“Doom” had a rather different meaning to the Christian monastic orders of the early medieval era; for them, this concept of an ultimate fate, not necessarily a negative one but a final one nonetheless, was linked inextricably to both the harshness of corporeal existence and the profound immanence of salvific grace. The different facets and contradictions of this concept are illustrated well by the tales of St. Cuthbert, whose bones are the subject of this album, and by the music of Arð itself, which visits the mournful tones of metal’s most lugubrious subgenre upon a collection of otherwise enchanting melodies; Arð takes inspiration from the monastic habits of medieval Britain not only in the lyrics, which chronicle the treatment and travels of St. Cuthbert’s relics, but in the music. Take Up My Bones makes heavy use of the deep chants that characterized ecclesiastical music for centuries, albeit with eerie harmonies that would not have escaped Pope John XXII, as well as piano and cello for added sobriety; fans of Winterfylleth’s folk-inspired black metal will likely take to this Northumbrian doom offshoot.

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Well-established Swedish doomers Avatarium left no room of doubt whether their new full-length offering would continue the scope of quality and purpose of its predecessors. Death, Where Is Your Sting is not your ordinary doom output, since it operates in a bit more of a lightweight manner, yet is no less appealing. It's a magnificent release that meanders through the doom metal waves with heavy guitar tones and moderate portions of solos on one side and fearlessly incorporates acoustic sections and occasional unexpected instruments (for instance violin) on the other side. A real “doom lady”, Jennie-Ann Smith is a stronghold behind the vocals, which are uncanny and simply at the top of the game with regard to execution and contribution to the overall sound of Death, Where Is Your Sting.

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Early Moods do not reinvent the wheel with their self-titled debut. They take the trad riffs and the groovy rhythms of bands like Black Sabbath, Pentagram, Witchfinder General, and Trouble, they spice it up with some Iron Maiden and Angel Witch melodies, they have a darker Sean Harris (Diamond Head) to sing on top, and the end product, leaning more to the doom metal side rather than the heavy metal one, is irresistible. And, unlike most bands that have nothing else to show but the retro sound, Early Moods have the songwriting chops and the musicianship to justify the throwback.

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In the mood for some catchy doom in the vein of Pentagram? How about mixed with some psychedelic atmospheres and gloomy vocals? Famyne's II: The Ground Below offers a fresh multitude of various styles across its eight tracks, whether they are moments of melancholy, relaxing stoner haziness, hard rock grooviness, or straight-up headbang-inducing riffs. A subtle feeling of uneasiness throughout the album is the icing on the cake for this modern doom metal masterpiece: an extremely entertaining experience of delightful melodies and mournful ambience, all spearheaded by the unforgettable sombre wails and theatrical cries of vocalist Tom Vane.

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Messa evolve with each release, but they do it subtly and keep intact their core sound. This is a band that combines doom, jazz, blues, and occult rock into a rich mixture of sonic flavours that is delicious, with Sara Bianchin’s irresistible voice on top. On Close, they further explore a Middle-Eastern/Mediterranean facet, and the album’s character can be described as religious, ritualistic, and ceremonial. Messa’s ‘scarlet doom’ is classy, artful, soulful, and seductive in a way that no other band can replicate.

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Kosmodrom, a cosmic atmospheric approach to longstanding doom metal tradition, may not be as revolutionary as the Space Race in and of itself, but it certainly offers a unique sense of adventure among its peers. Monolithe ensure a captivating journey through time, carried by a pummeling rhythmic section of thick, groovy bass lines and hypnotic drum beats. Infused with some of their own creative exploration by way of dynamic songwriting tactics, the guitar tone alone is explosive enough to launch you to the moon faster than a penny stock pump and dump. Accompanied by daunting melodies and the neurotically specific track lengths synonymous with the band's name, this well-crafted package also serves as a worthwhile soundtrack to the "The Red Rockets' Glare".

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Smouldering Into Dust sees these Chilenos toss a variety of ingredients into a Pil-Pil de Doom. Tagged as “Folk Doom”, the basics are the more accessible “drown slowly in a warm bath” approach to otherwise usually more extreme variants of doom. Slow riffs, mournful melodies, and some harsh vocals. After the base is right, Mournument toss in strings, long, fragile acoustic passages, and some clean vocals you’d swear came from Enslaved’s catalog. The end result makes for sad yet beautiful ear candy.

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Strata is the debut release from the newly established atmospheric doom metal act Remina, a band featuring the angelic vocalist Heike Langhans and talented multi-instrumental songwriter Mike Lamb, who previously worked alongside each other in Light Field Reverie. Described appropriately as atmospheric doom, the duo provides an immersive cosmic journey with a dreamy backdrop, whilst also bringing gothic and even some darkwave elements to the table. As first Light Field Reverie and now Remina clearly show, there's no denying the fact that Lamb brings out the best in Heike.

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Roadburn has been getting absolutely jacked from pushing so many boundaries, extending its reach in the musical community far beyond the role of a mere venue for beer-soaked mud baths; we’ve lost track of how many albums we’ve nominated for the MSAs over the years that originated as one-off live collaborations at a past edition of the festival. The Nest might just be the most ambitious crossover yet instigated by Roadburn, if only for the sheer scale (take a deep breath): nesting in The Nest are Wolvennest, Déhà, Alan Averill (Primordial), Bones (Dread Sovereign), Ryanne van Dorst (Dool), Alexander von Meilenwald (The Ruins Of Beverast), François Breulet (Cult Of Erinyes), Tommy Eriksson (Saturnalia Temple), and Olmo Lipani (everyone else). For the sake of cramming in something about the music itself, we’ll just say that Her True Nature is a droney, blackened morass of psychedelic distortion and ritualistic gothic doom, in most ways comparable to Wolvennest but able to play to the strengths of the myriad guests without losing cohesion. This was certainly one of the biggest undertakings in the metal sphere last year, and the results are appropriately massive.

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The Otolith aren’t quite SubRosa reincarnated, what with Rebecca Vernon being absent, but with 4/5 of the line-up from For This We Fought The Battle Of Ages, it’s about as close as you’re going to get, and Folium Limina sounds exactly like how one would expect the spiritual successor of SubRosa to do. Long, crawling songs with huge, sludgy guitars, ominous violins, and eerie vocals: everything is there in abundance, and with post-rock dynamic sensibilities and movie samples adding a ‘cinematic’ edge, Folium Limina is colossal and epic.

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