In the shadow of Finland's Swallow the Sun, we have Trees of Eternity. A doom metal project with some light influence from both gothic and ambient made up from the lead guitarist/lyricist of Swallow the Sun, Juha Raivio and singer Aleah Stanbridge who herself has done some guest vocal work for STS, and this demo, simply titled "Black Oceans" is a short and sweet release that leaves a great first impression and leaves expectations high for future efforts.
Here we have four tracks that total in just under twenty four minutes. They don't vary much, but then again they really don't have to. Each one is very catchy and easy to get into and remember as well as displays a certain depressed and gloomy atmosphere and puts you in the right state of mind and the right of mood to fully get into it without being bleak. Its very well done, very reminiscent of STS.
Aleah's voice steals the show. I always thought she had a beautiful voice, and here she gives it her all. Her voice is melancholic and very gray, but not at all bored or monotonous. It gives off a strong sense of grief and sadness and has a, I would almost say a ghost like quality to it. It's very haunting and is the main drive behind the demo's emotional punch.
Instrumental work is basic but gets the job done. Guitar work is thick and heavy, with some pretty memorable and emotive riffs, all thanks to Juha who is still an excelent guitarist. The track "Sinking Ships" is the most bare bones track (being an acoustic ballad with just one riff being played over and over again) yet it holds a certain beauty in it's simplicity and repetition, being the most emotional track in my opinion, with duel thanks to Aleah's voice. On the other hand the drums are artificial and they do sound like it. Also they have a tendancy to get buried in the riffs (see "My Requiem") but they work well enough.
A very, very good first effort. Pretty much everything is done right, hindered only by some minor production issues. But other than that, great first impression. Highly recomended to fans of doom.
