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Solothus have been making excellent slabs of Doom/Death since their debut, and their third album Realm of Ash and Blood sees them continuing to do just that while further refining their craft. This band has always been great at creating a dark, apocalyptic atmosphere with sludgy, punishing riffs, weeping melodies, crushing bass work, and inhuman grunting, but now they've developed their sound into something much more individual and unique than ever before. There's a deceptive amount of depth to this album, and while parts of it can still get monotonous, more often than not there are details that you'll likely miss on the first listen, making this as rewarding on the fifth listen as it is on the first. This is highlighted on the suffocating album closer "A Rain of Ash", whose entire 10-minute run will have you absorbed in the frightening atmosphere and merciless heaviness that embodies what these guys are all about. A first-rate album from a first-rate band whose best is yet to come.