Coinciding with 35 years since NOVEMBRE original inception under the CATACOMB moniker, and after an extended period of inactivity following the release of 2016's acclaimed "Ursa" album, the newly reinvigorated Italian pioneers of atmospheric doom/death metal return with their most elaborately adorned and sonically refined opus to date in the shape of ninth studio album, "Words of Indigo"  set for release on November 7. The album has eleven songs, and "Sun Magenta" is first. Those signature guitar harmonies of the band are on point from the first few bars. Clean vocals follow, with somber melodies, and then the full scope of the song opens up the skyline. What strikes me most about the song is the warm embrace of melody. The harsh vocals bring another side of their sound…deep and aggressive, but it's like a breath of fresh air.

"Statua" features some varied pacing and has a strong balance between Doom, Death, and Progressive melodies. There is a bit of dissonance at times, but it is immediately counter balanced with melody and clean vocals. It makes me feel like snuggling up with a book and a warm blanket on a lazy Sunday. "Neptunian Hearts" has a more jovial sound from the guitar harmonies, but it still sound like what is reflected in a grey sky. You feel sort of…off, and the feeling stays with you like a stomach ache…just enough to know it's always there. "House of Rain" features clean female vocals, and it's another melancholy song. Carmelo joins her in a duet of sorts, and each of them lament what is in their hearts.

"Brontide" is a thing of beauty, and warm melodies flow like waters move in a gentle brook winding its way through a forest glen. Much of the come from the harmonized clean vocals, and the singing, emotional lead breaks. Following an interlude, "Your Holocene" is next. It sports a gentle melody with just enough weight to let you know what you are listening to. The chorus is particularly well done here…it's hasty and catchy, and the meter shifts are subtle, but they keep you moving throughout the song. "Chiesa Dell`alba" is gentler at first, but emotions swell at times, pushing you to the break, and releasing you before you do. The hardened elements are equally as emotional, including the harsh vocals. One of the things that the album does best is walk hand in hand with these two seemingly competing elements.

"Ipernotte" is a wonderfully melodic gift wrapped in heavy, weighted packing. The atmospheric moments feel just as burdensome, and the song takes you on a journey of both celebration and regret. A scream brings you back down to earth. "Post Poetic" features a melodic sound that will bring you to your knees. The melody is beguiling, teasing, and stays true even through a hot bed of fiery harsh vocals. "Onde" is an instrumental closer, and it carries your heighted sense of wonder back down through the clouds and onto firm ground, leaving you to ask, "was I really just traveling through the stars, or was that all a dream?"

You might expect a band with this longevity to be stale after all of these years, but you would be dead wrong. There's a powerful tension between grace and aggression. The instruments hit with a sense of purpose, the guitars snarl and shimmer in equal measure, and the vocals hover between anguish and awe. Beneath the thick layers of sound lies a strange sense of wonder, as if the band is trying to wrestle meaning from the chaos, to find some fragile light buried deep within the noise. It's the kind of record that just feels alive. The melodies ache, the heaviness hums, and it feels like a meditation on strength through struggle. 35 years later, NOVEMBRE is still killing the game.