Chalice of Suffering – Lost Eternally

Band: Chalice of Suffering
Title: Lost Eternally
Label: Transcending Obscurity Records
Release date: 19 April 2019
Country: USA
Format reviewed: High-quality Digital Promo

In order to be considered atmospheric doom metal, a band preferably has to have certain elements. Let’s say we have keyboards at minimum, the guitar in front along with bass and drums, we are half way there. Add to that mix some slow tempo and melodies, and we move along in the right direction. Then along come the vocals. Is it clear growling? Good! And what does it bring? Melancholy, dark, glum lyrics? Sounds good doesn’t it?

CHALICE OF SUFFERING released their first album “For You I Die” in 2016 and will soon enough come back with their second release, “Lost Eternally”. Having rummaged through their debut album, I will go out on a limb and state that it will be hard for them to fill their own shoes. Surely producing atmospheric doom metal up to standards can be a challenge, a challenge which this band has decided to take on with a pretty good outcome.

“In the mist of once was” is most likely the best opener they could have chosen. Attention was paid as the album started up and anticipation was high. The buildup took some time, after all the tracks are all quite long, and it was time well spent because by the end of the very first track I imagined that this is what the ghost of Mikael Åkerfeldt trapped in a living body would probably sound like. Chilling.

The diversity of not only the seven songs presented on the album but also the vocalist of the band comes clear by the second song, “Emancipation of pain”, where it is extremely deep, almost with a draculaesque feeling to it. It is suitable; it reflects the gloominess of the lyrics which intertwines beautifully with a second set of clean, lighter vocals as it goes on and what is extremely pleasant is the fact that even if this setup is brilliant, it is not overused on every single track.

“The Hurt” underlines the diversity even further by letting the guitar build-up take the song forward and the palpable bass manages to take it even further into the ghostly feel the song provokes from the mellotrone sounding choirs which opened the track.

Now you might think towards the end of the album that the diversity will fade but then “Miss me, but let me go” tears it up again. It is the fastest track of the album for sure, the most powerful one, however that doesn’t take away any of the doom-metal elements that are expected and its almost as if all the separate parts in the previous songs which caught attention have here been mashed together to create greatness.

These days, more and more bands seem to implement a “talking” part into their tracks, which on this album is also presented. It’s enjoyable and offers a certain atmosphere of despair which makes the tracks, along with everything else, all very well rounded. CHALICE OF SUFFERING obviously know what they are doing and know how to present doom-metal to the public, and do seem to check off every element mentioned in the beginning to qualify as atmospheric doom metal. The only thing that could have gone better was the disjoint of the instruments at times, however that could also be because of the sub-par recording and mixing. 7/10 Julia 

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