Review Summary: Magic and Mayhem
Judging by their excellent career to date, and in particular their last two stellar (but underappreciated) LPs, approaching In Mourning’s seventh full length with no trepidation was easy. It was clear In Mourning were on an upward trajectory and new record “The Immortal” was brimming with potential.
For a band I’m thoroughly familiar with, a funny habit I’ve started is playing the previous album closer into the opener of the new one and it often reveals a fascinating transition of eras. “Beyond Thunder” of 2021’s “The Bleeding Veil” is solid Mourning, but it belies the growth to come with “The Immortal”. The opening instrumental title track immediately strikes a darker tone and the melancholy already starts to set in.
In Mourning sit as an elixir of melodic death metal having metal chops blend beautifully with progressive songcraft with an overall sense of melody and melancholy, a vessel of magic and mayhem. Anyone who has enjoyed Dark Tranquillity, Insomnium or Be’lakor best be checking “The Immortal”. Early highlight “Silver Crescent” weaves from urgent riffing to the first cleanly sung lament with a scenic detour before returning to the urgent riffing. Second single “Song of the Cranes” reminds of a fellow Swedish act called Aktaion and their song “March of the Walrus” with its syncopated grooves but the former is ultimately a more expansive venture. For a band always in mourning they can certainly pen emotive music as found in “As Long as the Twilight Stays” that is both reflective and uplifting as a necessary trade off for parties both sides of the stage.
For a scene flush with melancholic melodeath acts, ln Mourning are Sweden’s equivalent of Norway’s In Vain, that sweet spot of aggressive, depressive and progressive that has such a spiritual home in the Nordic circle. And like In Vain’s 2024 “Solemn”, In Mourning sound energized and inspired with lush songs like “The Sojourner” before the more pensive “Moonless Sky” where the ever present Tobias Netzell paints a vivid picture, a promise to his family of a home safe deep in the wilderness away from the chaos. The respite is broken by an incursion in the early stages of “Staghorn” which fleshes out to another booming progressive melodeath track but with the customary late cleans that add crucial intrigue to their music.
This is a band united and fully connected with each other as evidenced in the exquisite “North Star”, a band creating a distinct atmosphere and duly at the top of their creative powers. “The Immortal” doesn’t waste a second, right down the extended closer “The Hounding”, a statement not of intent but of ascent.
