Review by Yener on May 9, 2019.

It’s not very often that I come across a death metal release which really catches me off guard and surprises me, but a random night of Spotify browsing led me to Unbirth, and after “Tumults of Collective Anguishes” was finished, the album was already ordered.

Don’t know what’s going on in Italy, but these guys are starting to pump out some incredible death metal lately. These guys don’t mess around, the entire album is a lesson in pain and brutality, but also technicality and tastefulness. It’s a bizarre mix, and at times reminds me of Internal Suffering, which is not a bad thing. 

Unbirth take the insanity even further though - some of the riffs on this album are just mind bending. Fast as fuck, intricate, heavy, dissonant - you have it all, coming at you at 500 mph. When the album opens with a sample from an old US nuclear training tape, advising you that in a state of nuclear emergency, you should well, duck and cover. And this album is pretty fucking nuclear if you ask me. I’ll never forget the first time I heard “Tumults of Collective Anguishes” - I was sitting there with my headphones taking it all in. Near the end of the track, it gets louder. And louder. And even louder - the band literally turns up the volume on their own fucking record. I just sat there, puzzled, wondering what the fuck had just happened. 

Hook, line and sinker. That’s how you do it fellas.

After that, I was pretty much hooked. These guys had gotten me, and just after one song. That was sure damn easy.

The rest of the album is no slacker, either. The band continuously pummel you with extremely well-crafted riffs and songs. These guys also make really good use of dynamics and arrangements, and they know when to step on the gas, and when to ease off. They don’t ease off much, and when they do, it’s full on grind mode. But where Unbirth really excel is when they just floor it - take the title track, “Fleshforged Columns of Deceit” - it builds up in such spectacular fashion that when they climax comes it’s nothing short of amazing. For those of you wondering what I’m talking about, it’s the section at 2:37 - and it absolutely and completely explodes 2:52. See, that’s how it’s done. That’s proper tension and release, and this album is full of creative and well-rounded song writing such as this. 

The vocals are what you would expect, nothing terribly new to be heard here. That said, I have absolutely zero complaints with them, as Michele Sassano does a great job. The drumming is also top notch, providing creative patterns that mesh well with the chaos. And while speaking on chaos, the album isn’t actually all that complicated. This brings me back to the arrangements, which are done very well. Though each song may sound complicated at first, they are all actually broken down into individual and distinct sections, so it’s not just a meaningless mesh of notes. Drummer Mirko does a fine job behind the kit. Again, nothing to complain about. Guitarists Emanuele Ottanti and Alberto Baroni are the highlights though, throwing in a dazzling mix of riffs that are both quite old school, yet with a nice modern punch and feel to them. What they’ve done here is pretty great, and like I said previously, reminds me of the tension and chaos of Internal Suffering. But these have been influenced by a ton of bands - you can hear the Origin in there, you can hear the Morbid Angel creeping up on you from time to time. But it’s ever so faint, not something that would ever grab your attention as a “clone” band.

Production and overall mix are just fine as well, bringing enough clarity along with the punch this type of music requires in order to be effective. The sound retains its modern feel as well as some of the old school feel from the early 90’s.

Very satisfying release which surprised me. Not an easy feat when you consider the sheer number of bands on the scene right now playing this style. But Unbirth lay most of them to waste. Not to be missed if you’re a fan of the genre.

Rating: 9.3 out of 10

Review by JD on July 6, 2008.

Came across this CD completely by accident while browsing in one of my favourite music stores one lazy Saturday afternoon. It was one of those chance findings that end up making me simply smile. What I found, once purchasing it, was a bonafide Doom classic from start to finish.

The vibe on the album was stark, bleak and totally scary from the start. Vocals that changed between hauntingly clear and eerie to blowtorch grinding grunts... made each and ever note and word strike like the hand of God from this little shiny disk.

The guitar parts that are heavy as lead to the point of bludgeoning in it's power, then would free fall into the ethereal acoustic sounds that were goosebump inducing with each note that seemed to flow out. Every lovingly crafted sombre beat helps weave the lyrics haunting story together into a Doom Metal masterpiece that both scares and entertains.

I missed this album when it actually came out in 2005.. for that, I have to kick myself repeatedly really hard. Novembers Doom is a band that can and will be remembered for this one. A sombre, ghostly album... that is worthy of more than a few listens.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 10
Atmosphere: 10
Production: 10
Originality: 10
Overall: 10

Rating: 10

Review by Allan on March 28, 2005.

For years while everybody was praising November’s Doom, I was idly watching, taking enough of an interest to listen to what everybody was so enamored by. However, for me November’s Doom has never quite bridged that gap between good and great. Let’s be honest here kids – these doomster’s don’t exactly have the best track record when it comes to writing cohesive, congruous albums, or even full songs for that matter. The material might have been good, but if it’s barely being held together that presents a problem. With that said, I figured there would be a day when they got it right. Their latest offering The Pale Haunt Departure is it.

Pursuing the melodic death/doom avenue that so many bands travel, November’s Doom don’t achieve success through being original, but rather by simply doing what they do better than the rest. Indeed there are many band’s that run alongside November’s Doom: Opeth (although they’re far less doom-influenced), early Anathema and Daylight Dies are excellent examples. However, November’s Doom music is branded with their signature; you won’t be confusing anything you hear by them with another band.

The question remains: exactly how do they beat out the competition? For starters, there isn’t one single section on The Pale Haunt Departure that is dull or disappointing. The ideas presented are fantastic. More specifically, the cleaner, more melodic, as well as acoustic sections are excellently crafted, presenting creative ideas that don’t sound like they were written by some metal dudes that only picked up an acoustic guitar because they heard one of their favorite band’s do some arpeggios. In other words, the music in these sections sounds natural, not forced, and it’s actually quite tasteful. On the other side, the heavier moments, while still melodic, are intense and full, something aided by the great production, courtesy of Dan Swano. When combined with the songwriting to pull it all together, you’ve got a winning combination.

There is another element in The Pale Haunt Departure that seems to be absent in a lot of music these days, and that would be inspiration, heart, soul, or whatever you want to call it. November’s Doom play and sound like they’ve actually taken the time to work out the small details that are often overlooked, and it shows. Not only that, but when the guitar’s rip into a solo or vocalist Paul Kuhr uses his befittingly morose clean vocals, there is a sense of ambition behind it. The emotion is present, and as a result, the atmosphere is drawn out. The result is great.

As for now, November’s Doom has caught my attention with The Pale Haunt Departure by doing it better than the bands standing on the same playing field. Maybe next time they’ll play it a little less safe and venture into some unknown territory. But for now, let’s just all enjoy what is undoubtedly going to end up on everybody’s top ten lists.


Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 9
Atmosphere: 9
Production: 9
Originality: 6
Overall: 8

Rating: 8.2 out of 10