From Bandcamp, “SHADECROWN (founded in 2012) is a melodic death/doom metal band from the heart of Finland. The band consists of Jari Hokka on vocals, Tomi Tikka & Joonas Vesamäki on guitars, Saku Tammelin on keyboards, Janne Salmelin on bass & backing vocals and Kalle Varonen on drums.” The new album has nine songs, and “The Art of Grieving” is first. Out of the gate, it has a thick, somber sound, akin to a band like INSOMNIUM, and there is also a good deal of melody, mostly in the dual guitar leads. The trade off from there is like a push and pull between hardened sounds with gutturals, to sparkling melodies with cleans. “Fragile Chapters” has another power and almost monumental sound, and the band knows how to get the most from the harmonized lead breaks. They really help to temper the naked aggression of the vocals.

“Gone” begins with a  bit of piano, and the sound here is much more despondent. I get the image of someone deep in thought, with regret, perhaps. The gutturals match the music very well. “Zero” is more of a “grab you by the balls and squeeze” type of sound, but again, melody is kept handy. This time, keyboards are also used prominently to accent the gorgeous melodies, and key changes keep you on your toes. “Under the Waves” brings a gentle and depressive melody to the forefront, so fragile that you can lose yourself under its warm embrace. Even the hardened elements, while deep and cavernous, don’t distract from them. Thick bass notes, and clean vocals guitars pepper the landscape, and this is a hell of a song. Let the sound surround and envelop you.

“Inadequate” has more aggressive tones, but the melody is still held high. Like a beacon in the darkness, it shines beneath tones of regret and loss. It’s the kind of sound that energizes you and beholds you to charge forward. “Tear-blind” is a slow wallow in a day of rain that turns to weeks, even months, and that melancholy feeling lingers. Although the vocals are gut-wrenching, the sound soaks in like a grey disease that eats the host over a long period of time. “Repentance” is the final song, and it’s whipped up into a storm of emotions that shift with every key change. I feel a sense of absolution here, as well as a sense of hopelessness. The fact that these two can occupy the same space is a testament to their songwriting ability.

Melodic Death Metal has always thrived in contradiction, and this album stands as a towering example of just how profound that tension can be. It roars with the primal force the genre is known for, but beneath the surface lies something far more nuanced: melody that cuts deep, and somber tones that linger long after the last note fades. t doesn’t soften death metal — it elevates it. The band understands that melody isn’t a compromise, and that sorrow can be as heavy as any riff.  It's time to start mentioning this band with the heavyweights of the genre.