Forgotten Tomb [Italy]
…And Don’t Deliver Us from Evil
2012
Full Length
Agonia Records
Black/Doom Metal
Italy’s Forgotten Tomb has been delivering their depressive art since their formation in 1999, and this year sees the band’s sixth full length release, …And Don’t Deliver Us from Evil. Despite this unfortunately being my first exposure to Forgotten Tomb, seeing the band’s record of releasing high quality albums got me rather excited with …And Don’t Deliver Us from Evil, not knowing what to really expect from these Italians.
The doomy goodness begins from the get go with Deprived, with the groovy riffs being one of the most charming aspects of the music that will be on …And Don’t Deliver Us from Evil. This is gonna be a pretty refreshing and interesting ride indeed, with the perfect fusion between the doom and black metal elements of the band. With Forgotten Tomb principally being a black metal band, the black metal aesthetics are pretty clear, at times almost leaning towards a somewhat melancholic/depressive black metal side what with the tortured vocals of band mastermind Herr Morbid. Furthermore, the calmer segments, complete with acoustic guitars and a haunting melody at times brings about some similarities to the post-black metal of bands like Alcest with the atmosphere of the music, though there is a more ballsy edge over here. That said, for the most part, this is some rather catchy and infectious black metal.
Forgotten Tomb‘s experience at creating this particular form of art is also evident, with the seamless fusion of elements of various genres on the record. Unlike many other bands that have attempted similar styles, what Forgotten Tomb has done over here is to ensure that each of the individual styles complement the others on the album. For example, the doom metal aspects at times help to ensure that the atmosphere is constantly kept heavy, while the black metal elements bring out the bleakness and desperation, resulting in an extremely dark record.
While the tracks on the album tend to be rather long, with most going in excess of the 7 minute mark, the material here keeps the listener completely enchanted, with the tracks allowing for the emotions of the band to be slowly and completely experienced and absorbed by the listener. Long doesn’t mean boring though, as the band can get pretty fucking catchy as well, with songs like Let’s Torture Each Other and Love Me Like You’d Love the Death being some of the personal favourites with the morbid overtone.
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Agonia Records