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Another dead-on hit for Aftermath Music. This is about the best label there is for Doom metal, and this disc is no exception. Skumring (I'm sure that means something cool in Norwegian) released this as their demo, but it was so good Aftermath remastered and repackaged it for release as a proper album.

This is awesome melodic Funeral Doom in the vein of Pantheist or Fallen, with some crushingly heavy riffs and a ton of atmosphere. I close my eyes with this on and I am instantly transported to some far and ruined vista, watching ancient towers crash to earth in the burning fires of the sunset. Moody and beautiful, with haunting melodies you will not forget, this music suffuses you. The one new thing Skumring offer are the beautiful, soulful vocals of Cecile. This is one of those why-didn't-I-think-of-that moments, as the addition of her mournful, operatic vocals just takes this whole thing to another level. Female operatic vocals in a Funeral Doom band. It's so obvious it's innovative.

I just can't get away from this release. Doom can be hard to describe, because it's less about gimmicks or cool riffs and choruses than about how the music makes you feel. Funeral Doom is even more so: the good stuff just carries you away to another place. It may not be the happiest place on earth, but it affects you. Well-done Funeral Doom leaves a mark on you, and makes mourning into a kind of exaltation. If you like sorrowful, brooding music, then this is an album to get any way you can. Marvelous.