Vuolla – Blood. Stone. Sun. Down. (2016)

Hailing from Finland, today we have the promising debut release “Blood. Stone. Sun. Down.” of melancholic outfit Vuolla. Perfectly blending elements of Gothic/Death Doom with melancholic Depressive Rock, this band manages to deliver over 60 minutes of truly emotive music. Focusing on crafting lush melancholic songs, the band will surely appeal to all fans of bands like Katatonia, Draconian, and everything in between.

Opening with the super bleak intro to “Death Incredible”, the band instantly reminded us of Svarti Loghin. This song nicely transitions into a more straightforward Gothic Doom piece perfectly blending Kati Hämäläinen’s vocals and keyboards with powerful Doom riffs. In a more traditional Gothic Doom fashion, the disarming “Emperor” is one hell of a rollercoaster ride which features a brilliant atmospheric passage around the 4 minute mark that will instantly get you hooked into the band’s sound.

The Draconian/My Drying Bride influences are quite high with “Chambers to Fill With Longing” and the brilliant “Rain Garden”. Our favorite track in this album is the completely depressive “Shadow Layer”, where the tempo perfectly evolves with the atmospheric nature of this song. One of the strengths of the band is their ability to craft very emotionally powerful and diverse tracks while avoiding the typical repetitiveness of the genres they are influenced by.

Continuing their riffing onslaught, tracks like “Rivers in Me” and “Film” perfectly balance crushing Doom riffs with the fragile nature of the band’s atmospheric keyboards and Kati’s vocals. The growls do a great job in rounding things up and keeping the contrast between the male and female vocals. Closing with the hypnotic “Quite Cold”, the band left us quite impressed with their musical direction and brilliant execution. If you are looking for atmospheric/melancholic music with fresh ideas, look no further and pick up a copy of “Blood. Stone. Sun. Down.”.

Label: Schwarzdorn Production

Release: June 3rd, 2016

Genre: Gothic/Death Doom Metal / Depressive Rock

Country: Finland