Dawn of Solace : "Affliction Vortex"

Finland is the country for dramatically melancholic music. It has quite a history with it as bands like HIM, The 69 Eyes, Nightwish Wish and The Man-Eating Tree all come to mind. Though those bands all have a different take on it. The same can be said for this band, which is more on the doom side of the tracks, but coming from a more Peacville place with the mournful vocals that make me think of Katatonia and My Dying Bride. The pace picks up a little for the second song, but the vocals are rightly even the center stage of this mix, as it keeps the tension underlying musically. Growled vocals, which I was not expecting, come in, which I was not expecting, though I should have been since they are now a staple of metal. 

Then on "Into the Light" things begin to take a turn away from doom into a more Opeth-inspired melodic progressive death metal direction, though the sung vocals are the dominant force in "Rival", finding the band going in a more accessible direction. Things climax with some impressive guitar prowess, as it continues to go further in a melodic death metal direction, as the growled vocals become the primary voice when the song really begins to build. Most of this begins to lies in the hands of the drummer, who allows moods to be established and never rushes things, but is also not about doing a bleak doom march either. 

"Dream" might be the album's best song as it just flows so well. Things are getting gloomier for "Pereniel," which finds the vocals shifting into the snarl for a more explosive chorus. This is the most effective use of this dynamic yet. They end on a doomier note going into the last song. At almost six and a half minutes long, it is the album's longest song, so they get credit as songwriters for not letting things sprawl out. Double bass comes in and things flow in a more uptempo direction, but it feels like it's more of a throb rather than jerking you out of the mood with it. I will give this album a 9, and see how it grows on me, one of the better efforts at pushing this sort of melodic metal from the 90s forward. 

pst163

November is Doom - Strange New Dawn : "New Nights of Euphoria"

 

This Norweigian band features members of Green Carnation and In the Woods. The opening track has progressive elements but with an aggressive pounding propelling it. The sung vocals have a maniacal feel to them. The attack of the guitar is a little more black metal than doom, but you can hear how these elements are fighting against one another in harmonic chaos. It is made up of a peculiar sonic combination of sound that it lacks cohesion. "Class Hero Idol" has a more prog-flavoured sound. It feels like the gap between Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd and Jethro Tull is being bridged here. The surreal moments of psychedelia float around the vocals, as the more aggressive guitar chug follows the flow of the song. 

"Defenders of Faith" ebbs down to more of a hard rock feel, with the vocals more aggressive before the momentum of the song blasts off in an epic gallop. The drummer is really great at both tasteful accents and pouring on the barrage of double bass. There is a rather grandiose dynamic swell to how this song builds. There is an odd tone to "Wake of Icons" that is darker than the direction they headed in the previous song. It reminds me of "Gutter Ballet" ara Savatage. "Fortune Bringer" serves to further my Pink Floyd comparisons. The vocals layering really highlights this fact. I am a big Pink Floyd fan so this does not bother me. There is still a metallic chug of guitar sitting back against this that does build back up into the wall of double bass. 

"Finding the Pieces" is much more metal. At times this is accomplished through a more thrashy chug. 'Seek it " has more of a conventional metal feel to its stomp..The guitar harmonies really give it more of a NWOBHM feel. The way the vocal melody is more relaxed reminds me of Opeth. The melodic qualities of the guitar solos are also an improvement in that regard. "High Strangeness" starts off with a drugged-out creepy groove before, the drums accelerate things with a flow of double bass.  The Roger Waters-like theatrics carry over into "Sons of Galaxy". The last song did not connect as solidly with me, it was grandiose but lacked focus. Overall this album works in its own weird way, and might still need to grow on me, I will give it a 9, it's more prog than doom, but gloomy prog.  It was released by Svart Records, which is another win for that label. 

November Doom- 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. That is how they open their new album. They are still funeral doom. It's three and a half minutes in until the vocals come in. Understandable as there are still 27 minutes left in the song. The vocals are lower and more inhuman this time around with weird effect on them to show case this fact. The vocals do shift into higher tormented screams. Eight and a half minutes in the ambiance gets really weird and spacey. This song is as long as Slayer's entire "Reign in Blood" album. Granted that one is thrash so moving at more of a punk speed while this one really lingers through the movements. At this length you have to think of it more along the lines of symphonic work. Midway into the song the pace picks up to more of a furious pounding. Yes the heavy guitar is there, but everything is bathed in far more atmosphere. The song could have ended at the 16 minute as it breaks down into swirling ambiance. There is the hesitant introduction of cleaner guitar being strummed. They tease you with a crashes of violence before committing to fully attacking you again. This is paid off at the 19 minute mark. It's quiet beautiful, but unless I am just leaving this album on I doubt this is a song I am going to cue up even to hear it's most memorable pasts. The last three minutes of this song is sound effects that could have been trimmed altogether .

This is follow by the almost sixteen minute sprawl that is "Rotting in Dereliction" though compared to the opener this is a pop song. It does have a nastier murkiness to it. Four minutes in things get interesting and build more drive.Some much so that it gather enough steam to muster a head banging groove for a few measures. Two minutes later it erupts into blast beats and guitar solos. They deserve credit for knowing how to pull of doom without vomiting up a bunch of tired Sabbath riffs. The song floats in a drone away from me becoming more of a background pulse. There is a four minute synth interlude and then they come back with " Consuming Lies". The delayed guitar sound is chilling. The staccato riff , finds an awesome groove even the vocals lock into that might be the album's finest moment.  This progress int of a solid chug. Around he 9 minute mark this drift of into a more progressive place with jazz under pining, particularly when it comes to the drumming here.  "Culmination" has a nasty snarl. At 18 minutes it still holds your attention. Progressive elements return midway into this song. At the 11 minute mark there is a swathe of white noise as the drums hold the tension. Double bass breaks this up. It's clear these guys are like the Meshuggah of doom.

The album closes with "Sick and Tired" .  More of their forward thinking guitar playing is shone upon. It is more like Pink Floyd than Black Sabbath.. It is perhaps one of the album's most melodic moments . The low growl of the vocals offset this, though it still has a soaring transcendent feel. At the five minute mark I am wondering how they are going to maintain this kind of sonic intensity as the vocals lash out into more of a scream. They don't instead they shift gears and lower themselves back into the dismal murk . This is a great album though there is fat that could have been trimmed from a song writing perspective, so I am giving this one a 9. This album is being released on Season of Mist.

Abrahma : "In Time For the Last Rays of Light"

There was a time when it seemed like the French were beginning to dominate black metal. Now they are gaining ground when it comes to doom. These guys are very close to the sonic zip code of  Hangman's Chair. The vocals are emotive against a dreary back drop. The difference is there is more of a blues influence creeping around the corner of the opener. One the second song the vocals take on a more death rock croon. They switch things up as the song progresses building into a brief flurry of blast beats. The death rock vibe continues into the next song. A lumbering sludge like riff stomps into the song. Some times the songs drag a little when they wallow in the shadow of their own despondence. Normally this is the feeling I want, but it requires a certain level of pacing .

The temp picks up some for "Last Epistle" . The vocal's have more hook to them. This might be the album's song. It has a solid slow. The heavier chugs come in to accent the tension. They do not have a set formula . but  "Wander in Sedation" revisits some of the themes we have heard earlier in the album. They dig deeper into darker creepiness with "Eclipse of the Sane" . The chorus to this song is pretty strong and gives it the edge to make it more compelling. The album closes with "There Bears the Fruit of Deceit" . The vocals are even stronger on this song. A more metallic riff comes in and gives it more of a  doom groove.  This builds into one of the album's heavier moments with throaty yelled vocals and more of sludge like sound, This flows back and forth from a more melodic part.

I like all of the elements employed here, though the sparse blast beats do not seem that necessary when they do crop up. It will take another listen for the lyrics to sink in .I know this album is supposed to be about mental illness which is a topic I can relate to. I will round this up to a 9.5 as it might not be perfect in terms of the songs pacing, but they do use some of many favorite elements to create this and write songs rather than just play with these sounds. 

Swallow the Sun : "When a Shadow is Forced Into the Light"

My first exposure to this band was seeing them play with Katatonia on the "Great Cold Distance" tour and since I was there to see Katatonia , I really just caught passing glimpses of them . They sounded different from what I am hearing on this album.There is a really massive sound to the title track that opens the album. The synths keep it from sounding too much like Katatonia, though there is that mood to it. The harsher vocals have more of a black metal rasp to them than the lower death metal tone I recall. "the Crimson Crown" finds them heading in more of a progressive direction as it floats with a more Moody Blues like feel. The higher vocal passages and the extended guitar solo only supports this. "Firelights " continues with a more moody and melodic direction. The production being so spacious keeps it from really sounding that dark. Its up to the lower vocal and when the synth shifts to more of a organ sound for them to get darker.

There is a more brooding tension to "Upon the Water". The harsher vocals return on what might be the bridge as where the chorus falls is not as obvious. The shadows that haunt this song are more prominent and wins me over with the over all sound.The guitar to "Stone Wings' is interesting . The song it self does not pull me in like some of the others. They do hook you right from the beginning of "Clouds On Your Side" which might be one of the albums better songs. It goes from a soft loud dynamic, and does get dramatically heavier when the low death metal vocals are re-introduced. The drumming seems pretty innovative and is a big reason this song works. There is not as much holding "Here on the Black Earth " together until the chorus. I like the way the vocals are produced , not only on this song , but the bulk of the album . Though some of the lower vocal parts could have gotten more low and feel a little dry.

The album closes with "Never Left". The lower vocals here work better. The lyrics to this song stand out more for some reason. It reminds me a little of the more melodic moments from My Dying Bride. This album is pretty solid. I'll give it a 9. They sound more Swedish than Finnish, though some of the goth touches that are more implied than really committed to, lean in in more of a Helsinki direction. If you are a fan of the band who doesn't find 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 like I am guilty of then this is a good enough place to start.

Arduini / Balich :"Dawn of Ages"

Here is an interesting album, that caught my eye in it's claims to be progressive doom. While that might not be a fitting description, what is deserves attention. After chugging with a fair amount of atmosphere they bring husky more power metal vocals that are from a Dio school of thought. Things get bigger when the vocals come in. The tempo lumbers up to something a shade more brisk than where Black Sabbath would typically go. "Forever Fades " finds them galloping into more traditional metal waters and while they have a dense ominous chug they are not really doom even when it slows into more longingly blue based moan. There is a heavier "Into the Void" like attack to "Into Exile" and enough atmosphere injected into the chorus to make this song stand out. At over 11 minutes this is not confined just to their Sabbath worship , but branching out into a grander narrative. The guitar interplay gets a little more interesting toward the end.

It's not until the 13 minute "Wraith" that they lean into a more sorrowful doom direction. Something about this songs sounds like it could be one of Iced Earth's more power-ballad like moments. Whatever the case it might be the album's strongest song as it's the first one where I am convinced of the feeling being poured into it. There is more of a Whitesnake type feel to "Beyond the Barricade" so think hair being blown about by fans in front the monitors than anything actually metal like we think of metal today. Still this punch emulates my favorite Whitesnake moment in "Thrill of the Night" so it works for me. This works for me in the first four minutes of the song, but we are talking about a 17 and a half minute song.

After the sprawling epic they streamline things down to the three and a half minute closer. They also slow down to more of a doom like pacing.At almost two minutes into this and more guitar solos being indulged I begin to get the sense that this is more of an outro. Overall even with some of the heavier winks to 80s metal this is above solid into pretty impressive blend of straight up metal, it might not be a doom album, but it is heavy metal in the strictest sense so I will give this bad boy a 9 even though it is not something I can see myself listening to on a regular basis.

Ahab : "The Boats of the Glen Carrig" & "Like Red Foam" Video

Just when I think my hunger for doom is going to be sated ,  a band goes and throws my expectations into the vast ocean of their creative aspirations. Not to say these changes aren't growth  its just different.  The album opens with something more like the kind of 70s prog rock that Opeth once gave ample nods to. The metal comes crashing in at the three minute mark. The production on this album  is very lush. The low growled vocals sound big like 90s Morbid Angel. The crush of  rumbling death metal tinged doom  provides an impressive display of power.The guitar relaxes leading back in to " the Thing that Made Search" and  lingers on with an almost jazz cadence. Slow and moody ,its very progressive   but I am not sure this is doom. It's very progressive. The laze about on this softened cloud until four minutes in when things get heavier. The growl becomes  is even more throat scraping and they continue to churn on the pulse of these mammoth riffs. "Like Red Foam" finds the band coming in to crush with big riffs that have more of a prog metal thing going as they are very angular ,at times the vocals roars is almost sung bringing older Mastodon to mind. A clean proggy croon coasts in over the wave of mathematical chugs.


 You would think a song called "the Weed-men" is something more likely to be found on a Six Feet Under album, but I am guessing it's Monster Manual like mythology at work lyrical. Not that you can understand the sub bass gravel of a growl.Three minutes in things change and is dissolves into clean guitar and the "Islands" era King Crimson croon. It returns to a heavy chug that is ominous rather than relying on dirge like riffage. The structure of this songs seems much looser than the others. The guitar playing still remains one of the band's biggest assets along with the wide range of vocals though here the tao mina one are the almost folkish prog voice and the lower growl. " To Mourn Job " brings us back into the crooning prog voice and delicate guitar. At the three minute mark it comes back into one of the album's heaviest chugs. It not doom, but effective.It sounds more like death metal , but there is such a fine line between slow death metal and doom. It doesn't sound very mournful so I'll go with death metal. They go back into something doomy when the clean vocals make their return. One thing I can say about their use of clean vocals is they do it well because they never follow the excepted formula of good cop/ bad cop. The song purposefully collapses into delicate clean guitar. They edge their way back into the heavy crunch and gurgled growl.


The bonus track is "the Light in the Weed" which feels like it belongs on the album. The almost jazz like phrasing they use is really given spot light in the songs first few minutes. It lingers on a dream like , but jammy passage before the clean vocal come in and are eventually followed by a the accents of a distorted guitar that drives it into a heavier place. They are obviously not where they were for the last album, they could stand to return to a doomier place , but even their second best is better than what most band's can muster and it might just be that this needs to grow on me, but for now I'll give these guys a 9.