I usually like to focus on music from the current calendar year but then again, cassette demos are usually timeless. Back in the early days of 2013, there was this Finnish band, who couldn’t decide on whether or not they wanted to be death metal, or doom metal, or black metal. So this Finnish band, whose name is Cemetery Fog, decided to be all three. Back in 2013, the band released their third demo Shadows from the Cemetery which probably stayed in the hands of friends, family, and websites who stumbled on it by accident. Today in 2014, Iron Bonehead re releases this treasured gem for a greater audience. Who knew that while we slept, the sounds of death and doom where being played with gloomy grandeur.

Before we go any further, I would like to say Shadows from the Cemetery is a fantastic demo whose loyalty to all three styles is far beyond impressive. The slow tempo which weighs the black and death rasps gives a hopeless atmosphere as well as points of interest. Cemetery Fog is a band who is very much aware of traditional styles as well as the best way to employ all of them in one release. In the landscape of metal demos, Shadows from the Cemetery is one of the few releases which could stand up to the level of a full length release. The entire 23 minutes of this demo is surprisingly well recorded and unsurprisingly well worth everyone’s time.

With all of the good things said, Cemetery Fog does possess a knack for the outlandish. With name, silly pictures, and album cover to match, the band goes over the top in terms of darkness. I believed I have traveled this far to appreciate the charm in the ultra dark. Cemetery Fog evokes the image which made old school death metal so enjoyable. In the absence of Satan and gore there exists a prevalent attitude of foreboding terror. Not only does Cemetery Fog nail this attitude but they do it with a strange sense of elegance and grace.