I think every metalhead needs an obscure Pagan Folk artist whose darkness they can escape into to find respite from whatever vexes them, you know, the kind of darkness that heals. And even if you're not disposed to regularly sink into that type of introspection, New Year's Day tends to trigger it. There's something about that Saturnine milestone that evokes a type of soul-searching, an impulse to think upon what you have left behind, what lies before you, and what resides within you.

Just in time for this brooding season, FOREVER AUTUMN is releasing their seventh album, "The Lamentations" on January 3, 2026. The album is Autumn Ni Dubhghaill's most stirring release to date, and not just in the emotional or sentimental sense but in a raw and visceral sense as well.  While all tracks are acoustic, their mood and melody ranges from melancholic and sanguine to eerily buoyant and triumphant.   

Since 2008, FOREVER AUTUMN has released seven albums (five full lengths; two EPs). On most of them, Autumn has partnered with one or two other musicians. With "The Lamentations" we see Autumn taking up all the instruments and vocals. This includes the cello. I have said it before, the cello is the most metal of all traditional orchestral instruments. Think Tira Guo or Jo Quail. In "The Lamentations," Autumn coaxes from the cello a mournful yet poignant resonance which haunts the album's tracks and impresses its dark essence upon all who hear it.  

One of the things that makes this album stand out so much is Autumn's oscillating vocals from clean to harsh . . . and not in your typical way. Autumn's guttural vocal styling is more witch-in-the-woodlands-dark than mad-banshee-in-the-cellar. In a bizarre way, when Autumn screeches it is almost soothing. Her guitar playing has also taken on a more atmospheric pitch and cadence. And when coupled with her cello performance, well, it becomes mesmerizing. 

Lots of very strong tracks on this album, starting, of course, with the opening track, "Beltaine," which captures the entire essence of the album. I'll also call particular note to "Self-Portrait in Blue, Black and Grey" which reflects in music what album artwork (also by Autumn) visually communes. The track is as raw and deep as a persistent bruise, the type that penetrates through to the bone. There is a longing and resolve to this track that stings. Almost polar opposite we have "Fylgia and the Fetch" which promo material aptly describes as "an elemental and haunting vocal performance, this acoustic rendering of black metal is stunning." Where "Self-Portrait in Blue, Black and Grey" seems to absorb a wound, "Fylgia and the Fetch" renders one.

On the 'so different, it's genius' scale, "Epoch" takes the prize. This is just Autumn whispering with the intensity of a curse to the unrelenting tempo of sonorous percussion. Very simple, very effective.

The requisite heart-breaking track is "The Black Candle," which just strums your soul. And last on my list, as well as the album, is the gritty, all too real "The Salt of Mortality." The guitar work on this track is spellbinding, and Autumn's vocals are like an invocation of silence and pain across a lake of ice.

Altogether, "The Lamentations" is a stunning piece of dark art from our mistress of the woodland. Perfect album to end one year and to begin another, filled with equal measures of remorse and promise.