"Els Sepulcres Blancs," the title of the new album from Spain's FOSCOR translates as "The White Tombs".  It is unknown whether in choosing this name, the band realized its auspicious, deeply revelatory relevance to the material contained within.  As the band occasionally flirts with tropes from its more conservative Black Metal beginnings, particularly in tempos, all the while, its tone does not waver from the organic creamy guitar sound that holds court for all of the other material.  Evidently, FOSCOR is unabashed in their reverence for this more subtle, slightly crunchy sound for ever does the sound become what could be considered "heavy" in any light.  With this being the situation, it is difficult to make the case that FOSCOR is even still anything closely resembling a Metal band.

"Laments" kicks things off with a haunting piano introduction.  It is a very mellow, flowery sound not far from some Goth bands that are enjoyable, but the vibe is one that hard to connect with.  The atmosphere is one that I found unrelatable.  The following track, "Els Color del Silenci," does manage to increase the tempo.  Also, there is a more aggressive approach taken, though the guitar sound is very much unwavering in its refusal to kick the dirt in.  Interestingly, the drums perform some impressive blasts during all of the Zen, feel-good "riffs".

As the record progresses FOSCOR prove to truly be a tough nut to crack.  Though the guitar performance leaves much to be desired, some above average bass playing keeps this from being a total loss.  The bassist is firmly strapped into the driver's seat for the majority of the album.  The third track, "Malson," is an excellent example of this.  While the bass is pumping out eighth notes, the guitars perform simple, slightly fuzzy chords.  The end result for the album as a whole is that it would be more at home in the theater of Alternative Rock, possibly even Emo or some of the stuff that is wrongly labeled Post Hardcore, than around a Metal constituency.

Despite being a fan of many bands that are non-Metal, from Classical to John Zorn, this is an album that I just could not bond with.  It actually felt like I was listening to something outside of my comfort zone.  Sure, the album is done well for what it is, but it ultimately failed to entertain me on any deeper level.