Skepticism - Stormcrowfeet [Svart Records - 2018]Originally released back in 1995 Stormcrowfeet was the majestic, grand & epic debut album from key Finnish Funeral doom band Skepticism. Here on Svart records we get a much-needed reissue of the album- featuring a brand new remastering from the original master tapes, and coming in three different formats double vinyl, transparent red vinyl & CD- this is the first time this album has had a vinyl pressing. The four-piece band originate from Riihimäki- which is in southern Finland. They started their recording career in 1992 with the two track single Towards My End- which saw them offering up a slightly muddled blend between grand-mid pace doom & at times slurred death metal. Next They put out 1994 demo Aeothe Kaear, which saw the addition of Eero Pöyry & his epic, arcane & melodic keyboard work. And with this, the bands sound slowed to a mostly grand & dense funereal like crawl with stretched & guttural vocals over the top. By the time they released their full length in 1995, the band had somewhat smothered out the grimmer & dungeon like edges of their sound to create deeper & more epic song craft.
Stormcrowfeet takes in six full-length tracks- each lasting between seven & twelve minutes, and a minute & a half outro track. And from it’s opening moments, to it’s simmering & marching finale- the album is soaked in grand & majestic doom. Each of the tracks see a thick blend of simmering keyboards, moody & marching drum work, and grand guttural vocal- the guitar is present in the sound, but it's often used more as meaty & wall like tone, which enhances the somber & bleak grandeur of three tear doomed march of keyboards, drums, and vocals. Sonically the keyboards move from dense & ornate church organ like weaves, though to simmering & amassed horn like climbs, onto morbidly regal & majestic string marches.
The albums just under hours runtime seems perfectly paced & balanced for both the feeling of somber fading grandeur & hard fought majestic battles. With each of the six tracks offering up their own bleakly grand melodies & dramatic mood- yet all the tracks feed in together to create the epic flow of the whole album.
Stormcrowfeet is a true classic of not just the funeral doom sub-genre, but the wider doom genre, and it’s been out of print for far too long. So it’s great to get this reissue- in both vinyl & CD forms from Svart Records. Roger Batty
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