Having already made a name for itself amongst in-the-know lovers of doom-laden sounds, Funeral has returned with yet another testament to mourning made music. “From These Wounds” explores a tactful variety of sonic textures, from woe-begotten dirges to lingering, evocative melodies - in doing so, fully encompassing despair in most of its possible musical utterances.

Line up the pallbearers, haul out the casket and don’t forget to bring a nice bouquet of flowers, as “From These Wounds” is not only a suitable soundtrack for one’s daily depression, but a fine record to be spinning after said depression is long since past , the corporeal entity serving as garden variety worm fodder. Oddly enough, there’s enough melody amongst the misery found here to be of appeal to more than just the average doom metal fan.

Expansive yet confined, with as much depth as the most sorrow-filled moments this life has to offer, “From These Wounds” easily ranks amongst the best doom records of 2006.

Novembre has taken heat for a supposed similarity to the recent works of labelmates Katatonia, but you can forget all about any sort of comparison. Sure, Novembre possess a quantifiably gothic rock edge, there’s no questioning that fact. But that’s where the similarity ends.

The sounds of “Materia” are much looser in form - free-sounding and airy, a glistening adventure in atmospherically astute wanderings. At times, these songs are on an even keel with the latest from HIM, “Dark Light,” in terms of production and presence, but the material of Novembre is more introspective and certainly less polished for mass consumption. In saying that, the intention is that you’ll know there’s no an easy formula, catchy love anthems or overtly obvious radio pandering to be found here. Just very emotional, well-written and played rock sounds with a contemporary, gothic edge.

Standouts include the expansive, far-reaching “Reason,” the swirling “Aquamarine” and “The Promise,” which heavily borrows inspiration from U2. Bleak yet hopeful, “Materia” delivers blissful dread and an engagingly tuneful glimpse into an ocean of melodic sadness.

Opening with a dirging track that’s tendencies are fairly minimalist, the appropriately titled “…”, Abandon plow through eleven doom-filled caricatures of subharmonic discordance on “In Reality We Suffer”.

This record is for those who like riffs that drip like molasses from a mountaintop, sludgy and painstakingly slow. Johan Karlsson issues anguished vocals that are abrasive enough to peel paint from walls on the sandpaper anthem “Trauma Is The Trigger”. Unlike many groups of this nature, Abandon mix up the lengths of their songs and this proves to be an effective approach, allowing the group to deliver mind numbing sonic manifestations without becoming redundant.

Clean guitar tones usher in “In Hopelessness Enlightened”, a somber behemoth of a track that encapsulates the meaning of heavy in its plodding depth. On the granular “Piles Of Pigs” the group stabs away with a corpulent concoction that is hastily withdrawn in favor of further deliberate discordance in the despair filled title track.

Abandon are extreme, there can be no objection to that fact, but this band simply takes their sonic languidity in the opposite direction of most, opting to slowly bludgeon the listener with resonating forcefulness.

Put this weighty platter of mournful dissonance in your PC and check out what this music does to the visualization program in its media player for an optimum experience.

Quite the disquieting ration of hopelessness, “In Reality We Suffer” is bitter, glum weight upon your doom seeking soul.

German Funeral Doom trio Ahab reveals a plodding sound that gives an impression of the vast depths of the Ocean during this full-length debut. Inspired by Herman Melville's oft-influencing novel Moby Dick, Ahab explores the depths of the blackest of waters, in turn coming up with one of the most impressive interpretations of this tale of the murky depths to date.

You'll recognize both Daniel Droste,(the group's vocalist, guitarist and keyboardist) and guitarist Chris R. Hector as being known for their contributions to both Midnattsol and Penetralia. These two talented players join with bassist Stephan Adolph (who also contributes guitars and vocals), in order to form this behemoth of plodding doom. As the near twelve-minute "Below The Sun" sets the stage for the album with thick, weighty resonations and mournfully melodic guitar work, Ahab articulates sounds of despair that are in a word, massive.

While Ahab is not as slow as many of the Funeral Doom acts hailing from Europe at this time, the fact makes their sub-sonic buzzing and pounding that much more digestible. While "The Pacific" emotes the very essence of what the voices from below the turbulent waves must sound like, Ahab are at once mighty and foreboding.

Meanwhile the mournful, liquid harmony present during "Old Thunder" is surely sufficient to gain the respect of any lover of melancholy, saddening sounds. On "The Sermon," the group opts for more saturation than during other instances and the playing of Droste is highlighted well on the album’s closer "Ahab's Oath."

It must be said that the production here is commendable; especially the tone of the drums, there’s a lot of emphasis on a good kick drum sound, which is a crucial factor in doom, being that individual sounds, while expansive, are much easier to dissert from one another.

Ahab breaks the mold of the general theme of Doom Metal on The Call Of The Wretched Sea, and putting such a well-known story line behind this type of music certainly conjures up a lot of great mental images while listening to the record. Standard-setting in terms of creativity and delivery, this is the album that can bring Funeral Doom Metal before a much wider audience.

The record fades in with a surrealistic introduction that sets the stage for some dismal vibes from Callisto that straddle the lines between doom metal and Tool style, dark musical vibes.

The tracks are quite long, giving the band an opportunity to experiment with a lot of dynamic interplay ranging from open sounding breaks that are vast in the breadth of their sonic scope, to slamming dirges that impact the listener with a weighty presence. The impression of “Limb Diasporas” is solemn and grandiose.

The music imparts a melodious tone, even when it launches into a heavy lurch, as the group creates textures of light and shade that make for an emotionally moving listen overall. “Cold Stare” is perhaps the most well rounded tune you’ll discover here, as the band reaches out into a sea of musical depression, resulting in a haunting, epic song that is both intense and harmonious. Rarely do Callisto go for a full on assault, instead, opting to cause aural damage with the arrangements of the material.

“Caverns Of Khafka” lurches into an enormous web of emotions that take the listener up and down a path of huge melodies and thunderous accents designed for a maximum degree of artistic feeling. This release is for those who crave atmosphere overall as Callisto provide plenty of it, and then some. It’s a record that requires the listener to remain focused on the music, as there aren’t really any hooks or simplistic formulations here.

That said, “True Nature Unfolds” is an engaging album which is brimming with forceful, dark harmonies that will certainly be of interest to adventurous listeners who crave music with a large amount of emotional substance and creative, thoughtful song crafting.