DarkUpside - A Taste of Unknown

DarkUpside is an Italian trio from Genova that considers; Diego Cazzaniga on Vocals and Guitar, Davide Di Marco on Bass Guitar, and Davide Incorvaia on Drums. The band has a Progressive Metal and Alternative Rock vibe in their music that combines the sound of; Foo Fighters, Mastodon, Porcupine Tree, and Karnivool to name a few. Now with the combining sounds of the four bands, and since their formation back in 2011 with a 4-track demo they did, the concept of their music is to do something different with the genres.

And with their debut album released last year, A Taste of Unknown, is a heavier, ominous, and doomier at the same time in which the band brings the mighty electrifying ideas they bring into the sound of DarkUpside’s music. Not to mention the band’s five centerpieces that deserves some attention. Opener, Waving Steps, begins with a pastoral classical echoed guitar reverb done in the style of the sessions of Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells before turning into a electronic vibe as it segues into the mellowing yet nightmarish tension of someone going insane on Unbearable Noise.

There are some killer riffs that Cazzaniga is doing in the styles of John Petrucci and Adam Jones as if he is taking it to different levels playing both the riff and the rhythm on his guitar to capture the atmosphere of going inside the mind of a person by seeing where he or she would go next of his mental conditions while Peace of Mind, sees the band paying tribute to Tool as if they have given the torch to them to see where they would go next.

Then, the band go into an instrumental composition combining the forces of Alternative and Extreme Metal an explosive powder keg that is ready to go off on Come Back. Beginning with a Bass and Snare Drum militant introduction done by both Marco and Incorvaia as Diego kicks the door open with some wonderful chops on the guitar, it goes through the minds of Pantera flown in through the landscapes as Davide goes into this powerful drum work as he makes it sound like a gun reigning rapid fire.

DarkUpside also go through on dealing with searching for the answers on who the person really is on Memories. There’s a lot of intensity on this track as the band go into a driven beat with some spacey sounds on the keyboard, soaring vocals, heavy rhythms along with the power riffs, and calming drums, the flashbacks on asking the person who the real self is to search and finding out what happen to their lives.

DarkUpside have something up their sleeves. And while this is their debut album, in which I've listened to about three times already, it has a lot of energy and eruptive power that is an absorbing yet riveting beginning for them. So if you love as I’ve mentioned, both Progressive Metal and Alternative Rock, DarkUpside’s A Taste of Unknown is right up your alley to check out.