The Gates of Slumber - The Gates of Slumber

The Gates of Slumber is a name I never thought I would see again but….behold, they have returned with their first full-length album since 2011!  Apparently they reformed in 2019, which is something I didn’t even know about.  Regardless, the boys are back in doom down and all is right in this world.  At least the doom world…

I usually review albums while wearing headphones but, on occasion, I play the albums out loud to annoy my family.  I have to keep them on their toes, right?  Well I was jamming this new self-titled release (their 6th full-length album) and my wife said, “I don't like this, it sounds like Black Sabbath.

I know, I know.  She isn’t a metalhead, and especially hates doom,  so just roll your eyes and try to move on.  I won’t divorce her over it but I did give her a history lesson on doom/Sabbath/Ozzy which she promptly ignored.

Fortunately, a band sounding like Sabbath doesn’t bother me but, while the band’s influences are obviously like with most doom bands, they don’t sound like anyone but themselves.  These riffs are slow, thick, powerful and sinister as hell.  The guitar/bass tone is absolutely perfect.

Mainstay Karl Simon (guitars, vocals) sounds in top form.  His gritty and expressive cleans continue to pair well with these darkened riffs.  Add in Chuck Brown’s impeccable drumming and the omnipresent bass of Steve Janiak and the result is yet another strong addition to TGoS’s already masterful discography and to the ever growing pantheon of doom. 

The album is straight up old-school doom metal.  But it’s much darker than most of the traditional doom bands of old.  It’s also not something I would call stoner or psychedelic.  That’s too many bells and whistles for this album.  This is just three dudes with a love for the purity of the genre and they burn it up.

Karl’s vocals are somewhere between a heavy clean and a sludgy wail—as always, it’s a very balanced approach without going too light or heavy.  He is right where he needs to be and so are his riffs. He plays doom the way it’s always the best to be: slow and thick as mud.  The solos have a bit of a blues feel to them but they aren’t flashy enough to take me out of the song, thankfully, and fit in right where they need to be. 

Steve Janiak (also in Apostle of Solitude) supplies the immortal low end.  To the surprise of no one, he is a large part of the band’s’ crushin delivery.  He doesn’t just simply follow the guitar and oftentimes takes a walk on his own. Chuck Brown (Apostle of Solitude as well) steers this mighty doomed ship while making it unbreakable.  His approach is crisp and detailed, serving up sizable and interesting chunks of his own merit. 

The album opens with Brown flatlining everything before it even begins on “Embrace The Lie.”  The guitars and bass both dig deep, pulling up massive mounds of Earth and dropping them from high above.  This slow death is impending and unstoppable.  Karl’s vocal rhythm/cadence is catchy and supplies hook after hook, especially for the chorus. It’s six and a half minutes long but seems to pass by much faster, which is always a good sign.  The solo is interesting and the bass that pushes it through is fantastic.  

“We Are Perdition,” is worth your money and time for Steve’s bass alone.  While he throws out the weight of a thousand suns, Brown builds up the intensity as it all comes together at the 38 second mark.  Some of the album’s best riffs can be found throughout the song and if you think you can’t headbang to doom, this song will have you rethinking something so stupid.

I LOVE Karl’s vocals on this song—one of his best performances, I’ve no doubt.  His lyrics flow out right along with the music.  The song takes turns switching from bass to static build up as it builds back to the ending.

“At Dawn,” is one of my favorite songs on the album.  This is a stark song, surely one of the darkest and intense they have ever written.  It’s so slow–I love it.  The details within the music have plenty of time to provide its aural assault.  Another amazing Karl performance is at hand here—the echo effect is used to perfection on his voice. The chorus is infectious, especially during the middle part where the band just jams it out to hell and back.  

The final song, “The Plague,” is another stellar example of this album’s power.  The cymbal work accents the song’s buildup as the doom is thrown out, so heavy that it just crashes straight down to the other side of the planet.  There is a sudden tempo change just before the halfway point–the drums roll up the tension and then release it like a kick to the face.  

The Gates of Slumber’s self-titled album is an opus of everything that is right in doom and a love letter to it’s best elements.  If anyone can’t see why doom fans love so hard this genre then this album will open their ears up.