Summoning "With Doom We Come"

   In the world of atmospheric black, Summoning is without debate one of the most respected and important acts around. Using music to create vivid sounding landscapes that bring Middle Earth and the world of Tolkien to life, Summoning has released album after album of captivating music. “

   The band’s new album, “With Doom We Come,” is another part of Summoning’s epic journey into the world of atmospheric black metal and is an album that continues their legacy in the black metal sub-genre. The band’s first album, “Lugburz,” released in 1995 is a black metal gem and one of my favorites, however, the album is very raw and not as atmospheric as following releases. It is really not until their second album, “Minas Morgul,” that Summoning fully dives into the atmospheric black metal world and truly became an inspiration for so many bands.

   On their 8th studio album, “With Doom We Come,” Summoning continues along the path of epic cinematic sounding fantasy themed atmospheric black metal and creates a unique release that does standout from the other albums in the band’s discography. Compared to some previous albums, I feel like this new release is much more cinematic and the production goes for a very grandiose sound at times. Another area I want to focus on is the vocals and how Protector and Silenius trade of lead vocals throughout the album. I believe the vocals were something I took notice of the most when listening to this album. Although I think both singers do a solid job handling the vocal parts, I tend to prefer the songs with Silenius more than the ones with Protector.

   Out of the eight songs, you will not find any weak tracks, however, there are definitely songs I would recommend over others. The opening song, “Tar-Calion,” is a strong piece of music with thunderous war like drums to start off the album in triumphant fashion. Also, I really like how the guitar builds up this dark sounding mood that compliments the vivid cinematic like atmosphere. The next track, “Silvertine,” is a more bombastic sounding piece and the style of songwriting definitely reminds me of previous Summoning songs that have that majestic atmospheric quality.

   Tracks 3 and 4, “Carcharoth,” and “Herumor,” are two solid tracks and contain these vibrant sounds which create powerful and impressive landscapes for the vocals to narrate over. “Barrow-downs,” the fifth song on the album, is an instrumental song that creates a suspenseful mood which I could see being used to accompany a scene in a movie based on Tolkien’s writings. “Night Fell Behind,” offers a burst of guitar distortion in the beginning of the song and maintains a very consistent sounding tone. My favorite song on the album, “Mirklands,” is a dynamic song with a strong atmosphere and haunting vocals provided by Silenius. I also like how the instruments were layered and it is just a really well produced song.

   To be honest I was not completely sold with the album’s final song, “With Doom I Come,” which was actually the first single off the album. Before the album was released I heard this song and had some reservations mainly due to the vocals and instrumental structure. Now after listening to the entire album and looking at the song as the album’s outro, I understand where the band is coming from and why it is the outro. I think the choir vocals on the song are probably my favorite part and remind me of classic Summoning songs like, “Farewell” and “Land of the Dead.”

   In the end, “With Doom We Come,” is a release that I think fans of atmospheric black metal will appreciate and let their minds escape into a world of endless epic sounding compositions. Sometimes you have to not set expectations too high, which I think I did at first when I heard the first single. After listening to the entire album one cannot deny the high caliber of musicianship and songwriting skills that Summoning has to offer. Just like the one ring to rule them all, Summoning is the one atmospheric black metal band to rule them all.