“The darkness embraces another sun”: that is the way the new single of SYMPHONIES OF DECAY “The Portal” begins. As astronomy lovers surely guessed, the song is about black holes, those sidereal abysses able to engulf everything – matter, light, sound and time.
“The light will not shine again for no one / no sound, no pain, only an infinite run / no sunrise, no sundown, only a silent night / the essence of the things destroyed without a fight”.
Nihilism, destruction and silence have always been main grounding subjects in death metal songs, but Symphonies of Decay take them to a cosmic level.
Their vision expands beyond humankind, towards an universe where matter implodes and time ceases to exist and their music reflects this expansion thoroughly.
The growl and tight rhythms incarnate the destructive energy and primordial chaos, while the arias and clean strings melodic overtures invoke infinite spaces amongst the galaxies.
Doom and gothic metal become fundamental satellites of the most raging parts generating a track sounding like Dark Tranquillity, Paradise Lost and Swallow the Sun.
However, behind the flood of black matter and sound here lies a question: if like the chorus sings “nothing is created and nothing is destroyed” by mentioning Lavoisier, are we really sure black holes cause destruction?
Or perhaps they could be portals on other universes and other opportunities for life, just like the title suggests? Physics still can’t provide definite answers therefore the majestic images of “The Portal” lyric video offer thought provoking invitation to reflect on the subject.
“Are you sure this is the final end? Is this the portal to another land? Could this be the way to really ascend? Or is it the only mechanism to disappear instead?”: the song ends with these questions, leaving room to mystery and imagination. Maybe one day we will find out.
Symphonies of Decay were born in 2019 from Alfredo Teodori (guitars) and Andreas Santori (drums), already collaborating in Varnas, a well known Roman death metal band. The project is influenced by the Scandinavian scene, particularly from bands such as Dark Tranquility and In Flames.
After the release of the early tracks and a long lineup building process, the completion was achieved when Simone Gaddeo joined the band on vocals. Last members joining were Simone Di Pietro on guitars and in 2025 Fabrizio Sclano on bass.
The band released “Sagittarius A”, first EP recorded at The Outer Sound Studios of Giuseppe Orlando (The Foreshadowing, Novembre) in 2025.
The record is of doom-death sound with gothic atmospheres, consisting in four cosmic and dense tracks including “The Portal”.
Lineup: Alfredo Teodori (guitars), Simone Di Pietro (guitars), Andreas Santori (drums), Fabrizio Sclano (bass), Simone Gaddeo (vocals).
Symphonies of Decay online: https://linktr.ee/Symphonies_of_decay
Click image to watch the video
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