LISTLESS is a one-man Depressive Black Metal band hailing from Canada. Formed recently, they present their self-titled debut album here. The project aims to capture an isolated sense of solitude through melancholic introspection. Emotionally resonant guitars, desperate howls, and sorrowful keys aim to hypnotize listeners into a dark, endless oblivion. The album has seven songs, and “Devoid” is first. It pushes slow, melancholy tones that sink in to your skin like a cold rain. The vocals aren’t overly shrieky either, they are more like whispers from someone who is already half dead. “Burning Sky” had more energy from a fast-moving riff and tortured vocal screams. The main riff is discernable also, not that wall of sound we often here in the genre.

“Bloodstained Memories” begins with clean, solemn tones, that segue into a song that has more melody, and just a fleeting sense of hope buried within the cavernous walls. The clean vocals bring more melancholy to the song, and they are used very effectively. “Futility” has deeply depressive tones, and in the background, you can hear a couple arguing loudly. Combined with the elements of the song, you have something that just makes you feel awful. “Absence” moves slowly, like a snowstorm falling lightly in a frozen tundra of a land. All you can do is just watch it fall. The tones vary from anger to despair from there. “Passerine” is another energy-fueled song from a riff that is tinged with hope. Even the clean vocals offer a sense of promise.

“A Final Yearning Breath” closes the album, and the clean guitar tones hold hope in their arms like a fragile glass decoration…the slightest movement might result in it breaking into pieces. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the album, and it offered more than many other Black Metal deliveries. Sure, the firm, aggressive tones are there, but so are softer, more pensive tones. Add these two with a sweeping sense of despair, and you get an album that is steep in regret as it is in anger.