Dunsmuir is a relatively new project band for Neil Fallon, (Clutch) Dave Bone (The Company Band) Brad Davis and Vinny Appice (Black Sabbath) which formed in 2013. These esteemed gentlemen have formed a super group for lack a better term, each with an extensive history in the music business, showing that they know the what’s what of the industry, and have made an album that shows just that.
I should start this off by saying that this album is STRONG from start to finish, with all of the members and their background ins with the industry, they come together in a brutally rad and awesome way. The way this album is laid out to my understanding is that they are scientists going to a foreign island, getting shipwrecked and having the worse possible situations come in their way. I get the visualization of them being a sort of early 1900’s English group, with some “Island of Dr. Moreau,” and “King Kong” sort of vibes going on. A lot of energy pours into this concept album; just some straightforward, headbanging and devil horned goodness.
Each song becoming heavier and heavier, with an anticipation of something truly awful awaiting these poor souls at the end of their long and arduous journey/ finishing song. The starting song is “Hung on the rocks,” which indicates the shipwrecked crew, and stumbling on the land, and setting the tone of slow paced doom that is to follow. Very heavy and complex that keeps you guess on how the rest of this will unfold for them. The second song is “Only our master,” starts with upbeat anticipation, and a hope to conquer the newfound world through science and discovery. “The Bats,” is the first night of the expedition and the fight for their life. This one is my favorite of the album, even though that is a hard thing to say due to this whole album being as good as it is. The rhythm and marching tone always gives me a can-do attitude. It reminds me of the final scene of an epic battle you’d see in a movie when a major character gets slain mid fight, only to be avenged by a dear friend. “What Manner of Bliss,” is a temperamental tune that I believe shows the effects of what these lost souls have done 
with themselves, along with what is to come for them in the future. “Deceiver,” segues the previous song, and shows the true colors of the remaining party members. “And Madness,” opens the realm of things that once was and might continue to be if only outside forces were to intervene. “Orb of Empire,” is the beginning of the war parties that might have formed out of spite in each other’s little sections in the island. “Church of the Tooth,” I’m getting the feeling that this whole concept goes over a course of years because they have these hybrid native and scientific that is depicted in this song. “The Gate,” is the final song before the find out the true nature of the island and the end of whatever sort of quest that has come to be for these presumably doomed and crazed explorers. Things tend to get the weirdest just before the end of any mysterious, depicting giant falling skeletons coming from the sky, but for what reason? “Crawling Chaos,” the final tale to this album, phrasing the names of old gods like “Kawah Ijen The Beating Heart,” that’s risen to either end this madness, or more likely to stir up some more due to provocation from the wrecked crew.
This whole album is both beautifully and gruesomely painted in what these guys are capable of making as a sort of a starter album. I would highly recommend giving them a listen when you get the chance, and enjoy the first of hopefully many albums that will come in the future. It was constructed in a well put together way, with a lot of power and passion behind each of the songs. I would actually love to see a short animated film of what really happens to explorers, but until then I will let my imagination run its course.
