Formed in Belgium in 2015, Post-Metal/Sludge/Doom outfit LETHVM present their third full-length album here titled "Winterreise." With this third album, they deeper explore emotions that have always been at the center of the band: anger, melancholy and solitude. Those feelings are articulated using poems from the 19th century written by Wilhelm Müller and already set to music by Franz Schubert in 1827 in the song cycle Winter Journey. These texts have been a great source of inspiration during the composition process and the band wanted to interpret them freely. Every note and every silence is created to transport both musicians as well as listeners during the dark winter." The album has six songs.

"Blank" is the first. It begins with screams, followed by a low and slow bassline that chugs through your consciousness with dissonant tones. There is a tinge of Industrial Metal present as well, in the cold, sterile sound. "Pretence" has desolate clean guitars and vocals, and there is a lot of tension in the background. Any minute, and the song might explode like a bomb. It does. The harsh vocals are tortured screams and the music turns to totally hopeless tones. "Torrents" is any angry affair, and the desolation is about as strong as I have heard. They relax for just a bit, and then return with renewed vigor.

"Carved" is another desperate and raging sound, and the band keeps a balance between these two things with occasional clean tones thrown in. But make no mistake, this is indeed an album about loneliness and hate. It slows, and segues into "Mournful." Man, is that an aptly titled song. Clean vocal harmonies lead off the song, and they sound like they are coming from a funeral. These doleful tones eventually turn to outright anger. Much like the five stages of grief, one will experience them all. The screams become too much at the end. "Night" closes the album. Finally, you are spent from releasing all of your rage, and you settle into a state of acceptance, although still guarded. Acceptance comes at a price however.

Overall, this was a fantastic album that is also very cathartic. The emotions they present are very real, and are presented in a way that anyone can relate to them. We have all had our share of loss and sorrow, and anger, and as they take you on a ride through all of these emotions, you will come out scarred at the end. Make sure you go into this listening experience with all of your wits about you, because you will need them to trudge through and not be consumed.