Shadows And Dreams (Endless Desperation Productions)

 Abyssphere is a Russian band formed in 2003, and “Shadows and Dreams” is the band’s second full length… This seven-piece band delivers at this album a somewhat relaxed form of Gothic/Doom Metal with several symphonic elements; the whole album is based in melodic and soft keyboard driven atmospheres, complemented by light weight metallic elements and a dual vocal work, consisting in clean voices in contrast with deep growls… in other words, this album has all the elements that made the Gothic/Doom Metal sound so massive in the late nineties. This band sound like a mix between “Down” period Sentenced and some of the early sound of Crematory, some slight traces of Amorphis and mid period Paradise Lost can be also be found camouflaged behind all the Gothic/Symphonic elements of this album, but do not expect big Metal discharges here, all the Doom/Death and Black Metal elements on this album seems to be relegated in favour of a more gentle and soft proposal. I’m definitely not a fan of this style, but this album has some interesting details to remark; the band seems to have put great effort in the composition process, resulting in a very assorted album, the whole musicianship is multilayered and pretty interesting as well, which may be considered, at least for those into this kind of music, one of the strongest points of this album. Overall “Shadows and Dreams” is not the kind of album any traditional Doom Metal diehard would like to get, but if you feel nostalgic about the somewhat cheesy, over-elaborated but baroque and well composed sound of the late nineties Gothic/Doom Metal, this album will make you relive the golden days of this now underrated style… (AP)