Bidirna Dhamani – Ojash

Have you ever wondered what Morbid Angel would sound like if they were a Black Metal band? Of course you did. And we have heard a lot of examples of how that might have sounded. And if you would also add a good portion of esoteric and fathomless Doom Metal elements in the mix? Then you might have something that quite sounds like Bidirna Dhamani, an anonymous duo that is part of the illustrious Kolkata Inner Order, together with bands like Kapala, Tetragrammacide Naramedha and Nirriti. But where a lot of their peers are rather wild at heart or even downright chaotic with endless barrages of riffs and relentless skull hammering, Bidirna Dhamani is quite a different beast.

From the very opening riff, there is a strong Morbid Angel vibe that fuels the whole record and pushes it into the dark, twisted and occult territories of Death Metal. You can imagine of a good combination of ‘Blessed Are The Sick’ atmosphere with the intricacies and heaviness of ‘Formulas Fatal To The Flesh’. But with that dark and brooding ambiance also comes with a certain Black Metal-like touch that reminds of the many bands from the late 80’s, a period in Extreme Metal that is typified without very fixed genre borders. That genre transcending capability is even more on display when the bands slows down significantly and ventures into areas that only Funeral Doom bands dare to treat. Hints of Tyranny, Esoteric, Evoken or Mournful Congregation are rather easy to pick out.

Together this swirls into a mesmerizing and hypnotizing music that could appeal to anyone who is into either Death Metal of the dark kind (Dead Congregation or Grave Miasma), meatier Black Metal (Demoncy for instance) or the more challenging Funeral Doom entities. But the thing that makes ‘Ojash’ a stand-out release, and, frankly, a rather impressive step up from the band’s earlier output. Perhaps Bidirna Dhamani is a little less advanced or brutally savage compared to their Kolkata Inner Order peers, but they do combine much of the Extreme Metal’s most compelling ingredients with bits and pieces that reveal their Indian background. Especially in the percussive notes tucked away here and there, their background still comes to the surface, but it is far from an oriental band seeking to emphasize its origins.

All in all a very alluring record that will be pleasing the ones seeking for the darkest and more twisted depths of the Death Metal genre. For now it is only available digitally, but a CD version through Kaliyuga Konspiracies is in the making, while Goatowarex will take care of a (probably very pricy) vinyl edition. Keep your eyes open! (FelixS)

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This is Metal and so far we have already learned anyone can invent a new subgenre. So, here’s an idea for you… Doom Grind. Without the pesky ‘/’ because there’s nothing which could demand an ‘or’ in description. I mean, the idea is probably decades old, but I haven’t heard an album which could e described as exactly that. In most cases it’s usually a song leaning more to one side and then the next one leaning onto the other. But both genres being done simultaneously seemed a bit stretched… Until now.

Bidirna Dhamani, another part of the elusive Kolkata Inner Order Propaganda started turning heads in 2023 when their first  self-titled demo, which has been followed by their second demo, ‘Brihor Buru’ just a year later (followed by a compilation of both demos in December 2024). Contrary to the popular belief which is convinced the first demo should be recorded on a toaster with absolutely no production whatsoever and the band members are just allowed to show their ego and not really their musical and/ or instrument playing abilities, Bidirna Dhamani already had their sound meticulously crafted and the occasional glitches were carefully planned and used when needed. The mysterious duo behind the band’s name knew exactly what they were doing.

They learned their lesson that heavy doesn’t have to be inhumanly fast, because fast usually means ‘sloppy’ and as explained, they are anything but sloppy. Their sound is made with a mathematical precision and manages to come off as incredibly fast, even though is in fact slow (and vice versa). It ends up not only confusing people (which I think was in fact one of their goals), but it builds a thick, impenetrable wall of sound with a strangling atmosphere (strangling as in ‘more than just suffocating’) with not a lot of layering or induction of pre-recorded samples or electronics at all. It’s just two guys making music with their instruments and ‘Chthulhu on crack’ vocals. Seriously, I love the vocal delivery, yet I can only describe it as ‘bizarre’ as it ties the whatever horrible thing which is being done to the poor instruments here with the black hole like (consistent, steady and absolutely devastating) vocals which give the entire album a feeling of what the abyss would scream back at you, when it caught you lurking from the bushes.

I always find it fascinating that the only music genre which has more subgenres as porn, can find new combinations and the bands which live up to their almost ridiculous genre nomenclature (as most don’t – there’s a zillion bands which promised a completely new sound and ended up sounding as a zillion bands before). It clearly shows there’s always a way to create something out of what’s been done before, but still make it sounding as fresh, new and putting your mark on the world which claims it doesn’t do well with any changes (or those should be abolished, because some people don’t want their metal meddled with). But… Bidirna Dhamani aren’t doing something outrageous here, they are showing you what can be done with what already exists, but has yet to be taken out to its own limit. We’ll hear more from them and they’ll amaze us every time we do, mark my words on this one. (Black Mary)