Kuolemanlaakso are a Gothic metal band from Finland and this is their third album.
Featuring the singer of Swallow the Sun, Kuusumu contains 47 minutes of polished, professional material. For a starting reference point think of a band like Paradise Lost, and then add in elements of acts such as My Dying Bride, Sentenced, Barren Earth, Amorphis, and Orphaned Land; this will give you a rough idea of where Kuolemanlaakso’s talents lie. Continue reading “Kuolemanlaakso – Kuusumu (Review)”
This is the fourth album from Swiss post-hardcore/metal band Abraham.
Abraham craft eight post-hardcore/metal soundscapes with layered compositions and multifaceted songwriting. The obvious starting point for comparisons would be a band like Neurosis, but with added elements of bands like Knut, Deadguy, and Botch. Continue reading “Abraham – Débris de Mondes Perdus (Review)”
This is the debut album from An Evening Redness, a drone/doom band.
An Evening Redness gives us a 55-minute journey into doom, dark ambient, and drone, one that uses worldbuilding to effectively craft entire vistas of bleak, sparse environments. Continue reading “An Evening Redness – An Evening Redness (Review)”
This is the fourth album from Swedish death/doom metallers Soliloquium.
It’s always a pleasure to hear new Soliloquium. Betwen 2018’s Contemplations and 2020’s Things We Leave Behind the band have quickly amassed an enviable discography, and now we have Soulsearching to add to this impressive list. Continue reading “Soliloquium – Soulsearching (Review)”
KYOTY are an post-metal/sludge band from the US and this is their second album.
KYOTY, (or Keep Your Opinions to Yourself), are an instrumental act that have an atmospheric approach to music, taking in styles such as post-metal, post-rock, and sludge, combined with an industrial edge. Gathering together nine songs that were released over the 2020 isolation period, along with a new track exclusive to the album, this is a 70-minute work of rich evocative soundscapes. Continue reading “KYOTY – Isolation (Review)”
This is the second album from French doom metal band Deathbell.
Deathbell present us with 42 minutes of doom that’s based on the traditional style, but shot through with occult psychedelia and haunting atmosphere. The music is heavy and immersive, drawing you in with fuzzy riffs and keeping you close with hazy melodies and seductive singing. The band’s doom is very moreish and slips easily into the soul. Continue reading “Deathbell – A Nocturnal Crossing (Review)”
Cult of Luna are a Swedish post-metal band and this is their ninth album, (counting the flawless Mariner).
This is the highly anticipated follow up to 2019’s immense A Dawn to Fear, and gives us 69 minutes of new material from this always-impressive band.
Cult of Luna once again drown us with an ocean of emotion. The Long Road North is a broad soundscape of Continue reading “Cult of Luna – The Long Road North (Review)”
This is a split between two blackened doom bands – Nathr, who are from Norway, and Ordo Cultum Serpentis, who are from Mexico/South Korea.
Nathr open the split with the 19-minute track The Burial. Continue reading “Nathr/Ordo Cultum Serpentis – Shadows Crawl – Split (Review)”
Obsidian Sea are a Bulgarian doom/heavy metal band and this is their fourth album.
I last caught up with Obsidian Sea on 2015’s Dreams, Illusions, Obsessions. Seven years, a lineup change, and another album in between later, and we now have Pathos, which caught my eye and encouraged me to get back in touch with what the band are doing. And what are they doing? Unleashing 40 minutes of fun material, that’s what. Continue reading “Obsidian Sea – Pathos (Review)”
This is the debut album from Kurokuma, a doom/sludge band from the UK.
Both times that I’ve encountered Kurokuma, (2016’s Advorsus and 2019’s Sheffield’s Best Metal Bands Vol. 1), I’ve liked what I’ve heard, and now it’s finally time for their long-awaited debut album to see the light of day. The band have been slowly gathering Continue reading “Kurokuma – Born of Obsidian (Review)”
Wonderbox Metal 