Doom Metal

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    Void Moon – Deathwatch (2016)

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    Perfectly marketed as a no-bull Epic Doom Metal outfit, today we have Sweden’s Void Moon and their sophomore full-length release titled “Deathwatch”. Presenting the listeners with nine brilliant tracks full of melancholy, this band focuses on epic soaring vocals and sorrowful riffs. Drawing comparisons with bands like the epic Candlemass and Solitude Aeturnus, this album will surely keep any fan of the genre at the edge of the seat.

    Leading with the mournful riffs of “Rivers of the Moon”, the album instantly showcases the brilliant vocals of Jonas Gustavsson. The overall tempo of this track is brilliant, allowing the punishing riffs to brilliantly offset the clean vocals. By featuring such a clean and professional production, tracks like “Where the Sleeper Lies Awake” and the Pentagram-esque “Assassin of an Age”, the band allows to have a timeless sound while being quite clean and direct.

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    Mountaineer – Come Fever / Siren Song (2016)

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    Hailing from the Bay Area, today we have Mountaineer and their very unique and emotional mixture of Doom/Sludge influences with dreamy Post-Rock/Shoegaze passages. Featuring members and ex-members of bands like Lament Cityscape, Lycus, and Secrets of the Sky, this outfit delivers a very solid two song EP as their debut release.

    Opening with the crushing Doom riffs of “Come Fever”, you instantly get My Dying Bride-esque flashbacks. However, once the clean vocals appear, you know you are in for a completely different experience. Perfectly contrasting emotive vocals with punishing guitars, this track slowly moves into more ethereal atmospheres with Post-Rockish vibes and soaring weeping guitars.

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    Monolithe – Zeta Reticuli (2016)

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    Brilliantly continuing the 2015 album "Epsilon Aurigae", today we have Monolithe and the crushing “Zeta Reticuli”. Originally recorded back in 2015, this album further expands the band’s refined Doom/Funeral Doom sound into more progressive and experimental territories while preserving their atmospheric elements. Clocking in at 45 minutes, this is definitely one of the most engaging releases of 2016 so far.

    Opening with “Ecumenopolis”, the band slowly changes from atmospheric sounds to piercing Doom riffs. This continues slowly as the vocals suddenly appear and the atmospheric elements turn a bit more psychedelic as the crushing wall of riffs lurks in the back. The band does a solid job in keeping things interesting by delivering crafty drum patterns near the end.

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    Evig Natt – Evig Natt (2016)

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    Six years have passed since the Evig Natt’s previous release “Darkland”. Luckily for us, this means that “Evig Natt” is a very refined and well-crafted that perfectly transmits raw emotions through dark and somber music. Delivering over 51 minutes of a very dramatic combination of Gothic and Doom Metal, this release is caters to the old-school fans of Gothic Metal that prefer raw atmosphere over fancy orchestrations and arrangements.

    Immediately after the instrumental intro, “How I Bleed” sets a very dark mood with punishing guitars and atmospheric keyboards paired with harsh vocals. This basic structure is quite traditional of releases in this genre from the late 90’s, early 2000’s, reminding us particularly of the album “Disclosure in Red” by Trail of Tears. The vocal arrangements of tracks like “Silence Falls” make this release more special as they evolve the listener in the band’s musical journey.

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    The Unknown – In Search of the Unknown (2016)

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    As one of the few bands we get to listen to from Iran, The Unknown is a very promising Atmospheric Doom /Post-Rock outfit that has managed to craft a very impressive 40-minute debut release titled: “In Search of the Unknown”. Featuring a guest appearance by Thomas Helm, this release is filled with surprises and a very unique progression. If you like highly atmospheric and very melancholic music, you will find yourself lost with this release.

    As the album single track opens, the music is framed by dramatic orchestrations and heavy riffs. This suddenly changes into a brilliant spoken word passage with a very eerie vibe. This part reminded us of Anathema in their “Eternity” days. Luckily for us it lasts for quite a while and creates a very unique tension. Moving closer to the last minutes, the release turns into a lush Post-Rock piece with very lively guitars and lush piano sections. The transitions between sections are quite well crafted and create a very unique musical journey.

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    Subterranean Disposition - Contagiuum and the Landscapes of Failure (2016)

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    Arriving from Australia, today we have one-man battalion Subterranean Disposition’s second full-length released titled “Contagiuum and the Landscapes of Failure”. Delivering over 60 minutes of crushing Death/Doom, the band keeps things fresh by adding extra atmospheric elements that blend very well together. Perfectly crafted for fans of slow and painful Doom music, this release is filled with unique ideas and interesting songs.

    Opening with the crushing riffs of “Hungry Ghosts on Rotten Soil”, the album sets a very dominant tone. This mood continues with the melancholic opening of “Wooden Kimono Fixative” and its disarming pairing of moody guitars and sultry saxophone. This opener nicely transitions into more familiar Death/Doom territories with gusto and crushing tempo changes. Remaining us of bands like Avrigus, “Embittered Final” turns darker and more atmospheric. The haunting female vocals give an extra level of eeriness to this already emotional track.

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    Vuolla – Blood. Stone. Sun. Down. (2016)

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    Hailing from Finland, today we have the promising debut release “Blood. Stone. Sun. Down.” of melancholic outfit Vuolla. Perfectly blending elements of Gothic/Death Doom with melancholic Depressive Rock, this band manages to deliver over 60 minutes of truly emotive music. Focusing on crafting lush melancholic songs, the band will surely appeal to all fans of bands like Katatonia, Draconian, and everything in between.

    Opening with the super bleak intro to “Death Incredible”, the band instantly reminded us of Svarti Loghin. This song nicely transitions into a more straightforward Gothic Doom piece perfectly blending Kati Hämäläinen’s vocals and keyboards with powerful Doom riffs. In a more traditional Gothic Doom fashion, the disarming “Emperor” is one hell of a rollercoaster ride which features a brilliant atmospheric passage around the 4 minute mark that will instantly get you hooked into the band’s sound.

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    Sinistro – Semente (2016)

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    With only enough bandwidth to review music, we rarely have time to review the stuff we actually buy for ourselves. Thanks to all the Internet chatter and other connoisseur recommendations, we acquired Sinistro’s sophomore release “Semente”. Instantly blown away by the fierce combination of punishing riffs and the fragility of Patrícia Andrade’s vocals, this is a release we felt compelled to write about in order to pass on this finding to our readers.

    Opening with a commanding riffing onslaught, “Partida” sets a very high bar for this release. The track delves into your traditional Sludge/Doom/Post-Metal territories but is brilliantly contrasted by the hypnotic voice of Patrícia. Creating a very unique contrast the band instantly stands out from the competition. As the album progresses, the band focuses on creating a very unique and oppressive atmosphere which relies heavily on precise tempo changes and the use of keyboards, as tracks like “Estrada” and “Corpo Presente” demonstrate.

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    The Foreshadowing – Seven Heads Ten Horns (2016)

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    While traditional Doom Metal has been flourishing in the last few years, other sub genres of Doom have been dying off such a Gothic Doom Metal. Luckily for us, today we have the return of Italy’s The Foreshadowing with their fourth full-length release “Seven Heads Ten Horns”. Perfectly balancing Doomy tempos and soundscapes with more ‘upbeat’ Gothic Metal influences, this release delivers over 55 minutes of the band’s highly refined music.

    After opening with an instrumental intro, “Fall of Heroes” instantly showcases Marco Benevento’s signature vocals. Perfectly placed in between singers like Ville Valo and Aaron Stainthorpe, his signature style is one of the things that instantly identify the band’s music. The album’s first heavy hitter track is the superbly catchy and moody “Two Horizons”. In this song we can perfectly hear the bands mixture of styles with a very dramatic (and catchy) piece.

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    Depicting Abysm – Passage (2016)

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    Arriving via Naturmacht Productions, today we have Russian duo Depciting Abysm and their monolithic sophomore release “Passage”. Featuring over 47 minutes of melancholic Atmospheric/Depressive Black/Doom Metal, this release creates the perfect shroud of musical misery. For fans of bands like Forest of Shadows, Shape of Despair, Lifelover and similar outfits, this is one album that will sound very familiar.

    Opening with the 11-minute bleakness of “Shelter”, the band slowly introduces us to their sound with incisive riffs, solid harsh vocals and a very mellow tempo that just makes things even more magical. The atmospheric elements thrown into the mix greatly enhance the overall depressive experience the track delivers. On “Shadow” things continue on the Depressive Black Metal side of things with highly emotional vocals and a very powerful bass guitar line. This track reminds us a bit of outfits like Lifelover.

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