J.R.R. Tolkien’s Mirkwood is a dark and treacherous woodland where cunning wood elves, lying woodmen, bloodthirsty orcs, undead Ringwraiths, and all other manner of foul creatures lurk in the shadows of gnarled trees, which themselves seem threatening at night. Stray off the path there, and your soul will be lost eternally in the dark woods.
Listening to “Horizons Dim,” an epic fantasy metalcore style single from Florida-based melodic metalcore band Chasing Airplanes, we are reminded of the treacherous path through Mirkwood as described in Tolkien’s works. Ambient synth pads project an eerie ambience, like the strange half-light of the wood, while heavy riffing guitars and slow, yet precision drumming steadily march the track forward, as a small group of road-weary travelers. A high guitar keens out in a Nazgûl’s unearthly cry in the distance. The call and response between guttural death metal vocals and soaring metalcore vocals is a struggle between light and dark. In the end, an ultra-sluggish doom metal breakdown paints a grim scene of travelers straying off the path toward cunning delusions and forever lost to time in the woods.
Step into the dark woods below. Then follow Chasing Airplanes for upcoming releases, events, and other band news. We also added this track to the top slot of our Heavy Heavy Heavy playlist on Spotify.
Chasing Airplanes - Horizons Dim