Iron Void - Doomsday

The modern doom movement has been flourishing for a few years now and has given us some truly great bands that pay homage to classic doom. Enter Iron Void from the UK. They actually date back to 1998 but it has just been recently that the band has been given the chance to release their music to the masses. 2014's self titled full length debut was a great slab of classic doom and they seemed to waste no time in creating a follow up album set to be released on October 5 titled Doomsday. The band so graciously gave me a sneak peak into this album for a review and I am glad they did because this solidifies them as a band that will leave it's mark on doom metal.

The opening and title track kicks things off epic style with seven and a half of slow pounding doom. Heavy riffs are what you find here along with vocals and a melody that is rather eerie feeling. The tempo picks up a little for a some nice 70s style soloing in the middle and a riff that has a really cool groove to it. "Path to Self Destruction" is an even stronger song that begins with some clean guitars that sound like something from an early Rush tune to this monster riff and eerie melody. This song could wind up being a top doom song for me. The solo is another one of those fuzzy 70s style solos that fits this music well. "The Devil's Daughter" comes right in after and just slays from beginning to end. Once again it starts off with some cool clean guitars before going into this infectious riff that brings to mind early Pentagram. This song has elements of proto-metal as well as traditional doom. This band is not afraid to show where it's roots lie.

To keep things interesting, this band does not confine itself to just slow epic doom. Songs like "The Gates of Hell" and "The Answer Unknown" actually have more in common with Venom or Motorhead than Cathedral but it still doom in it's atmosphere. Both are rather energetic numbers for doom songs but the riffs are heavy as fuck and the solos could have been done by Fast Eddie Clark 35 years ago. Normally something like that would not work but for some reason that radical shift in sound for a couple of songs gave this album some depth. I thought it worked well. "Colesseum" gets right back into the doom with it's heavy as fuck doom riffs and overall eerie atmosphere that dominates this album. The lead riffing is very melodic giving the song another element. This song could wind up being considered classic doom 20 years from now.

The album closes epic doom style with a seven and a half minute opus that just screams epic doom. As with a lot of this album, the different elements that make this band show, from the 70s proto-metal riffs and solos to the all out heavy as fuck epic doom riffing. This band's previous album made me take notice but this album has made me a fan. Putting two strong albums out with just over a year between releases shows that this band is on a mission. Anyone who loves classic doom or traditional metal should take notice of this band. I expect bigger things to come.

9.0/10

Halberd - Remnants of Crumbling Empires

Halberd is an epic doom/death band that is rather unique since it's members are from three different continents (North America, South America, and Asia) and even though they proclaim their music to be doom/death there is a huge amount of epic metal to their sound. There is so many more dimensions to their music, so to pigeonhole them into a specific genre is actually doing this band a disservice. Their debut release, Remnants of Crumbling Empires, is an impressive four song release clocking in just seconds over forty-one minutes and is a perfect mixture of atmosphere, brutality, melody, and epic metal.


I never go into any review lightly since I really want to know what's going on with any album before forming an opinion of it. I really needed to let this album sink in due to all the elements that are presented here. What impressed me with this band is how they use each dynamic to create a unique sound. The doom riffing at the beginning of "Northern Bloodletting" is heavy as fuck but as the song progresses we have the keys providing the epic orchestrations leading to some nice melodic tremolo riffing. Then it bursts into some massive thrash/death riffs that just slay. The guitar work on this album is incredible as the solo on this song, as well as the rest of the album, just fucking shred. These guys are serious about what they do and there is so much going on here that you need to absorb all the elements to really get the full effect. This song is all over the place as once the ripping solos and the blast beats are over we slow it back down to some epic doom loaded with atmosphere provided by the keyboards.

The vocals are mix of black metal shrieks and low guttural death metal growls. They know when to use each to create an experience with each song. Most of the songs are over eight plus minutes and that is what puts most of this album in the epic zone. However, they seem to take a break from the epic on "Barghash's Poison" to remind you that they are also capable of kicking your ass. This is straight up riff heavy death metal. The song is fast and brutal with just a touch of melody. The riffing just pummels you between the thrashing riffs and the tremolos. Once again, the solo on this song is fucking godly. Then we have "Ignorance of Morbidity" which is an epic song that pretty much maintains a mid paced doom sound throughout the song. The riffing is just pounding heavy with the vocals going back and forth from that low guttural to a black metal shriek that reminds me of Grutle from Enslaved at times.The keyboards are thrown in sporadically and only when they want to create the epic orchestrations that almost sound like battle horns but also sound like the horn section of an orchestra. Again, the star of this show is Andrés Felipe Murillo who just fucking shreds another classy solo.

The production is also noteworthy here because it just creates more of the atmosphere that's present here. The effects and the echoes just give this a sound that doesn't sound over produced but doesn't have that severely under produced sound just to be "kvlt." Even the programmed drums are believable. And no two songs sound the same on this album. Each song has it's own personality but each are essential to the other because this album needs to be consumed whole. This couldn't be more true than on the final and longest song on the album, "Dead Horses Cavalry." This starts with some serious epic doom rhythms but as the song progresses it just builds up to a massive climax as it blasts and the solo just shreds. Some eerie epic doom carries the last few minutes of the song as if the song itself is letting you know that this journey has come to an end. There is a story being told here and I think that the story drives the song and what we are going to hear.

This is one impressive album of epic metal, No, it's stunning, actually.  There's no way to give a full description of the music because of all the elements that make up the songs. After repeated listens to this album, I still hear something new each time I listen to it. This album should appeal to any fan of death, doom, or black metal. Actually, this album should appeal to any and all metal fans. This is serious music by a group of guys who know exactly how to create an amazing atmosphere. This album is essential.

10/10

Halberd on Bandcamp

Zaum - Oracles

Normally this would not be my cup of tea since it seems rather minimalistic on the surface. Zaum play epic doom with more than a few twists. First, and foremost, there are no guitars anywhere on this album, therefor no riffing. They use bass, keyboards and sitars (of all things) create the melodies and the atmosphere on this album. Looking at the album cover it immediately brings to mind a middle eastern feel and after listening to it I was never more right. As I said, under any other circumstance I would have turned this off after 5 minutes, if I was able to stay awake at all. However, there is a magic here than keeps me listening. I'm not sure what it is but it's there and I'm kinda digging it.

I guess what really hooked me in was the psychedelic atmosphere and the middle eastern vibe that this album gives off. It's like I am immersed in a harem and smoking hash from a hookah. At the same time the bass that drives the rhythms here is heavy as fuck making any guitars obsolete. The bass has a little distortion to it making it part of the rhythm section as well as provide part of the melodies. The album is only four songs but clocks in at almost fifty minutes but for some reason it keeps me interested all the way through. The lyrical themes are middle eastern entirely and the subject matter seems to take place during the pre Christian biblical era. With a song title like "Zealot," which opens this album, anyone in the know would see exactly what this band's influences are for this album. The vocals are actually soothing to listen to and sound seriously 60s with the reverb and echo of something that my parents used to call "acid rock."

"The Red Sea" starts off with sitars are psychedelic vocal melodies and then leads to some classic sounding organ parts mixed with that heavy fucking bass. This song actually has riffing, albeit done by the bass, the riffs are cool and the vocals sound chanted. The song does kinda meander on a bit but the epic feel that it gives off keeps me listening. The song picks up the pace a bit at the end with more vocal chants. I think it's actually the weakest song on the album because then you have a song like "Omen," which is longer in length but has more going on to keep me interested. There is this distorted sitar sound starting the song but then it builds up to more of those heavy "riffs" that the bass play with the vocals being almost spoken as if you are being told of impending doom by a prophet. The psychedelic sounds and the chants are cool and the keys have that almost pipe organ sound to them in places adding more atmosphere to the song. This song really has an eerie feel to it which fits the title of the song perfectly.

I'm not supposed to like this. I'm not the biggest fan of the slower, more meandering doom metal. And the fact that this doesn't have any guitars and is not really displaying the metal riffs, there is something that draws me to it. It's interesting, to say the least. This may not be my go to when I'm in a doom mood, but I will revisit this album.

Special thanks to I Hate for the promo.

7.5/10

Below - Across the Dark River

When it comes to doom metal, I seem to gravitate towards the epic/classic doom style that was created by Black Sabbath and perfected by bands like Candlemass and Solitude Aeturnus. There has been a lot of doom metal released lately that was not my cup of tea due to being too slow while trying to be epic but not pulling it off well. To my delight, I found Sweden's Below and their debut album Across the Dark River. It seems that Metal Blade Records was introduced to this band and immediately signed them as well as brought to the attention of Andy LaRocque who produced this debut in his Sonic Train Studios. The result is some epic doom that is really good and enjoyable.

This Swedish quintet has really done a good job to pay homage to their mentors with this album as this reminds me a lot of early Candlemass but this album also has hints of Chapter VI era Candlemass as well. Don't get me wrong, this is not a rip off band because they do have their own sound. The vocals on this album remind me a little bit of Urban Breed (Ex Tad Morose) although he does not have the same power...yet. The riffs are just crushing doom metal riffs with some tritone leads that give off the hint of an evil sound that should be present in epic doom. The solos go from really good to great depending on the song. The opener, "Trapped Under Ground," is a perfect example of the crushing epic doom riffing and soaring vocals. This song is over seven minutes, as there are only a couple of songs under six minutes, however, they do not drone on but keep you interested. The choruses are epic and recorded to add to the atmosphere.

Speaking of the production, this is produced really well with Andy LaRocque at the helm making sure that this band sound the way epic doom should sound. All instruments are present and clean in the mix while giving the album just enough doom atmosphere to be believable. "Bid You Farewell" is another song that has that epic chorus and crushing doom riffing. The solos in this song are one of the better ones. The songs do have a variety of tempos going from slow crushing doom to a speedier doom sound with double bass drumming providing the tempo without sacrificing the epic doom riffing. "Ghost of a Shepherd" is one of the speedier songs that just crush. The driving sound of the riffs along with the soaring vocals is what reminded me of the Chapter VI era Candlemass. This is one of the shorter songs but is no less epic than the longer songs. The first single, "Portal," is a slower pounding epic doom song with massive riffs and great melodies. The solo in the middle leads to some eerie keyboards that would not be out of place on later King Diamond albums. Could be the producer adding his two cents?

"The Whitechapel Murderer" is another crusher that opens with epic riffs and catchy melodies that draw you in. The closer and title track is probably one of the heaviest doom songs I've heard in some time. The riffs are heavy as fuck and the tempo is slow and pounding. The 45 and a half minutes of this album go by fast but the songs leave their mark. These tunes will stay inside your head making this an album you will revisit. The melody on this album adds to the epic sound and makes this album all the more enjoyable. This is another band that I will have my eye on because I can only see great things from this band. There really isn't a bad song on this album. The vocalist, Zeb (Sebastian Jansson), needs just a little more control in his voice and he could be metal's next great vocalist. I am very impressed by this band and this debut. Seems as though 2014 is shaping up to be a great year for metal!

8.5/10