Dismal Serenades is a good mix of black metal and a couple of symphonic elements; everything done in a very precise, tasteful manner; submerging the listener into a black metal environment composed by catchy riffs and dark sounds.

The album is obscure and perverse, but it has some gorgeous melodies and a couple of female interventions that enhance the deepness of the songs.

There are some great “operatic sounds” like in Moonlight shift, that administer a certain amount of melancholy and atmosphere elevating the song from catchy to almost epic. The production is good, not amazing, the drums seem to sound just for short periods of time like a well programmed machine loosing the “organic” feeling that most of the songs posses, but other than that, everything is well placed and nicely mixed. The guitars are off course the ones setting the tone every step of the way; they are very well complemented by the keyboards and the atmospheric sounds, nothing gets overdone here.

The female vocals are performed by Nadine Masferrer, she does a great job, achieving the notes without exaggerating her part (A mistake I have seen many black metal bands made when trying to incorporate female vocals), I guess that’s thanks to a good production.

One of the best tracks on Dismal Serenades is Wormholes, a blend of sounds and textures that can go from brutal and dark to beautiful and peaceful; maybe this will be the track that will establish the band as a great proposal when it comes to symphonic black metal.

Prelude in C minor is a composition from the master Johan Sebastian Bach and its performed by a jaw dropping guitar commanded by Rex A. Fernandez, mastermind of Dismal Gale.

To conclude, this is a nice, solid, entertaining black metal album that takes you on a rollercoaster of sounds and emotions that is definitely worth your money and time.