Wheel - Preserved in Time

8.5/10

With 'Preserved in Time', Wheel became the most prominent flag bearers for epic doom in 2021

Wheel is a traditional epic doom band from Germany that has been active for over 11 years. ‘Preserved in Time’ is the band’s third full length but what makes this album special is that it’s been picked up by the legendary label in heavy metal, Cruz Del Sur. That piqued my interest as I felt the label might’ve seen some promise out of promoting the band. If not for this, there is a high chance it would have flown under the radar for me. I’m glad it didn’t and I’ll tell you why.

Wheel marries the sounds of epic doom like Candlemass and Solitude Aeturnus, with traditional doom like Trouble. The riffs are slow, heavy and hard hitting. The solid rhythm section when combined with soaring vocals complete the epic doom package. I’m usually a stickler for doom and I can sniff out quality instantly and this album here hits most of my doomy sweet spots.

It’s not all slow, melancholic and dreary with Wheel. The band does mix it up with varying tempos and there are some great mid-paced riff-y heavy metal sections as well. Take for example, the opening track ‘At Night they Came Upon Us’ where the band comes out all guns blazing. It’s not as doomy as I proclaimed but when the chorus and second verse kick in, you’ll hear the epicness in Arkadius’s vocals and the slow melodies, which remind you that you're listening to a doom band. Everything about the music so far sounds very Solitude Aeturnus-esque. ‘When the Shadow Takes Over’ leans more on the mournful side of things. The song tests Arkadius’s melodic range as a vocalist and he passes those tests with flying colors. The singalong chorus is one of the more memorable pieces on the album. ‘She Left in Silence’ was released prior to the album release. It’s the band’s most diverse song which highlights their strengths. This could easily be one of the better epic doom songs to have to been written in the last decade.

The second half of the album felt a bit weaker compared to the first. To me, it seemed to lack the vigor with ‘Aeon of Darkness’ and ‘Hero of the Weak’. These two songs have good choruses but the rest fell a bit flat in my opinion. But luckily, the album closer ‘Daedalus’ wins hard. The song seemed to have incorporated some middle-eastern influence in its intro. Albeit a short lived intro and then the band returns to their regular doomy proceedings.

If I were to break down the album by its vocals and instrumentation, I'd say the guitars were solid in the riffs department and how it amalgamates with everything else to define Wheel's sound. But what I found lacking were interesting guitar solos. It's a personal preference and it would've been the cherry on top for me. The bass and drums hold their own, doing just enough to provide a backbone to the album. Arkadius's vocals are pretty good in my opinion. He'll fall short if everyone compares him to Rob Lowe but I think he does justice to the tunes and plays a big part in making Wheel not sound monotonous. The production and the old school tone will receive appreciative nods from old timers who witnessed the birth of this subgenre in the eighties. As you can tell, the pros outweigh the cons by a stretch.

With 'Preserved in Time', Wheel became the most prominent flag bearers for epic doom in 2021. The album clocks in at a little over forty-eight minutes but it ironically whizzes by quickly. That's always a good sign. I'll admit it's not a perfect album but I do see it challenging a few spots in people's year-end lists. It's memorable enough to be...‘Preserved in Time’. I'll stop with my poor dad-puns now. Go listen to Wheel!

Originally posted on Tempelores.com

Fvneral Fvkk - Carnal Confessions

7/10

This is an album worth listening to and if doom is your cup of tea, you will find segments of this album enjoyable.

I presume I’m not the only one who’d have thought that the band’s name, Fvneral Fvkk, is a bit of a misnomer in the doom metal subgenre. Not one to rely only on my own assumptions, I did a quick google search, which led me to an interview excerpt where the band described that the name was intentionally chosen to be a tad tongue and cheek. I was honestly hoping that someone in the band was a fan of Sadistik Exekution and was paying homage to Fukk. But alas, onwards with the review.

Fvneral Fvkk hail from Germany and play epic doom – a subgenre of doom characterized by powerful melodies and operatic clean vocals. ‘Carnal Confessions’ is the band’s debut full length and prior to this, they had released an EP and a split. If you’re new to the band, as I am, you’ll quickly notice that ‘Carnal Confessions’ has a little theme going on for itself. The album art portrays a boy (possibly) confessing his sins to the priest/pope. And with song titles like ‘Chapel of abuse’, ‘A shadow in the dormitory’, it isn’t difficult to discern that the band sings about the lecherous priests who prey on little boys. Musically, the band plays a melancholic variety of doom which often flirts with slow guitar driven melodies. It’s slow and heavy. The heaviness on the record is brought to you by palm muted guitar riffs, the bass and the drums, all coming together in unison. The clean vocals, while not being overly operatic, suits this style of music.

After several listens, there are three songs that I like to revisit time and again – ‘The Hallowed Leech’ being my favorite among them. From the moment it opens, you’d think the vocals were recorded in an abandoned cathedral. Props to the engineer for the good mix. The main guitar riff that forms the skeleton of the track is chunky and totally headbang-worthy. Sign me up for this sermon right now! ‘To Those in the Grave’ has a beautiful mournful guitar melody. It’s a track that perfectly encapsulates the epic doom genre. On ‘When god is not watching’, the vocals shine through magnificently in the chorus making it the best vocal effort on the album. This track is also the album closer and it’s quite a fitting end to the listening session, ending on a high note.

Fvneral Fvkk will appeal to fans of epic doom masters like Candlemass, Solitude Aeturnus and their ilk. The only difference is that the band has chosen to go with a clean modern production sound. The songs are polished in that regard, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Apart from that, where I found the album lacking was its inconsistency in quality. ‘Carnal Confessions’ has some really good song-writing but the good songs are interspersed with a few monotonous tracks, which can make the entire 48 minute listen a bit tedious.

All in all, I think this is an album worth listening to and if doom is your cup of tea, you will find segments of this album enjoyable. The band definitely shows promise and I’ll be sure to listen to their future releases.

Originally posted on Tempelores.com