INFIRMUM is a Symphonic Extreme Metal band from Finland. Amazingly, they have eight members fueling their sound. Their latest album here titled “From the Depths I Cried” has seven lengthy songs. “Pact” is first. The sounds is slow, and somewhat grand, and although I like the vocals, they are just a bit pitchy at times. The harsh vocals however bring a layer of Death to the cold sound. As it moves forward, it doesn’t pick up much in the way of steam. Instead, the desolation drags on for weeks, months, even years. “Everlasting” is another slow starter, and minutes later, it never gets off the ground. Doom Metal can be exciting, but this is hard to listen to for me.

“Burn” is the short song on the album, as well as the first single released. Unfortunately, it’s more of the same…a slow sound that doesn’t make any gains in sonority. “Deception” has more energy to the song…a dark, weighted sound that covers more ground. But it still struggles to get off the ground. It’s almost like something is holding them back. “Peace” has some very nice clean tones, and it’s a strong contrast from some of the others. The strings are very sorrowful, but that’s where most of the good ends. They are close to making a breakthrough, but it’s almost as if the fog they brought in is too thick. “Ephemeral” is another slab of concrete that is too thick to break. There is another nice contrast between the somber cleans and the harsh vocals, but it’s just not enough.

“Icamiabas” closes the album, and it’s not much more colorful at all. It paints the entire album as cold, grey, and lifeless, which can be three very good adjectives to describe an album, but here, they just keep the album from coming alive. My summary: The band assembled as an eight-piece, and all of their musicianship should have translated to a lot more sound.  I get and appreciate the drone of Doom Metal, but it can be very exciting to listen to, especially with swells and other subtle shifts. The artwork is fantastic as well. I hate to say that this was a disappointment, but that’s how it felt for me.