In Ruins - We Are All to Perish
In Ruins is a Romanian death/doom band that formed in 2021; their latest release, “We Are All to Perish,” is their full-length debut; they released their debut EP, “Ruthless Portrait," in 2022.
I’ve said this before, but I really like when a band knows who they are and what they want. In Ruins clearly knows it's a death/doom band and they want to play some nasty, grimy shit. As of the time of this writing, this is definitely up there for one of my favorite extreme doom metal albums of the first half of 2026.
The mix of tortuous emotions and a sense of finality are very potent across the album’s 4 song, 43-minute runtime. But that’s a relatively short runtime for a doom metal album so, as one can imagine, there is no filler here. Every painstakingly slow note, every smattering of drums, every bass line, every growl all leads to the bigger picture.
This is music to get lost into. This isn’t background music you put on when you're bored and just need something to occupy your mind so your fatass doesn’t go raid cabinets. This album needs to be listened to intently, so every detail can be absorbed as it slowly lulls you into the void itself.
“I’m Tired of Living in My Land,” opens with a dark atmosphere and lightless clean notes that foreshadow the misery to come. The riffs hit like a lead rain…. they just settle on the atmosphere and keep sinking it all down. It’s hard to listen to but in a good way. Death/doom shouldn’t be an easy genre to digest, nor should it be safe. The growls are like the last moments of life, grasping out for one last breath of air only to find nothing ashes to grasp onto as they crumble.
The tempo, if you can even call it that, moves at negative 55 miles per hour. Good. This is how doom should be played. Slow. Neverending, an ironic approach to music that represents everything that is fading away. The clean tones are sparse, used perfectly to cast death’s reflection back onto the listener.
“I Do Not Regret and I Do Not Shed Tears,” is a stalwart view of life as it comes to you, knowing nothing can be changed that can happen and the future, though it might be changeable, only ends in futility. The riffs have a Gothic tone to them and what could be called melody permeates through the dark clouds. The melodic tinges grow stronger has the song retreats further into unimaginable recesses, but it only further heightens the odor of doom I like the grooves after the 5:45 mark as they feel very natural with purpose
“We’ll Depart this World Forever, Surely,” has the best tone on the album and this might be a near perfect doom metal song. The atmospheric leads are just right, without going too far to cover up the glacial riffs. I love it when the riffs pause and start, allowing a few precious seconds each of time of ambient soundscapes to soak through. It is quite compelling and so is the clean, acoustic passage that flows out from it. Time seems to stand still during this part, an out of body experience of the outside looking in. The inner being flows back into the physical world, only to depart upon a bed of dense bass and guitars that seem to suck all life away.
The fittingly titled final song, “Farewell,” is hypnotic from the beginning with the choir of deep chants. This is one mighty mournful song, about as happy as a funeral procession and twice as sullen as the body being dropped six feet. The vocal performance is the best on the album, truly emotional experience that proves death growls can be just as expressive as cleans. There is an ambient passage that breaks up the two halves of the song, but it’s perfectly placed and ties the song together.
“We Are All to Perish,” is a strong debut album that leans really hard into its formula. It’s for sure an esoteric experience that will probably need time for non-doomers to grow into. However, at the same time, the sound here is so pure, so honest, that I also think this is a great album to dive into the genre with for the first time. Don’t be a wuss, just do it.
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