Scars of Solitude is a new band for me, even if they have been around since 2015. They hail from Finland and play a form of melodic heavy metal. Kind of? Well, they are not that far from gothic metal and you can hear a hint of doom. This band was recommended to me, by a friend from Finland. It can be very hard to find all the bands, that the Finnish underground has, it's huge, and even if they promote very hard...Finland has the most metal bands in the world per capita, with an estimated number of 84.5 metal bands per 100,000 people. And the band/artist in Finland has an overall high quality. But back to Scars of Solitude, the lyrics are deep, we talk about depression, self-destruction, death, and love, and you can hear it in the music. Under Disheartening Skies is a melodic album and very dark album. Let's dive into it.

The first track "Stone" tells you what this band has to offer. Some heavy riffs here, and a great lead melody, Tuomo Laulainen's voice has a gothic touch, that darker voice, and he can deliver emotions. And handle the higher register too. And what I like is, that they have rhythm changes and it works perfectly. And since I love drums, Niki Kuivakangas must have been in more genres of metal, he doesn't play, just to hold a beat, he adds something to it all. And as always, I pick my tracks. "Fomo" is a must-listen track, a more intense, and faster track. Tuomo Laulainen's voice works on the higher register here, and he executes it very comfortably. He adds some distortion and goes back to a more clean voice very easily. This track has an odd-time signature on the drums. Scars of Solitude are good musicians, and I start to wonder why they are not bigger. It happens a lot in one track, Jasper Ranta-Nilkku does amazing work with the lead guitar, and I noticed more than once that they let Lassi Pollari on the bass, create an atmosphere, and like that, can give a band their identity. If I should compare them to any other band. It would be Sentenced.

The track "Luna" is something that carries that legacy, and does it well. "Doors" is an odd track, it has more to do with goth, than metal, but a beautiful song, and the guitar licks ...that is so clever. It feels like I could write something about each song. But to keep it shorter, we go to "Even Angels Will Fall", my favorite track on the album. The track starts with a very melodic riff, and the drums give me a marching feeling, but it comes down to that clinically clear sound of the kick drums. I guess that this song is the hardest to play on the album, so much going on. The track transforms into, a heavy and so beautiful piece. I have learned now that, creating different atmospheres is a signum from this band..and I did not expect that breakdown, so heavy...and such a surprise, the track is simply a statement of how good this band is, and I hear that Tuomo Laulainen's voice connects all the parts in this song, he is the melodic part. The track is technical and a masterpiece. "Void of Hope" is the last track on the album, and it could be the first, the album has such a high level. I would be very surprised if this band did not get bigger. And all the stuff they do, you can listen to the album in the background and hear that it's a great album, or dive into it, listen and get out so much more from it.