Staff picks

The news of Descend Into Despair disbanding because they felt like they couldn't make art that was worthwhile for anyone hit especially hard, with them being one of the first bands from my country I discovered thanks to Metal Storm, at a time when my love for extreme doom was barely starting to develop, so they're a band I also hold partially responsible for that. Though out of all the releases I could pick, it is their final one that feels most meticulous, from the ways the synths enhance so much of the atmosphere, to just how much attention was poured in the mix of painting and photography on the cover art, all of it makes the context of the disbandment even more depressing and frustrating.