Tideless – Eye of Water (Review)

Tideless are a death/doom metal band from the US and this is their second album.

Eye of Water is a monster of an album, in more ways than one. Running to an imposing 75 minutes, Tideless spew forth five tracks of inhuman death/doom of an unexpected and idiosyncratic synth-enhanced nature.

So, what separates Tideless from the pack? Essentially, they take death metal and cavernous funeral doom, and inject it with the shimmering emotive splendour of shoegaze and the expressive depth of progressive rock. This record is an atmospheric powerhouse.

Eye of Water is an expansive, atmospheric, and emotion-rich slab of underground beauty. It’s an esoteric form of beauty that shrouds a deeper malevolence, but beauty nonetheless. This is a comprehensive journey into Tideless’ well-crafted and fully formed worldscape. It’s a detailed, luscious space that exists to enthral unwary travellers, presenting many dangers disguised as places of sanctuary.

These lengthy songs are enriched with colour and feeling, and boast an experiential range that exceeds that of your average funeral doom act. There’s darkness here, and also plenty of bite and aggression, but alongside this there’s uplifting melody, resplendent atmosphere, and brightly illuminated texture. Tideless balance light and shade immaculately across this colossal album, bringing a breadth of experience to their music that’s lesser heard on anything with the death/doom, etc. tag.

This is not an instant album, by any means, so be prepared to put the work in to unlock its glorious secrets. There are many rewards to found across Eye of Water, but they exist for the committed explorers, not the casual visitor. Tideless have taken a path less travelled, and they have such sights to show you.

I’ve fallen for this album big time. It offers an immersive world to explore that’s just utterly absorbing.

Essential listening.