And then, the Finnish sextet SWALLOW THE SUN is back, coming with their first album by their new label, Century Media. And their breakthrough is a triple studio album, "Songs From The North I, II & III", what at first sight, could be called a masterpiece or a sign of arrogant megalomania. A triple studio album? They have courage and guts, but are these qualities enough to make an outstanding album?

Well, at first, we must make things clear about their musical style. It's a mix of Doom Death Metal with a tender melodic insight, with a very good level of technique and ample use of keyboards. Sometimes more depressive and introspective, sometimes harsh and aggressive with some faster parts, but always excellent. And to be honest, the band's music is extremely experimental in some moments, being not as easy to swallow as some would think, but it's not a problem. Personally, I recommend the dear reader to not think about a musical label to their work, but to hear and be drowned by their excellent work.

The sound quality is a fruit of a hard work done by an immense team of producers, mixers and mastering guys, and their work is excellent. Clearness, weight, instrumental tunes, aggressive and harsh moments' quality, everything is in great shape, nothing is out from its due place on their music. And so, there's no complains about "Songs From the North I, II & III" audio quality.

The three CDs are musically different one from the other.

Disc 1 is called "Gloom", with a more intense and depressive side of their music, mixing aggressive vocals with some whispered and even normal voices, along with very good keyboards and guitar works, as we can hear on "With You Came The Whole Of The World's Tears" (a perfect and giant song, where the contrast of vocals along with very good guitars is excellent), the climatic "10 Silver Bullets" (here, some aggressive touches can be heard, along with a fine work done by drums and bass. But the vocals changes on tunes are very good as well), the sinister and abrasive "Silhouettes", the excellent "The Memory Of Light" (deeply introspective, with some experimental use from guitars along with very good keyboards and a female voice giving a touch of elegance to the song), and the harsh and depressive "Lost & Catatonic".

"Beauty" is the name of the second disc; on this one, the name reflects what you'll find on their songs: beautiful songs in an almost acoustic form, with tender and melodic elements, but the harsh and aggressive side of their music is absent. They don't are as long as the ones from "Gloom". "The Heart Of A Cold White Land" (a fine song, done with clean chords and vocals in the beginning, but soon the entire band starts to play, but don't breaking the tender atmosphere), "Away" (another deeply tender song, with very good guitars and keyboards), the wonderful "Songs From The North" (another one with very good contrast between male and female vocals) and the beautiful instrumental "66°50'N, 28°40'E" can be named as their finest moments on this disc.

Ending, disc three's name is "Despair"; a one truly aggressive, harsh and bitter as those first albums from Doom Death Metal on the beginning of the 90s, even with the use of introspective moments. Here are the longest songs from the entire album, being the oppressive "The Gathering Of Black Moths" (alternating harsh moments with intense and depressive ones, with grunts and screams and a very good work done on bass and drums), the bitter weight of "Empires Of Loneliness", and the funeral procession called "Abandoned By The Light".

"Songs From The North I, II & III" can be a sign of megalomania, indeed, but being honest - they can be this way, because they made a great album!