Solitude Aeturnus - Into The Depths Of Sorrow (1991)

Solitude Aeturnus really got my back up back in the day. I guess it wasn't their fault after all I'd been used to hearing the monolithic slabs from Candlemass, Cathedral, St Vitus, pentagram etc. Maybe it was Robert Lowe's vocals, were they just too pure for a doom band ? Well, lookng back I think I was pretty narsh on these US doomsters and am more than happy to go back on myself and say that 'Into The Depths...' is a pretty solid doom metal record, hardened by the fantastic guitar work, even if I'm still slightly unsure by Lowe's mournful cries which don't seem forlorn enough for me, but even so, a cut like 'Mirror Of Sorrow' is still pretty epic, riffs - cumbersome - cascading down like fog over those crystal wails, whilst the eight minute 'Transcending Sentinels' is divine in its craftmanship, beginning as a swaying autumnal tree before stepping headlong into a dark haze of gloom. 'Destiny Falls To Ruin' continues the sombre stare, but again I'm slightly put off by the vocal caress, but hey, ya can't please everyone, but if you are a big fan of doom metal then I'm sure you'll find 'Into The Depths...' rewarding, but for me those depths are not sorrowful as they could have been. 7/10