Doomed For Metal Reviews

Sun of the Dying is a death/doom metal band from Spain, who formed in 2013. Their latest release, “ A Throne of Ashes ,” is their 3rd full-length album.  This album came down from void itself to destroy my carefully crafted “Best doom metal of 2025” list. I'm not so naive that I already had it done but I thought I was getting close.   But it's not really a problem to experience an album this good is it? Sun of the Dying offers up a crushing experience that offers so many grand moments. The album can be as vicious as anything I've heard this year but can also be epic and melodic on a very large scale. Several of the songs have a chorus that really grabbed me, not something that happens very often in doom. “ Martyrs ” begins gently, soothing keys and a bell ringing in the distance. Around the 25 second mark, a dark melody overlays with chunky riffs, creating a heavy but smoothly flowing passage. No matter what the band brings to the songs, everything always flows. The clea...

Nornes is a doom metal band from France who formed in 2017. Their latest release “Thou Hast Done Nothing ,” is their full-length debut; they have also released two EPs. Nornes brand of doom is both extreme and not extreme. Their many dense riffs provide crushing moments, pieced together by a bold and confident rhythm section. Punishing death growls speak the prose written, as powerful as any of the instruments. In these respects, the album is ridiculously heavy. But other elements add sophisticated, sprawling dynamics to their sound. Clean vocals instrumentation that isn't afraid to pull back on the distortion when needed, and long form songs that offer several changes throughout make it an album that even fans of the less extreme doom would enjoy. And it is suffocating with its atmospheric pressure. Yes, it is obviously doom and therefore heavy but the album doesn't get trapped in its own sound. That aspect is certainly helped by how melodic the songs can be, even in moments...

Hello! To the surprise of no one, I don't make any money off this blog. I have a "real job" and during this time of the year, it is super busy.  I just wanted to let everyone know that this blog is still very much active but reviewing will slow for December. But I am still listening to your promos and planning my next reviews and a year end list. Thank you and doom on.

Below The Frostline is a doom metal project from musician AP, based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The latest release is the full-length album “ Slowly Dissolving .”  The project has also released a self-titled debut and an EP. The album sets firmly on the funeral doom side of the genre and is also highly atmospheric.  The lyrics deal with the interesting concept of “dissolving the need of hope,” by aiming to provide a sense of calm when pitted against the grander schemes of cosmic collapse.  This speaks to me, as I have always tried to accept things as they are and strive to maintain an understanding of “what is..is.”  I’m not always successful but the album’s depth is well worth exploring, whether you agree with its notions or not.  This doom exactly how I like it:  slow as fuck, low as hell, and heavy as life itself.  It doesn’t get in a hurry, instead letting the atmospheric tendencies.  The songs unfurl themselves like the passing of time: steady bu...

Deogen is a black metal band from the United States who hit the scene in 2020 with their first full length album, “ The Endless Black Shadows of Abyss .”  Their latest release is their second full-length album “ The Graves and Ghosts of Yore .” Spoiler alert:  This is now one of my favorite black metal albums of the year.  I want to start this review by praising the production because it sounds flat out amazing, especially for black metal.  It’s over produced or too clean but it’s very, very balanced so the mix shines just as much.  I don’t know if I’ve heard a better sounding album in the genre this year than this one.  I suppose their sound could be described as atmospheric or even symphonic, but I don’t think that paints the entire picture here, with the exception of the opening instrumental song “ Pernicious Prayer .”  Those elements, while definitely there, are more subtle than anything and are used very smartly.  This is still riff based, w...

Oromet is a funeral doom band from Sacramento, California who formed in 2022.  They have wasted little time in getting their music out there— “ The Sinking Isle ,” is their second full-length album.  I didn’t review their previous album but enjoyed it quite a bit—this one is even better.  The themes of the album focus on the inevitably of collapse and the cycles of ruin and rebirth.  In essence, it focuses on the ebb and flow of life and events—some of which we can control but most we cannot.  Much like its themes, the music contained within is dynamic as it travels its way through its emotions and musical terrain that’s oftentimes so heavy that it feels like a physical weight upon the ears.  I do like how melodic the album is–but it isn’t overly melodic but more like subtle leanings that help expand the oppressive moments.   “ The Sinking Isle ,” is an oddly hopeful album at times.  In the end, I find it is much like existence:  there are m...

Weft is a blackened death metal project from Panopticon ’s Charlie Anderson .  Together with Austin Lunn (also involved with Panopticon ), Andrea Morgan and Jordan Day the full-length album “ The Splintered Oar ,” is ready to debut.  And what an album it is!  The usage of violin in metal is commonplace but rarely have I heard it used so effectively and efficiently than on “ The Splintered Oar .”  It isn’t just there to compliment the heavier aspects—the album simply couldn’t exist without it any more than it could the other instruments.  Although this firmly into an extreme metal foundation, the violin adds a layer of reality and classical approach to the blackened death giving the album a unique feel because it exists in two different worlds even as it successfully combines them together. The production makes it all shine; each detail is clear and concise—I can almost feel the sinews of the songs hold everything together and the formation and passing of each c...

Doubtsower is a one-man-band from Cardiff (Wales, UK) that plays experimental doom. The latest release is “ The Past Melts Away With A Snear ,” and it is the fourth full-length album. The musician behind all this is Matt Strangis, who also happens to play bass for the legendary Pantheist . Additionally, he produces experimental electronic music under the alias Kyam. I reviewed the previous full-length album “ Nothing Reduced To Everything ” a couple years ago and praised it for its unquestionably unique vision. “ The Past Melts Away With A Snear ,” is just as far reaching. Its tendrils spiral out from a doom foundation and grasp hold of unique sounds across an unconventional structure. The phrase “There is nothing new under the sun,” isn't something Doubtsower knows anything about.  This time it comes in the form of one long song, just under 49 minutes in length. Some may balk at that but if you're a true fan of doom or prog, the length won't bother you. Besides, this s...