THE DAMNATION (not the most original of the monikers) are a German duet, in a sporadic activity since 1996 (in the meantime between then and now, the two band members played also in ACT OF FATE and POINT ZERO). “Into The Underworld” is their second demo which offers us five tracks of rough Death Metal of a brand that was current in the first half of the 90s. Well, this CD comes out very interesting because of the simple (and not simplistic) approach of the songwriting. This mini effort has it flaws of course. The drums sound too synthetic to my ears (yet a real drummer is credited), the guitars are mixed too much upfront in the detriment of the vocals, even if the overall production is clear and very powerful, with a lot of dynamics. All the songs are excellent but one (‘Reflections’, with an annoying repetitive guitar lick which gets on the nerves after a while). Like I said the song structures are simple but efficient, and one has to admit it is not very usual these days. This MCD reeks of honesty and dedication, these guys are not here to show up. All in all, a rather pleasant surprise and a band worth to check out. I have to add that the CD is a private pressing which comes with a good layout. Strongly recommended! http://thedamnation.de, e-mail: info@thedamnation.de.