SECOND TO SUN is a metal band from Saint Petersburg, Russia, founded in 2012 by its guitarist Vladimir Lehtinen. They concentrate on the musical and creative aspect more to give more depth and back story to the music. The band's music contains blend of metal genres: on the one hand, it has the many rhythmic elements of groove metal; on the other hand, it continues the legacy of such classic Scandinavian black metal bands as EMPEROR, MAYHEM, and DARKTHRONE. Such diverse musical roots of the band protrude from Vladimir Lehtinen's songwriting, Gleb Sysoev's soul-crushing vocals and Fedor Borovsky's groovy drum lines. The band releases two versions of each album - the vocal and the instrumental one. Each individual instrumental composition is accompanied by unique artwork and a hefty description of the story the composition tells, which provides a deeper insight into the music, as well as the band's inspiration and creative process.

SECOND TO SUN are presenting their third album here titled "Walk," which contains ten tracks. "We are not Alone" leads off the album, with a mesmerizing riff repeated over and over again. The vocals are raging utterances, somewhere under the umbrella of Black Metal. The entirety of the pieces sounds very desolate. "Black Lines" brings more of the same raw filthiness to the table, with a bit of melody rounding it out. The track is absolutely harrowing...like you are descending deeper and deeper into darkness that you cannot escape, but the brief moments of melody bring you back. "Home" opens with an eerie feeling. It's bleak and full of despair. Little snippets of ambient melody really add to the track, keeping it from teetering over the edge. About half way through, keys enter the fray along with brief spoken words. The great thing here is that you cannot tell if it is innocuous or coming fully for your throat.

"From Outer Space" definitely hears you pondering your reason for being here on Earth. Gentle keyboard tones set a somber mood as you reach to the far recesses of your consciousness. If you ponder it for too long, you could go mad. "The Train 1702" opens with a train horn being discharged and some dissonance in the main riff. From there, the vocals have a bit of a cadence to them through the end. "The Owls" is a hard and deep rooted track with a slow grind that wears on you over time. Owls are indicative of deep, dark forests, the night, and, and of intelligence. The song is reflective of a walk into a forest that you might not come back from. You are endlessly wandering in the dark, as the forest becomes overgrown and you lose you sense of direction.

"New World Order" open with some scary electronica...a warning sign of sorts. Blast beats abound and the vocals don't let up. The strange sequence just after the half-way mark sounds like the rising of a new world that is rather quickly squashed by the darkness. It ends with the same warning sounds from the beginning. "To Live" opens with some light piano notes and the swirling of the wind, leading to a heavy and aggressive riff that you can really get behind. "We are Alone" is the conclusion tale of the album. The droning and hopeless tones bring this fantastic album to a close. Overall, I can't help get the feeling that these tracks are tied together in some sort of concept. The concept boils down to all life being in vain. Starting with "We are not Alone," and then ending in "We are Alone" is the key here. Dejected and angry tones roll throughout, and when that voice inside you keeps telling you that there is really nothing here for you, you finally listen, and take that walk into the forest...