Sinamort - Breathing Cargo - review
Sinamort - Breathing Cargo - review
Tracklist
01. Breathing Cargo02. Your Dignity, Circling The Drain
03. Autoluminescence
04. May
05. Everywhere Id Is The Machines
06. Neon
07. Down The Hegelian Nightmare
A review by
AndyMetalFreak June 24, 2026
Sinamort is a progressive doom quartet formed in Lithuania in 2015. The band is known for pushing the boundaries of UK-influenced death doom beyond the typical crushing low-tempo compositions by incorporating a variety of elements and genres such as gothic, progressive, avant-garde, jazz, and post-metal, while their themes are centred on existentialism, human nature, and loss. In 2021, they released their full-length debut The Idle Veil, which was followed by two EPs, May and Autoluminescence, in early 2026. This laid the thematic foundation for their sophomore album Breathing Cargo.
The conceptual theme behind Breathing Cargo follows the impact behind personal and historic turmoil. The overarching industrial sounds of train locomotives provide structure for lyrics that explore 20th century atheistic regimes, the extermination of certain groups of individuals based on their education, political beliefs, wealth or race, and the mass deportations to Siberia, in which humans were transported like cargo, hence the title Breathing Cargo.
The album takes you on an intense sonic journey of unprecedented emotional suffering as it weaves its way through unorthodox song structures and crushing instrumentation. It expands even further musically from the traditional death/doom formula set out on the debut, incorporating slow emotion-filled synth-laden ambient spaces, intensifying post-metal build-ups, and complex progressive arrangements. The vocals are diverse varying from soft clean singing that ranges from passionate to distorted, almost psychedelic during the slower sections, to aggressive shouts and deep monstrous growls on the heavier parts. In addition, there are a variety of string instruments incorporated from acoustic guitar to violin, as well as a diverse range in guitar work, from dissonant, to crushing death doom chugs, to melodic lead breaks.
Many unpredictable tempo changes and rhythmic shifts purposely disrupt the album's flow with the intention of causing the listener to experience a mixed emotional state. The main focus of this approach is to trap the listener in a dense multi-layered soundscape, one that vividly captures the human suffering that aligns with the album's theme. The downside, though, is that it generally lacks traditional hooks, and listeners who favour a traditional doom approach might find it overly dense, with the compositions being a touch too complex and often bloated. The production is of the highest modern standard, highly polished, refined, and masterfully mixed, allowing each element to be heard equally without being swallowed in dense wall of sound. However, some listeners might find it too polished, and so lacking a certain authenticity.
Breathing Cargo is a bold and ambitious release that has all but set Sinamort apart from the ever-growing death doom crowd. In fact, I'd say it's arguably pulled them away from the crowd altogether; instead what they've done here is create a distinctive sound and style of their own by further building on the foundations of the debut. Death doom is a genre saturated by bands with no intention of reinventing the wheel or opting to venture into new territories, but Sinamort's main aim is to push the boundaries and venture further than any band associated with the genre has before.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 7 |
| Songwriting: | 7 |
| Originality: | 9 |
| Production: | 8 |
Written on 24.06.2026 by
Written on 24.06.2026 by
An honest review that you don't necessarily have to agree with. Comments
Comments:
4
Visited by
36 users
 Posts: 8256 |
Posts: 8256
I loved the debut and, based on your review, I will probably love this, too. I have a big queue of albums that I want to listen to, but this is going high up on the list. 450 reviews, man, you are a machine 
Loading...
|
| Posts: 6669 |
Posts: 6669 Written by nikarg on 24.06.2026 at 18:04 I find this a very good album, a kinda unique style of it's own really, and an interesting theme too, and say it's just as good, if not better than the debut. Thanks, I've been very productive with album reviews this year hopefully I'll be able to continue 
Loading...
|
 Posts: 8672 |
Loading...
|
|
Posts: 1 |
Hits total: 553 | This month: 75