingering, searching melody is the major source of the tragedian and spiteful tonality which drives the experience.

While I’d found ‘Uranium‘ immersive, entertaining, and well curated otherwise the suggested theme was interesting if not less-than represented in the music itself beyond lyricism and overall tone. This all made more sense after translating some of said tone and perspective from the lyrics but without further launching into my own study guide and translation efforts no sense of place or specific events are overtly conveyed in Dauþuz‘ work. This’d limited the amount of time I’d decided to invest in their work on a deeper analytical level but I couldn’t say this’d been a huge detractor from an otherwise enjoyable record with plenty of imposing, long-winded pieces which’d kept me engaged. The appeal of this one was limited per my own tastes but I couldn’t argue with a memorable impression made overall. A moderately high recommendation.

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