If you've followed A&A for any amount of time, you've probably noticed that I'm a sucker for loud, dramatic music. Faith No More is one of my all-time favorites, and anyone who combines buzzsaw guitars, keyboards and god-like vocals will catch my ear.

Silver Dust House 21 (Escudero)

So yes, Mushroomhead, Laibach, and that kind of stuff (a very wide net, I admit). Silver Dust does the goth-doom-extreme sound very nicely. These songs lurch along at just the right tempo, and the orchestral style of the arrangements (utilizing largely guitars and keyboards) create quite the theatrical atmosphere.

The band affects a steampunk style on stage, and that seems to fit the sound pretty well. These Swiss boys appear to have a good handle on all aspects of presentation. That's not required for success, of course, but it sure doesn't hurt.

Yes, I've heard this sort of thing before. Silver Dust is breaking little new ground. I suppose its innovation is to hew a bit closer to the goth than the metal, but that's a pretty subtle tweak. Whatever. Quite the joy for my ears.

Jon Worley