Band:	Shores Of Sheol
Album:	Monumentum
Style:	Black metal
Release date:	May 06, 2006
A review by:	Richard

01. The Forgotten Kingdom
02. Trails Of The Morbid
03. Mystic Visions
04. Punishment Of Existence
05. Firebringer
06. The Avernus Passage
07. Monumentum
08. Under Thy Mighty Wings
09. Fgmenth - Thy Gift [Rotting Christ cover]

Although Monumentum is a Black Metal album, the Austrian band Shores Of Sheol is quite different to most other one-man bands of the genre. Sathur has forsaken the Darkthrone clone route, and chosen to compose in a style rather reminiscent of early Rotting Christ, Varathron and other dark Greek bands. This is evident from the cover of Fgmenth - Thy Gift (which was originally on Rotting Christ's album Thy Mighty Contract), and also the riff that comes in at the 0:36 mark on Mystic Visions is so similar to Son Of The Moon by Varathron that it must be more than a coincidence!

So, whereas the Norse bands had their cold, harsh approach to Black Metal, here we have a warmer, fuller sound and very melodic, inventive guitarwork which contains palm muting and also simple melodic lead work. Songs like Firebringer and Monumentum are a dark delight to listen to, while the use of soothing yet mournful synth in some parts throughout the album also offers an extra element of otherworldly atmosphere. Unfortunately, the folk melody intro to Under Thy Mighty Wings sounds like something from a very old computer game and despite the tune itself building nicely, it is a part I'd rather skip. The vocal style is sometimes a whispery deep growl, and sometimes a higher pitched serpentine rasp - both of which are, again, reminiscent of Thy Mighty Contract-era Rotting Christ.

I would urge Sathur to try and get a human drummer next time, as the drum machine used on this album is rather unrealistic sounding. Also, for some reason, the ride cymbal only hits at the same time as the snare, rather than continually counting the beat, resulting in a strange, empty sounding drum beat. A minor quibble, perhaps, but I feel it is slightly detrimental to the overall experience as it makes it sound incomplete.

Overall though, Shores Of Sheol has come up with a particularly promising album, and it's important to note that SoS has only been around since 2005. It's so encouraging to hear a new band resurrecting the old sound that was typically associated with early 90's Greek Black Metal, as that style was something truly special. Sathur plays it with such confidence and conviction that Shores Of Sheol is clearly a band to watch.