Band:	Dola
Album:	Dola
Style:	Black metal, Doom metal
Release date:	February 17, 2020
A review by:	Auntie Sahar

01. Olbrzym
02. Tam Mnie Nie Ubijesz
03. Wypuść Nas
04. Dni Błogie
05. Mistrzostwo We Władaniu Ogniem
06. Dola
07. Gdy Wszystko Się Skończy Oni Nadal Będą Chodzić

Dola was one of those "yo Apothecary you should check this out, it's definitely your kind of stuff" type albums. And good Lord, was he who suggested it to me correct.

Through my exploration of the blackened doom metal style that I so passionately adore, I've come to notice that there are three predominant takes on the sound. There's "kvlty doom," that is bands that are mostly doom metal with a few shades of black here and there in the riffing and vocal styles, such as Atriarch or Usnea. There are the "doomy black" bands, where the opposite is the case, as with Ill Omen or the godfathers in Dolorian. And then there are bands that strike a pretty firm, 50/50 balance between the doom and the black, like Elysian Blaze.

Surprisingly, and pleasantly so, Poland's Dola really don't seem as though they can be classed very easily into either of those categories, being more of a three way blend of black, doom, and? ambient? Yes, ambient, and quite a good deal of it. Atmosphere is key here for this trio and their self titled debut: a hazy, droney, and melodic cloak that forms a dense layer over the rest of the music, greatly assisting in the composition being highly well paced, peaking excellently, and being that much more dynamic and engaging. The intro of the opening track establishes a pattern that is more or less mirrored throughout the rest of the album: a beginning in the dreamlike ambient territory that gradually transitions into a heavier approach throughout.

But this self titled debut of Dola isn't merely unique in terms of its sense of atmosphere, because the way in which the band combines the remaining black and doom parts of their equation also comes across as unusually catchy for the style. Indeed, I can't quite remember being this enraptured by the riffs of a blackened doom band perhaps since first getting into The Ruins Of Beverast. Just listen to that nice little diddy that comes in around the 3 minute mark on "Olbrzym." Absolute banger. Or take the eponymous "Dola" track in all of its entirety? like the others, it starts in that hazy ambient territory before gradually transitioning into jammy, almost stoner doom - type riffage, later embellished more by black metal picking and blasts that come to an absolutely magnificent climax. This certainly isn't an isolated example, either. All throughout this debut, Dola show that, if nothing else, they are quite impressive at both genre blending and the art of composing in general.

I already knew that some pretty damn fine metal came out of Poland, but Dola is really the best I've heard in a while. They've taken a sub style of metal that I already regarded as extremely dynamic and memorable and somehow made it even more dynamic and memorable with a keen sense of ambiance and an absolutely delicious, "riffs for days" type delivery. If these guys are already this good and tightly locked together with a mere debut album, I can't wait to see where they go from here.

Big thanks to Paź for the initial tip off. Do not let this one pass you by.