Carcolh – Twilight of the Mortals
Release Date: 14th February 2025
Label: Sleeping Church Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Doom
FFO: Candlemass, Cathedral, Paradise Lost.
Review By: Paul Cairney
Twilight of the Mortals is the 3rd album by French doomsters Carcolh. As the band get into their stride, it is noticeable that the album is a massive step forward from their earlier material. This is, by a long way, the best the band have sounded.
The doom on offer is not overtly heavy. Yes, it is slow, methodical and utterly sits within the genre, but there are also some excellent guitar solos, not often seen in the genre. Check out ‘Ashes Are Falling Down’ that offers a bit of air-guitar tomfoolery. The doom is also slightly progressive, especially in the vocal performance of Sebastien Fanton. This helps set the album apart from the norm, which is welcoming. Indeed, the band describe this as being more experimental doom.
The 6 tracks on offer also offer hints of truly great bands influencing the sound. You will hear Judas Priest style riffs – in a doom album! Other bands you may pick out are early Paradise Lost and the doom daddies that are Candlemass and Cathedral. These hints augment the album sound. The Priest style riffage is seriously catchy and does not feel out of place at all in the general concept of the album.
Obviously, being a doom album, we do have some seriously long tracks, with 2 of the 6 on offer landing over 10 minutes long. This often puts non-doom fans off the genre, but it shouldn’t. ‘My Prayers are for Rain’ is a joy to listen to, and it is the 2nd longest track on the album.
Carcolh are not your typical doom band. They are not devastatingly heavy, they do not rely on deep down-tuned riffs nor ropey grunty vocals. They express themselves in the tracks, which ultimately leads to an enjoyable, if not great, album.
(3.5 / 5)
