DBY (Death Becomes You)

"Heavily drawing from all things horror, DBY (which stands for Death Becomes You) have created a sound that is at the same time both visceral and melodic, yet dark enough to let you know that mortal fools need not apply. Along with this is a gritty New York-bred attitude that will either make you love ‘em or hate ‘em. Think 'Goodfellas' meets a classic Universal or Hammer horror flick. There’s no middle ground here with this band (in more ways than 1.) Do they care? I highly doubt it. In their lyrical approach, they fully understand what this whole death trip is about. Also, unlike bands of the horror rock (or horror punk) scene, they don’t tend to copy their influences too closely. There’s originality present for once. No camp, cheez, or other nonsense that’s far from an afternoon revue here in Sin City. However, all is not so gruesome. There is an aspect of fun and humour, 1 of the black variety (but of course) They certainly are “fit for a funeral,” but wouldn’t be out of place at the most indulgent of parties either. But, it’s the personalities which fuel the fire of this band; the brash and outspoken (yet highly intelligent) Christopher Lee (drums,) the misanthropic and sarcastic John Janos (vokills,) the borderline insanity of Nicodemous (bass,) and last but not least the quiet morbidity of guitarist Gory (gotta watch out for the quiet ones.) Somehow, these diverse personalities work in unison, particularly in the live arena. Speaking of which, their stage show is at once reminiscent of early Alice Cooper or KISS in it’s sleekness and macabre imagery. Yet if 1 suspends disbelief, it’s more than just watching a cool horror flick on late-night T.V. You are right on the set of the movie, or even right in the middle of it. Sure, there’s many bands out there with a gothic horror look, but there’s very little synthetic-based stuff here. DBY feel (like Lou Reed) that you can’t beat guitar, bass, and drums. With that, they are louder and more aggressive than the overwhelming majority of their contemporaries. That’s a good thing. In their own way, they just may have re-invented Deathrock, or at the very least are continuing the legacy of said genre. To this, the term “grave-wave” (which they coined) makes a lot of sense. Only Father Time will be the judge as to whether or not they will be what 45 Grave or Christian Death were/are to Gothic Rock/Deathrock and start a whole new movement. Right now, they’re just making it bleed…what is it though?"

- Dave Necro, Editor/CryptMagazine.com