Tribunal – In Penitence and Ruin (Review)

Tribunal - In Penitence and RuinTribunal are a Gothic doom metal band from Canada and this is their second album.

Tribunal’s debut record The Weight of Remembrance was a notable release from 2023, so a new album from the band carries the freshly acquired weight of expectation. Fear not though, as across 48 minutes In Penitence and Ruin does not disappoint. Continue reading “Tribunal – In Penitence and Ruin (Review)”

Forgotten Tomb – Nightfloating (Review)

Forgotten Tomb - NightfloatingThis is the eleventh album from Forgotten Tomb, an Italian black/doom metal band.

A new Forgotten Tomb album is a notable event around these parts. 2015’s Hurt Yourself and the Ones You Love, 2017’s We Owe You Nothing, and 2020’s Nihilistic Estrangement, were all top drawer records, so it’s with expectation that Nightfloating‘s 41 minutes of new material is greeted. Continue reading “Forgotten Tomb – Nightfloating (Review)”

Insect Ark – Raw Blood Singing (Review)

Insect Ark - Raw Blood SingingThis is the fourth album from Insect Ark, an experimental doom band from Germany.

An album consisting of members of Swans and Khanate? Yep, colour me interested. Taking in doom, avant-garde, psychedelic, noise, drone, and Gothic influences, Raw Blood Singing is an expansive work of darkness and beauty. Continue reading “Insect Ark – Raw Blood Singing (Review)”

Tribunal – The Weight of Remembrance (Review)

Tribunal - The Weight of RemembranceTribunal are a Gothic doom metal band from Canada and this is their debut album.

The Weight of Remembrance offers a 48-minute Gothic doom metal journey into darkness and sombre atmospheres. The promo states that this is for fans of My Dying Bride, Candlemass, Type O Negative, Paradise Lost, Occultation, Dream Unending, and Pentagram, and this gives a Continue reading “Tribunal – The Weight of Remembrance (Review)”

Deathwhite – Grey Everlasting (Review)

Deathwhite - Grey EverlastingDeathwhite are a melodic metal band from the US and this is their third album.

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed witnessing Deathwhite’s continued development, (check out Ethereal, Solitary Martyr, For a Black Tomorrow, and Grave Image), so the appearance of Grey Everlasting is very welcome. On their latest release Deathwhite spend 48 minutes doing what they do best, only better than they ever have done it before. Continue reading “Deathwhite – Grey Everlasting (Review)”

Hooded Menace – The Tritonus Bell (Review)

Hooded Menace - The Tritonus BellThis is the sixth album from Finnish death/doom band Hooded Menace.

Following on from 2015’s Darkness Drips Forth and 2018’s Ossuarium Silhouettes Unhallowed, The Tritonus Bell is another gruesome slab of death/doom, only this time it has been infused with a greater amount of classic heavy metal influences. Continue reading “Hooded Menace – The Tritonus Bell (Review)”

Maestus – Deliquesce (Review)

Maestus - DeliquesceThis is the second album from Maestus, a blackened doom band from the US.

Looking for a doom record that has epic-length songs and music that’s crushing, while also boasting a surprisingly delicate touch in places? Look no further. Continue reading “Maestus – Deliquesce (Review)”

Fractured Spine – Memoirs of a Shattered Mind (Review)

Fractured SpineThis is the second album from Finland’s Fractured Spine.

Fractured Spine play Blackened Gothic Doom/Death Metal. Which is to say that they take the Doom/Style, add Gothic touches to the music and then layer a Black Metal fuzziness, melody and feel over everything. Early 90’s Gothic Black Metal mixed with Doom/Death.

They are also a bit more experimental than a lot of bands who play the Doom/Death style, which again gives them more of a Black Metal theme to my eyes.

Vocally the band eschew the normal purely Doom/Death deep vocals for a more varied approach involving a mix of deep growls, high screams and Gothic cleans.

Some songs have more of a Black Metal feel, others more of a Gothic Doom feel and occasionally even an early Lacuna Coil or …In The Woods style makes an appearance.

The keyboards and Gothic effects are prevalent throughout the album and it’s a refreshingly different take on the Doom/Death sub-genre.

A surprisingly varied album that experiments with its sound to create a mixture of related styles under one album.

Check them out and see what you think.