Review by Rosh on March 19, 2021.

Maryland is quite literally the traditional doom metal capital of the world - it has to be with so many gems to unearth, mostly signed to Hellhound Records in the 1990's. Unfortunately, many of these very inspired and musically talented bands faded into obscurity after the label went bankrupt and closed by the end of the decade, screwing over many of their bands in the process. Wretched is a way lesser known outfit than The Obsessed, Iron Man, Count Raven, or Saint Vitus, all of whom made up the Sabbath-loving Hellhound roster back then, but their main claim to fame might be the vocalist Dave Sherman who formed the better known (but still largely overlooked) Maryland doom band Earthride. At any rate, Wretched (though their name isn't unique from numerous other bands) deliver hook-based, grooving, and somewhat eclectic classic doom metal on their debut.

This is The Obsessed-circa "Lunar Womb/Church Within" style doom, so don't expect anything too slow, but do expect there to be a curiously jammed-out feel to the music. This is a tendency that actually makes this album feel approachable to many kinds of heavy rock fans other than true doom metalllers. Anyone into Alice in Chains (who, fight me, have a lot of doom metal in their sound) could easily appreciate this stuff, especially the stoner-rockish guitar melodies accenting the Sabbathy metal riffs. In fact, the riffing in songs like 'Verbal Suicide' and 'The One I Seek' make me feel a lot less blue about The Obsessed only having a few albums in the 90's. No doubt Wino himself is in good standing with the surviving members of Wretched.

Albums like Life Out There really highlight the variety offered in a style like traditional doom. Many people wouldn't necessarily realize this is true doom music, in fact they might think it's grunge or stoner rock, but as it turns out, the Sabbath influence of traditional doom metal is so far-reaching that it unifies many of the bands playing these respective styles. The result is that Wretched feels like an excellent gateway into classic doom from better known kinds of rock and metal, despite this album being entirely overlooked. All the right elements are here, ultimately. A warm guitar tone that blends cozily with the just-overdriven-enough bass (see the opening bassline in the title track) makes for the right amount of heaviness to suit both the wistful lead melodies and the chunky rhythm guitar progressions. One need look no further than the bridge of 'Standing Down' or the unexpectedly foreboding hooks of 'Unknown Soul' and 'The Fight' for a sense of doom metal melodicism coupled with beefy riffs that doesn't sound like a basic Trouble clone.

This is definitely one of those 90's "CD" albums, too - the time when albums started getting longer because they could fit more stuff on the media format. Sure, it's under 45 minutes while a lot of other albums in this league are well over an hour (see Count Raven's "High On Infinity"), but the way this album is structured, that is, 10 tracks with no interludes, it still lends the album the feel of being longer than it actually is. That's actually a good thing, though, because the music is damn good, so by time you finish the album, you feel like a satisfied doomaholic. Really, I could listen to the riffs on Life Out There all day, both the groovier ones and the more mysteriously doomy ones. This is the type of album that doesn't need any instrumental tracks, because riffing is already such a strong focus, which is one of the best things you can say about the Maryland doom scene. On top of that, the vocals feel gruff enough to grab your attention but not so much that they feel out of place with the chilled, grooving metal music on display, so it lets you focus on the instrumentation.

Lastly, the cover art for this album is so damn cool, I really like it! It's... wacky but it fits the music perfectly! Who is the figure we see a silhouette of juxtaposed against a colorful Dr. Seuss-esque background? Totally has a 90's stoner or grunge feel but it's just pure doom with loads of diverse influences! I'm not sure if that artwork is photography or a painting or a hybrid, but it is ART!

This is ultimately the type of album the average metal listener needs more of in their musical diet, even if it is by and large not something most people into heavy music would listen to that often unless their favorite bands are without doubt Black Sabbath, The Obsessed, and Alice in Chains. Then, this might be your favorite album ever.

Rating: 9.4 out of 10

Review by Vladimir on June 9, 2024.

When it comes to Polish black metal, you really can't go wrong, because you are rarely going to come across something so atrocious or polarizing that you'd never want to explore its wave of bands any further. Recently, I was recommended by my colleague to check out the band Zmarłym from Końskie, so I decided to give it a go because I know for sure that he wouldn't let me down. With that said, let's dive deep into the plague-infested world of their debut full-length album Druga Fala, released on November 21st, 2021 via Godz Ov War Productions.

From the grey haze, some dangerous and eerie frequencies approach from the other side, expressed through the intense musical output of Zmarłym. The first track nicely sets up the pandemic mood of Druga Fala, however the second track '#zostańwgrobie' heads for a completely different direction by adding some electronic music elements combined with black metal, which would also make an appearance on the final track 'Czy To Już...?'. What stands out about this album from the very get-go is that it has a very bleak atmosphere, almost like you are experiencing the horrific and depressing tone of movies about virus outbreaks like 28 Days Later or Dawn of the Dead, and this album as a whole, along with its dark tone, is heavily reflecting on the dark days of the pandemic when the album was released. As the album progresses, you pretty much feel like you are going through a complete downward spiral, because the music psychologically affects you by throwing you mentally back to that period you would never want to revisit, feeling like a bird in a cage due to the heavy restrictions while also being scared and confused about the whole virus situation that was all over the media. It's obvious that Zmarłym made the album the way it is in order to express the mental torment, public terror and the social agony through their music, and even the album title translates to "second wave", so you can pretty much tell where this is going.

Songwriting-wise, Druga Fala has some very solid ideas that are quite simple yet effective when it comes to the overall execution, but with a strong emphasis on the extreme emotional aspects in the music. It's evident that Zmarłym really had a clear idea about the direction they wanted to go with this album, because their approach contains both traditional ideas in contemporary black metal and also some unorthodox ideas like the electronic music elements which somehow managed to fit in their sound. I won't lie to you that this album really got my attention and I got more curious to know what it was trying to do, and I can safely say that this is a one of a kind album that is different from the rest, while stating a very strong message from start to finish. What I think they did successfully about the album itself is the fact that it musically captured the millions of screams trapped in the minds of people around the world, when we were going through a very difficult period in our day to day lives that would haunt us in later years. Such aggression and intensity really does define the essence of Druga Fala, so it's definitely the biggest highlight, alongside the creepy album cover by Maciej Kamuda, with the artwork that physically embodies that level of horror. As for the production, there isn't much to it that I can add, except for the fact that it sounds very well done thanks to the heavily overdriven tone of the guitars, harsh shrieking vocals and the thundering drum.

Overall, Druga Fala turned out to be a nice album worth checking out and I have to say that it really managed to remind me what it was like living in those bleak days of mental anguish and fear of tomorrow. The work of Zmarłym is probably an equivalent to the works of poets and writers that are borderline doomsayers and nihilists, and what they gave us is an unsettling album that was made with a purpose to make you feel uneasy while also reminding you about the fact that you were going through a dark age in modern form in the year of 2021. If you come across this album, be sure to check it out, because it is like I said, one of a kind.

Rating: 8.3 out of 10