Review Summary: What it feels like to be truly alone.
Sometimes a few notes are all you need to get the point across. The minimalist guitar chords that introduce
Tide Turns Eternal immediately invoke feelings of loneliness and grief, trudging along slowly while drenched in reverb. This intro is fittingly titled “Entrance”, and it does an amazing job of setting the stage for the gloomy, funereal experience that doom metal newcomers Dream Unending have laid out for us. Formed by Derrick Vella (Tomb Mold) and Justin DeTore (Innumerable Forms) and releasing their music under famed underground label 20 Buck Spin, the duo have created a piece of work that’s equal parts crushing and dreamlike; several traditional death/doom tropes are present, but there’s just something about the atmosphere and vibe that’s different.
Vella and DeTore seem just as poised to create incredible sonic landscapes as they are to create crushing, brutal doom riffs. Shades of Floydian psych-prog and Cure-esque gothic post-punk seep into the sound quite frequently; the latter is especially evident, whether it be on the melancholic-yet-surrealistic clean guitar work of “The Needful” or the beautifully tragic melodies of “Forgotten Farewell”. Even the most intense moments of
Tide Turns Eternal are usually complemented by some dark or even psychedelic embellishments that flesh out the atmosphere, such as the way the echo-swathed clean guitars hang subtly above the menacing riffs and growls on “In Cipher I Weep”. A similar approach is taken with the title track; even with its heavy double bass-driven passages and monstrous vocals, there are wailing guitar leads in the distance that ensure a strong sense of desolation is maintained even in the most intense moments. To top it off, there are even some despondent female vocals at the end to drive home the overall mood of the record. As for the lyrics, they're your typical doom metal fare; lots of poetic imagery of darkness and loneliness. Here are a few highlights so you can get the picture:
From "Adorned in Lies":
Breathe deceitful dream
Shorn soul
Entangled drear
Solace in fear
So distant
So clear
From the title track:
Grey congruence
Maligned
Rejoined
Spirit like streams
Cries ambrosia
Bright
Behold your shape
The breath of dreams brings light
This is all brought together by the production team of Sean Pearson, Arthur Rizk, and John Powers, who do a wonderful job of capturing the essence of
Tide Turns Eternal. Similar to Pan.Thy.Monium’s bizarre avant-garde metal landmark
Khaooohs and Kon-Fus-Ion, the recording somehow sounds both cavernous and expansive; the clean guitars are very hollow and lifeless (which was likely the band’s aim), and yet the heavier moments of the record still sound very imposing and monolithic. It’s a perfect fit for this kind of music, really evoking the work of more old-school death/doom bands; think Katatonia or Paradise Lost. Still,
Tide Turns Eternal retains a fascinating identity of its own, largely through how Dream Unending bend the barren and dismal atmosphere of the music to their will. It’s amazing how much emotion and raw power one can wring out of such sparse chords and melodies, yet the duo of Derrick Vella and Justin DeTore are damn close to mastering this craft already.
