Hanging Garden - Isle of Bliss (2026)

Keeping up with their one release a year consistency, Finland’s Hanging Garden return this time with their latest full-length “Isle of Bliss”. Featuring their usual doom and gloom sound, but this time with more fierce onslaughts, the band sets a very melancholic vibe for nearly 50-minutes of highly engaging music. Compared to outfits like Swallow the Sun, Rapture, Insomnium, etc. the band further expands their musical palette in this excellent release.

Opening with the fierce “To Outlive the Nine Ravens”, we were caught completely by surprise on how brutal this track was. Until the layered vocal arrangements came on, we thought that we were listening to a different band. This explosivity nicely continues as “Eternal Trees of Turquoise” comes along, but progressively moves the band into their more familiar Doomy and melancholic territories. With the album title track, we are fully back to the band’s bread and butter Death/Doom/Gothic Metal with a very mellow and magical piece, thanks to Riikka Hatakka and Toni Hatakka dueting.

The band’s atmospheric elements are one of their biggest draws for us, as songs like “To the Gates of Hel”, “The Death Upon Our Shoulders”, and “The Blights Nine” create very moody and somber vibes. Similar to older Finnish acts like To/Die/For, Eternal Tears of Sorrow, and the likes. By the time we get to “Arise, Black Sun”, the band masterfully blends their sheer aggression with more restrained and dreamy passages, creating a very engaging and interesting side to their sound.

Filled with lush vocal arrangements and enigmatic tempos, “Beneath the Fallen Sky” closes this release with some eerie (early) Theater of Tragedy vibes, but with a heavier edge. As a whole, “Isle of Bliss” is another excellent release from Hanging Garden, a band that while having a clear core identity, is not afraid to explore and expand their sound. This album is both heavy and melancholic, making it perfect for fans of the genre and outfits like Swallow the Sun and Draconian.

Rating: 96/100