ISOLE

The third full-length from these Swedish torchbearers of the great legacy of Candlemass and Solitude Aeturnus, like the band's previous works, gives rise to a certain mix of feelings — fortunately, mostly positive ones. An unequivocal strength of the group, and in a sense its distinguishing feature, is the use of beautiful clean male vocals and equally beautiful vocal harmonies that lend the material a particular refinement and elegance. The band performs a variety of doom metal imbued not only with the depression and hopelessness prescribed by the genre, but above all with piercingly beautiful, elevated, and gently sorrowful melodies which, combined with the vocal harmonies, yield a most delectable result — forgive me the gastronomic terminology. The instrumental component is beyond all praise: the guitar riffs are wholesomely stern, massive, and viscous; the solo passages, while not dazzling (which would be surprising), possess their own mournful grace; the acoustic arpeggios are transparent and filled with pure silver; the rhythm section is precise and measured, and it is upon this foundation that all the other instrumental elements are strung. The overall musical design is classically doom, although on a couple of occasions the band reveals an ability to surge forward with an almost doom-death burst. The magnificence of the vocals has already been noted, and all of this combined allows the new work to receive a considerably higher rating than its predecessor — primarily because the band managed to avoid the tedium and musical monotony of the previous album. That said, the Swedes still have several important steps to take before reaching their ideal form, and their strongest works, I hope, still lie ahead.