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Review & Full Album Premiere: Di’Aul, Nobody’s Heaven

Posted in audiObelisk, Reviews on May 3rd, 2018 by JJ Koczan

diaul nobodys heaven

[Click play above to stream Di’Aul’s Nobody’s Heaven in its entirety. Album is out May 4 via Argonauta Records.]

I’ll admit to being somewhat puzzled by the title Milano sludge-rocking four-piece Di’Aul — to be pronounced like “the owl” and not like “dial,” reportedly — have given to their five-track Argonauta Records sophomore long-player. Is it Nobody’s Heaven, like a heaven that doesn’t belong to anyone, or Nobody’s Heaven, like there isn’t a single person who represents the idea of paradise? The lyrics of the 7:45 opening title-track, delivered as they are in gruff but still melodic gutturalisms by vocalist MoMo Cinieri, aren’t much help when they’re discernible. I guess there’s something to keeping the idea vague — though I’ll allow that with the benefit of a full lyric sheet it might not be a mystery at all — and open to interpretation when it comes to engaging the listener, but Di’Aul could hardly be expected to have much trouble in that regard anyway, particularly among the mud-covered sludge converted whose lives have been incomplete since Australia’s Beastwars called it a day.

Di’Aul don’t proffer quite the same kind of tonal dominance from guitarist Lele Mella or bassist Jeremy Toma (also vocals), but the stomp in Diego Bertoni‘s drums on a cut like moody centerpiece “Garden of Exile” or the faster “Low Est,” which follows, seems to stem from a similar post-Crowbarian root. With how comfortable the band are playing slow, and how nestled into a nod they get, a moment like “Low Est” is something of a surprise, but there isn’t really a point on the album wherein Di’Aul entirely depart from the sphere of heavy sludge rock. So while they range a bit, they’re still well within genre parameters.

The crucial element here is lurch. The five songs that comprise Nobody’s Heaven — “Nobody’s Heaven,” “Black Death,” “Garden of Exile,” “Low Est,” and “Mother Witch” — rely largely on slow grooves to get their sonic point across, and that becomes a bit part of the identity of the album. They start of quietly enough with the intro to “Nobody’s Heaven,” but about 90 seconds in build to a huge-sounding scream and crash, and from there, trade back and forth tensely between quiet minimalist guitar strumming/vocals, and full-tone kick-in-the-teeth riffing and rolling. Their basic starting point is definitely metal, and that’s so it’s all the easier to point to a band like Crowbar as a pivotal influence for the teeth-gritting “Black Death,” which still carries a melody in its chorus in a way that’s immediately familiar, but there are shades of more bouncing riffage in the subsequent “Garden of Exile” despite the consistency of brooding.

di'aul

That subtle difference in methodology goes a long way in not only holding the forward momentum Di’Aul have thus far worked to craft, but broadening the overarching sonic context of the release. Again, they remain aggressive, and Mella‘s guitar still finds room for plenty of the chug that seems to permeate every song in one way or another, but the swinging bridge that starts at about four minutes in would’ve seem strange tucked into the opener, and it shows command on the part of the group as a unit that by the time they get there and head toward the slowdown and solo that leads back to the verse/chorus to finish out — because songwriting! — it’s well within their reach. That makes the transition into the uptempo push of “Low Est” that much easier, and keeps the linear flow intact as Di’Aul lumber to the album’s finale.

I’ve likened Cinieri‘s vocals to High on Fire on “Low Est” before, and especially with the faster progression behind him, I stand by that, but if it seems like I’ve spent a lot of time here talking about his work, it’s because it stands out both in delivery and at the forefront of the album’s actual mix. As they start the rollout of closer “Mother Witch” and hit into an angular verse riff, even subdued, Cinieri is very much a presence in the material — which in the case of the last track is about as close as they come to that Beastwars comparison above. “Mother Witch” is the longest of the individual slabs on Nobody’s Heaven at just over eight minutes — it and the title-cut form a kind of bookend — and uses its extra runtime to patiently execute its verse/chorus tradeoffs, but to find room as well for noise-rock-style starts and stops late and symmetry with its whistle-topped intro and outro, the latter of which leads to the last stomps and eerie noise closing the record as a whole, which echo the underlying ambient bed beneath the guitar opening “Nobody’s Heaven.”

Of course, this underscores the notion of the bookend, and further, the cohesion that pervades the entirety of the full-length. Di’Aul made their debut in 2015 with the burl-laden Garden of Exile (note that the track of the same title didn’t appear there but appears here) and while elements have certainly carried over from one release to the next, it’s plain to hear in these five songs that the band have given due attention to atmospheric weight as well as sheer assault of volume. That works much to their benefit throughout Nobody’s Heaven and whether it’s someone or someplace, belonging to anyone or no one, the record comes across executed mindfully and aware moment by moment of its own impact. That only bodes well as Di’Aul continue to move forward.

Di’Aul on Thee Facebooks

Di’Aul on Bandcamp

Argonauta Records on Thee Facebooks

Argonauta Records website

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Di’Aul Reveal Album Details for Nobody’s Heaven

Posted in Whathaveyou on March 30th, 2018 by JJ Koczan

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Italian four-piece Di’aul were announced late last year as signing to countryman imprint Argonauta Records has part of a barrage of groups picked up by the label, and their label debut, Nobody’s Heaven — just in case you were wondering who might have the property rights — was slated for a February release. Here we are at the end of March. Hey, that’s scheduling. Pressing releases takes time, takes money, takes time to get money, etc., so yeah, the album will be out in May. Fair enough.

If you read the phrase “’90s metal groove” in the info below and think Pantera, you’re not all the way right and not all the way wrong. Di’aul definitely have some of that dudely metallism coming through their material, but the five-track/34-minute offering isn’t without a sense of melody either, and there are moments throughout that are just pure stoner in their ideology. That’s a good way to offset some of the chestbeating and it works to give the band a richer sound across the board, shades of slower High on Fire showing up in “Low Est” and more vicious chug rounding out “Black Death.”

There’s a preview for the album playing now at the bottom of this post — well, it’s not playing until you click play, but you know what I mean — and preorders are up if you’re so inclined. The PR wire takes it from here:

diaul nobodys heaven

DI’AUL reveal cover artwork and release date

Apocalyptic Stoner Doomers DI’AUL reveal first details of their upcoming album. “Nobody’s Heaven” includes 5 long songs, literally a blast of sonorities as if CROWBAR meet KILLING JOKE!

The album features subtle complexities bind together to a stunning 70’s rock songwriting and 90’s metal groove. The final result is an impressive step forward for the band, thanks to a distinctive and unique aggressive sound. Formed in Milan during 2010, DI’AUL released their first EP “GV 12.31” in 2010 and the first album “And Then Came the Monsters” in 2013, followed by their second opus “Garden of Exile” (2015).

DI’AUL “Nobody’s Heaven” will be released by ARGONAUTA Records and available from May 4th, 2018.

PREORDER NOW: http://bit.ly/2FUINlk

TRACK-LIST:
1. Nobody’s Heaven
2. Black Death
3. Garden of Exile
4. Low Est
5. Mother Witch

Di’Aul are:
MoMo Cinieri: Vocals
Lele Mella: Guitars
Jeremy Toma: Bass and Vocals
Diego Bertoni: Drums

https://www.facebook.com/DIAUL111
https://diaul.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/ArgonautaRecords/
www.argonautarecords.com

Di’aul, Nobody’s Heaven album trailer

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Di’Aul Sign to Argonauta; Nobody’s Heaven Due in February

Posted in Whathaveyou on October 3rd, 2017 by JJ Koczan

Milano rockers Di’Aul have inked a deal to release their new album, Nobody’s Heaven, this coming February, through countryman Italian imprint Argonauta Records. The last two years have seen the lineup of Argonauta absolutely explode — seriously, if I go two weeks without posting about them picking up a band, I feel like it’s a long time — but one thing the imprint has managed to do is put together a roster of talent diverse in sound enough that groups don’t really get lost in the mix as soon as they’re added to the fold. If you’d like to get a sampling of Di’Aul‘s wares, their second record, 2015’s Garden of Exile, is streaming at the bottom of this post.

Yup, pretty burly stuff. Dudery all the way. I’d expect no less when Nobody’s Heaven hits in February, all charged riffing and whatnot. More to come as we get there. Till then, this from the PR wire:

diaul

Italian Heavy Rockers DI’AUL sign to ARGONAUTA Records

We’re excited to announce we’ve inked a deal with Italian Heavy Rockers DI’AUL (read ‘The Owl’).

Formed in Milan during 2010, DI’AUL released their first EP “GV 12.31” in 2010 and the first album “And Then Came the Monsters” in 2013, followed by their second opus “Garden of Exile” (2015). The band is now working on the final touches to the new album titled “Nobody’s Heaven”, where subtle complexities are bind together to a stunning 70’s rock songwriting and 90’s metal groove. The final result is an impressive step forward of the band, thanks to a distinctive and unique sound able to blend the aggression of CROWBAR and the apocalyptic visions of KILLING JOKE.

DI’AUL “Nobody’s Heaven” is scheduled by February 2018.

More details to be revealed soon.

Di’Aul are:
MoMo Cinieri: Vocals
Lele Mella: Guitars
Jeremy Toma: Bass and Vocals
Diego Bertoni: Drums

https://www.facebook.com/DIAUL111
https://diaul.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/ArgonautaRecords/
www.argonautarecords.com

Di’Aul, Garden of Exile (2015)

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