The intro track is a creepy opener that quickly gives way to the first real song on the disc, "Funeral Thrist." Things get started off with some nice blasting by the drummer but once the singer comes into the picture your ears shift gears. The Black Dahlia Murder have one of the best vocalists around in Mr. Trevor Strnad. He does BOTH the raspy black metal shrieks and the low, gutteral death metal growl. His outstanding vocal performance on Unhallowed compliments his morbidly poetic lyrics. Hearing about zombies rising from the dead and murdering a secret crush never sounded so intriguing.
The guitars all sound heavy yet crisp at the same time. They bring a sense of melody to this otherwise brutal record without making it sound deluted and weak. The songs on this record often stop at a dime and whatever thrashy beat was going on starts grinding like theres no tomorrow. This is a testament to the top notch musicianship of the band while the overall quality and catchiness of the songs shows off their excellent songwriting capabilities. Unhallowed is a near perfect album and the fact that it is a debut speaks volumes about the Black Dahlia Murder and what they have instore for the future. All the songs on this record are great but the standouts are:
Funeral Thirst
Elder Misanthropy
Thy Horror Cosmic
Hymn For The Wretched
Closed Casket Requiem