the Top 10 Doom Albums of 2023

 

I love to celebrate death and darkness, Doom is the music that should not only embrace a sense of loss and depression but sonically express it. These  are the albums that did that best captured that feeling this year .   After I sort through the top 10 albums of all the respective genres, I use those lists to compile the top 10 albums of the year. 2023. The very fact these bands made it on the list speaks to how great these albums are, so it's not a slight that the number 8 album is above the 9th album, there is something that just gives it an edge that makes me want to listen to it more. After all, we can try to look cool and pick the hippest bands for a list, but at the end of the day what makes an album the best is that it makes you want more, you look forward to listening to it again. Perhaps you can find your next favorite on this list; and have included links to reviews of these albums if you want to check out the audio on these guys. Anyway here are the top 10 Doom albums of 2023.

10-Adversvm-"Vama Marga"

This  band is capable of traversing sonic depth and on the heavier side of death doom as needed. This German band recently added the keyboardist from Evoken to their ranks, which is what made me take notice. This marks the band's third full length. Not sure I would quite  lump them into funeral doom as I am not getting that same sense of depressive longing , so they seem more like an atmospheric death doom band .

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/05/adversvm-vama-marga.html

 9-Saturnus- "the Storm Within"

 It could be said these guys are death doom if your definition of the sub-genre weighs heavily on the vocals. Musically there is a very lush expanse of sound summoned from what this Danish band does. They have been around since the 90s and this is only their 5th album, so they take their time. They have what they do very dialed in

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/06/death-is-june-saturnus-storm-within.html

8-Isole-" Anesidora"

I  really liked this Swedish band's 2019 album "Dystopia". They seem to be heading into even more melodic territory. Deliberate and dark, but not doom in the way it is most easily defined. There is more drive, almost in the same sonic zip code as Hangman's Chair, the vocals have a more regal operatic feel, and the singer is clearly not as depressed. This majestic soaring feel, is what separates them into their own niche. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/03/isole-anesidora.html

7-Usnea - "Bathed in Light"

I was a fan of this band's 2017 album. They are back at it with a greater mix of atmospheric moods and crushing doom that carries the dirty heft of sludge. Though a great deal of it has been smoothed out due to the attention to detail that was spent recording this. The vocals go from a low guttural growl to a more anguished scream. In the past six years since their last album they have been polishing every element of what they do. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/05/usnea-bathed-in-light.html

6- Ahab- the Coral Tombs 

8 years of chaos have passed since this German doom band released their last album. Chris Noir of  Ultha lends his voice to the highly aggressive black metal start of the opening track before it ebbs down into the doom you expect from this band. The croon of the baritone vocals here, is delivered with more power and presented more forward in the mix. The vocals play a bigger role in the overall sound this time around. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/01/ahab-coral-tombs.html

5- Shores of Null- the Loss of Beauty" 

I really enjoyed this Italian band's 2017 album, now they are proving to be just as hard to pin down. Musically there is a great deal in common with black metal, but the crooned vocals throw that comparison off to some extent. The growled vocals feel more death metal. The tremolo flow of guitar could also come from something pagan metal like Tyr, so a great deal is going on with some interesting melancholy passages to add to the dynamics.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/03/shores-of-null-loss-of-beauty.html

4- the Abbey-"Word of Sin"

Hailing from bands like Man Eating Tree and Shape of Despair, this doom band out of Finland , does what I wish Ghost did, by playing dark metal, with catchy layer vocals . The cadence and how the vocals are layered is what brings Ghost to mind. Unlike Ghost this has the balls of metal to it even when draped in doomy goth finery

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/02/the-abbey-word-of-sin.html

3-GODTHRYMM - "Distortions"

UK doomsters Godthrymm return with their dark and gritty vision of metal. It's vision that is true to the classic while not gazing into the stagnation of retro obsessions. Unless we are talking about the 90s as this would have fit well into the doom that was coming out then. They feels like they are chugging forward rather than meandering in droning sprawl.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/07/godthrymm-distortions.html

2-Orphans of Dusk -"Spleen"

 They are doom band with low sung baritone vocals , but also use death metal snarls as well, which not what Peter Steele did, so yes there is influence there, but Woods of Ypres, Moonspell, Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride could all be influences as well. If you just label them a Type O tribute then you are telling me you have a very limited range of musical knowledge. They 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/04/orphans-of-dusk-spleen.html

1- Mansion- Second Death 

This Finnish band does doom most uniquely at times they blend a minimalist folk not unlike what a  cult would sing as their mantra, as they lurch along in a very creepy manner. The tangible darkness of the music is heavier than the distortion of the guitars of the volume, though they are capable of applying those dynamics as well. I think they tap into cool dark places that few go in a new way. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/11/november-is-doom-mansion-second-death.html

Isole : " Anesidora"

I really liked this Swedish band's 2019 album "Dystopia". They seem to be heading into even more melodic territory. Deliberate and dark, but not doom in the way it is most easily defined. There is more drive, almost in the same sonic zip code as Hangman's Chair, the vocals have a more regal operatic feel, and the singer is clearly not as depressed. This majestic soaring feel, is what separates them into their own niche.  Cleanguitars haunt "Forgive Me". The vocals back off, and feel like there is more heart in them. It does not kick in the metallic dynamic in the expected manner, rather feels like a gradual progression which I respect. Death growl surface as the song gets heavier. 

There is an interesting call and response with the vocals on "Twisted Games". Things continue to grow darker as the album progresses and in so doing, it finds the band's sound conforming more to the expectations of doom. Growls are merely accents when the mournful mood builds. They are very convincing in describing the struggle with alcoholism on "In Abundance". It is an interesting perspective as Europeans are more advocates of moderation, rather than Americans who push them to a placed where forced abstinence is there only solution. Here the despair feels real, and that makes the song feel heavier. The growled vocals come into to drag you into their hopelessness. 

The vocals are not as graceful in wrapping the lyrics around the weeping guitars of " Open Your Mind".  "Vanity" closes the album with something more in line with the funeral march of traditional European doom. By this the shade that owes nothing to Sabbath, and has more elegant atmosphere than sludge. I will give this album a 9, it's an easy listen for me as it caters to the brand of 90s doom, I am a big fan of. I will see how this grows on me so far, it's not a summer album unless it's for rainy afternoons and late nights. 

The Top 10 Doom Albums of 2019

It's that time of year again, to sort through the top 10 albums of all the respective genres and compile all the number ones into the top 10 albums of the year. Later in the month  I will make the top 10 lists for the decade. To be blunt 2019 is  the decade's weakest year for music.  Especially when it comes to new artists, however doom is one of the few genres that proved an exception to this as only 4 of the 10 bands are veterans. as 7 of the 10 bands are veterans  to our lists here. You had to search much harder to find ten albums that rose above, yet that is what I did.As in past  years  I am giving a brief explanation as to why these albums stand over the peers in lower positions on the list. The very fact these bands made it on the list speaks to how great these albums are so it's not a slight that the number 8 album is above the 9th album, there is something that just gives it an edge that makes me want to listen to it more. After all we can try to look cool and pick the hippest bands for a list, but at the end of the day what makes an album the best is making  you want more, you look forward to listening to it again. Sure you can  bitch and complain about your favorite band not being on the list, I listen to five new albums a day so yes I heard your favorite album and was not impressed. No,  I do not care what you think about it . I do hope you can find your next favorite on this list and included links to reviews of these albums if you want to check out audio on these guys. Anyways here are the top 10 Doom albums of 2019 .

10-Isole-"Dystopia" 

 With the deluge of death doom this year it is good to just hear straight forward doom. Though not as straight forward as most doom bands due to the fact Most of this band also plays in the Pagan Black Metal band Ereb Altor. This cross over can still be felt in the influences brought to the table as they are not just doom musicians . Being from Sweden there are many other elements from the influence of their country men despite being a doom band. You get the guitar harmony parts from melo-death, the aggression of Dissection and in many places it feels like Katatonia jamming with Candlemass,

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/08/isole-dystopia.html



 



9-the River-"Vessels Into White Tides"

 I would much rather question what the fuck I am listening to than endure a band trying to be Electric Wizard. I  really appreciate this band's sound. Sure much like King Woman the flirt with the line of what doom can be. There is a melancholy to what they do that solidifies them as doom in my mind. The vocals are a timidly sung  by a woman whose voice falls some where between a higher alto and lower soprano. Her approach is very smooth. I can hear shoe gaze influence in what they do as well as slow core bands like Low.It is not playing it safe and hiding behind distortion while abandoning the conventions of Metal that placed this album ahead of Isole.



 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/11/november-doom-river-vessels-into-white.html

8-Obed Marsh- "Dunwhich" 


 If you want to hear death doom done really fucking right so that it's more doom and not just slow death metal, then check out this mean mother fucker. Their previous album "Innsmouth" had some gnarly spewed vocals , that this one has out does in the first two songs alone. Some of this might be thanks to the attention to detail in the production this time around. The guitars have a more angular dissonance to them which also helps paint this unnerving picture. The dark ugliness of this album beasts out the more subdued album by the River.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/01/obed-marsh-dunwich.html

7-Sigils "You Built the Altar You Lit the Leaves"


 This band from New York has the detached surrealistic pulse that is shared by bands like Jesu.The guitars carry a lumbering to them , but are also the prime architects of the album's atmosphere. These guys would almost have more in common with sludge if it was not for the vocals carrying such a sense of loss to them.What puts them above Obded Marsh is the mood they create with atmosphere to have more sonic colors.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/05/sigils-you-built-altar-you-lit-leaves.html

6-Year of the Cobra - "Ash and Dust" 

 There are few things that are surprising about this duo. The first being that they are a duo. This is fuzzed out bass not guitar.; The second is pop sensibilities of her vocals . Drone and groove are their stock and trade, with the loud soft dynamic a set part of the formula. The beat out Sigils for this spot due to the hooky vocals.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/11/november-doom-year-of-cobra-ash-and-dust.html

5-Kook- "II" 

 Their is some buzz about their fuzz.The album does sound great as It's warm and organic. I am less concerned with what pedals they play with and more interested in the songs, which are pretty fucking kicking as well. The are not the slowest or darkest doom. There is more Cream and MC5 influence than Sabbath. I like the singers croons , which also helped sell me on this band. The reason they came out on top over Year of the Cobra and it was a tough call, but since they are not a bass and drums duo they have more sonic depth.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/11/november-doom-kook-ii.html

4- Swallow the Sun- "When a Shadow is Forced into the Light"


 These guys sound more Swedish than Finnish, though some of the goth touches are more implied than really committed to. If you are a fan of the band who doesn't mind the more melodic direction the band is heading in then you will find this album will sit well with you. If you haven't really given them much of a chance then this is a good place to start. More breathing room than the more oppressive strains of doom on this list. They are highly fine tuned and show no signs of wanting to be Black Sabbath. What they are doing here is so much bigger than what Kook is going for it is almost not fair to compare them, but what gives these guys the edge of land this spot.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/01/swallow-sun-when-shadow-is-forced-into.html

3-Esoteric- "A Pyrrhic Existence"

 I love Esoteric. "Paragon of Dissonance" is one of my favorite albums. But I will only listen to a 30 minute song once no matter how good it is. The first song is almost longer than Slayer's entire "Reign in Blood" album. Granted speed metal vs doom are two very different things. Aside from that it's ambitious and still executed perfectly in terms of the sounds and moods they attain. Once you are in it this album is clearly some next level shit that goes beyond just being funeral doom. You can not really fairly compare this against most of the albums on this list. Swallow the Sun however is almost as ambitious as Esoteric, these guys are just much heavier and muscle their way to the number 3 spot.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/11/november-doom-esoteric-pyrrhic-existence.html

2-Brume -"Rabbits"

 This album was not what I expected going into it. After a few listens it proves early on this is an album I can just let play as it flows with smooth dynamics that do not tire. The drumming is almost as impressive as the soaring vocals. More hypnotic than crushing, the gray melancholy is often more than enough to solidify their place as doom, though their sound tends to be fragile in it's moodiness. It is this level of songwriting that makes me listen to this more than the bigger symphony of despair Esoteric created.


https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/11/november-doom-brume-rabbits.html

1-Cold in Berlin -"Rituals of Surrender"


I had to go back and listen to their 2012 album "And Yet" to see if I was totally off base as remembering them as more of a post punk bank .Now they are a doom band band like a darker version of Devils Blood with more post punk influence. Their singer's pleading wail works against the crushing fuzzed out groove you can not help but head bang to. This one was really close . Brume was originally in the number one spot until , further listens made it clear this album would shoulder aside the more fragile emotions of the "Rabbits album. Here emotion crushes you even at it's most introspective.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/10/gothtober-cold-in-berlin-rituals-of.html

Isole : "Dystopia"

After the deluge of death doom this year it is good to just hear straight forward doom. Though not as straight forward as most doom bands due to the fact Most of this band also plays in the Pagan Black Metal band Ereb Altor. This cross over can still be felt in the influences brought to the table as they are not just doom musicians . Being from Sweden there are many other elements from the influence of their country men despite being a doom band. You get the guitar harmony parts from melo-death, the aggression of Dissection in places as well as the first influence that came to mind due to the melancholy groove Katatonia. In fact in many place it feels like Katatonia jamming with Candlemass, The first song has more drive than the bulk of this album that wallows in depressive dirges. The crooned vocals are like a less emotive version of My Dying Bride. They moan over the guitar , not always working into the riff. The results are less hooky than say Pallbearer. This guy can belt it out and has a great singing voice, he just has no intention of writing anything for a mainstream radio audience.

I have made a playlist of black metal bands for people who like power -metal, and have thought about making a doom for people into power metal playlist as these guys would qualify, I am still doing it , November is going to become our doom month here, if you are reading this you probably get the reference. These these guys belong on it as things are very big and dramatic. Epic sounding thanks to their other band. "the Beholder" opens with a mellower more introspective guitar part before cranking into the meat of the song. These guys are not playing riffy Sabbath stuff. It is pretty intricate, you could even think of this as progressive doom.  There is a heavier crunch to "You Went Away". It is an extremely dynamic song with things breaking down before hitting you double bass. The riff going to "Forged By Fear" the probably the closest to conventional doom I have heard so far .By conventional doom we are talking direct descendants of Black Sabbath. Guttural growls also color this song.  It is s solid song, but the bar has been raised high for these guys so it might not be the strongest song on the album.

If you have a doom album and the longest song is eight minutes, then you are telling me you know how to write a song and know this requires trimming the fat, much like editing a story.  "Galenkapens Land" is sung in their native tongue. The drumming is very groovy. The guitar gives everything room to breath and when it kicks in highly melodic. It's also despondently dark, so all I need when it comes to doom. "Nothingness" closes the album. This one is more Candlemass like. The guitar melody is memorable and works well with the vocals.  I will give this album a 9. It is one of the more solid doom albums I have heard in a few months at least. If you want doom with very little death metal and way more melancholy this album is  worth your time . Released on Hammerheart Records