Doomed For Metal Reviews

      SolNegre ’s ‘ The Spiral Labyrinth ’ is so good I almost cried the first time I’ve heard it.  Doom has been on an upswing in recent years.  Just when I think it may have reached its peak (I’m a damn fool, I know), an album like this comes around and completely blows me away.  My love for anything under the doom umbrella isn’t a secret, neither is the fact this style of melodic Gothic death/doom was the type of doom I got into first.       So it isn’t a surprise that I’m giving this such high praise but this work is so grandiose within every element of its genre, it represents its sound so well, that even if I didn’t like doom or wasn’t familiar with the genre, this would still put me down on the floor.    Considering former Helevorn members Rigel ( guitarist) and Guillem (Bass) are part of this band, I never expected it to be anything less than stellar but this....this is a monumental album. These men, alongs...

  SONUS MORTIS is an extreme metal band from Dublin, Ireland.  It is actually a one man project from Kevin Byrne . He started the band in 2013 and ‘Of Red Barren Earth’ is his seventh full length album, in addition to a demo release in 2013. I first discovered SONUS MORTIS way back in 2016, when I reviewed the masterful ‘Hail the Tragedies of Man.’ It was among the first albums I reviewed and the band has never had a dull moment since then.  With that being said, Byrne has managed to once again surpass and raise his own bar with ‘ OF RED BARREN EARTH ,’ because it is the best SONUS MORTIS album yet. The early years of the band had a doom sound but as the band grew so did the influences, incorporating symphonic, black, melodic and death metal elements.  ‘ OF RED BARREN EARTH ,’ returns the project to its doom roots while still retaining all the progression made over the years.  Some of the keys/symphonics even add a folkish flavor to the music, such as the b...

     Laguna is a stoner/doom metal band from Barcelona who are launching their latest release, ' Of Men and Myths .'      I haven't heard of this band before I was sent this promo but goddamn does it rock.  The guitar tone is absolutely perfect---it has a heavy, thick sound that is even a little dark but it isn't overly abrasive---definitely lives up to their self professed style of "stoner rock with doom vibes."  This album has riffs for days----very groovy riffs but still captures that stoner atmosphere without fail.  The bass guitar stands out, as it should with anything within the stoner/doom umbrella; it acts as a rhythm powerhouse, along with the tight, crisp drumming, but is also incredibly heavy in its own right and ensures the songs always have that extra bit of bite.     One of the things I appreciate the most about the album is how rough the vocals are.  A lot of stoner bands go exclusively a clean, hazy sound ...

Astronomie is a Australian doom/sludge band that formed in 2017. Believe it or not, ' Interstellar Nomad ,' is their first album. The album is unusually super tight and focused for a debut album---I was surprised at how young the band is, in terms of formation.  If I didn't know any better, I'd say they have been playing together for longer and would say it isn't possible that ' Interstellar Nomad ' is their debut!  Their sound is on the heavier side---and by heavier, I mean straight up bone crushing. The music lays down huge, thick doom toned riffs with the rough gravitational destruction of sludge. The album consists of riffs, riffs, riffs, riffs, riffs, and more riffs. Oh by the way, this album has a lot of riffs. Ok, I'm done. Riffs. Ahem. Groovy, sweltering, stoner and even some psych reverberate off the strings. Even better, each riff is memorable and infectious as hell.  Kenny , Bean , and Glen all play their asses on across the seven tracks.   T...