Bearing the name of a word that means "great trouble or suffering," Sweden's own TRIBULATION have established their music as a sound that expresses that very concept. Their third and latest full-length album "The Children of the Night" carries the dark torch of that sound, blending Rock elements with the bleakness of Black Metal. Having seen this band live on tour with BEHEMOTH, AEON, and CANNIBAL CORPSE in March 2015, I can say that not only is their music on the bleak side, but with the use of corpse paint and what I would describe as gothic attire, their on-stage presentation matches the waves of melancholy emanating from the instruments and vocals. All of which were pretty good and not very much like anything I had heard before. Having experienced their music firsthand with some of the songs from this album being played, I was excited to have the opportunity to listen to the new album from a studio-recorded perspective.

And it did not disappoint!

Despite not being much of a Black Metal fan, I greatly enjoyed the soft aggression portrayed by the style in each of the songs on "Children." The vocals of Johannes Andersson are traditional in the realm of Black Metal, being growly and somewhat recessed in a way that blends the words with the instrumentation. This album has somewhat of an atmospheric element to it as well, with the gain on the distortion being on the low end of the scale and plenty of reverb.

This album is somewhat haunting and enigmatic. "Winds" is especially mysterious, giving me the impression that I am transcending the realm of the living and flying through a nether realm of space and darkness. It has the same slow, melodic power as the rest of the album. Despite the sonic depression, there is a certain beauty present amidst the turmoil. "Sj Laflykt" has somewhat of a Rockabilly rhythm to it at times mixed with somewhat of a PINK FLOYD feel, all without a vocal tracking. That is definitely something I was not expecting and I think very highly of a band that can blend that many different elements into a song that seems to flow so naturally.

One of the most progressive and upbeat songs on the album was the strangely-titled "The Motherhood of God." The solo is pretty great and the ending reminds me of a guitar lick you'd hear on an IRON MAIDEN track. I believe it serves as a healthy contrast to the dramatic overtone present on most of the rest of the album. You'd have to hear it for yourself to understand!

There is a definite sense of the level of musicianship present with the guys in TRIBULATION and they are obviously good enough to be picked to tour with the big names I mentioned earlier. Everything gels nicely from song to song and if a listener wants some mellow, but impressive and heavy music, then "The Children of the Night" would be an easily recommendable album, not to mention the fact that if you have the chance to see this band perform live, then it is definitely worth the trip. TRIBULATION's name means suffering, but your ears will be thanking you for it!