Mournful Congregation - The Monad of Creation (2005)^{Release ID: 3399}

Funeral Doom is extremely suited towards expressing the irresistible nature of elemental phenomena, in the case of Monad Of Creation, the heaving, all-enveloping nature of water in it's myriad forms. The huge, sustained chords and deep, growling vocals move the listener as the tides inevitably move all within the oceans. However, within this massive, immensely powerful background, there are glimpses of light and colour, expressed here as clean guitar work, reminiscent at times of Earth's The Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull and spoken, clean vocals that seem to speak of truths hidden in the depths. Don't misunderstand, this lighter tone still carries a deep and abiding melancholy, as perfectly illustrated in the track When the Weeping Dawn Beheld Its Mortal Thirst, a wholly acoustic song with whispered vocals that hint at the abiding sadness of a forlorn spirit.

This a terrific album, that whilst absolutely conforming to the tenets of funeral doom, offers a variation on the unremittingly crushing monoliths of sound that are more usual representations of the genre. This is exemplified in the final (and best) track, Monad of Creation which segues seamlessly from waves of crushing sonic heaviness that match the best, to mournful, yet clear, ringing guitar work and clean vocals that provide a ray of hope amongst all this bleakness.