RUINS OF ETERNITY - RUSSIA

Руины вечности – Шёпот забытых холмов - SATANATH  
Translated into Ruins Of Eternity with a debut full-length called The Whispers Of Forgotten Hills this Russian band is a Septet featuring Evgenia Antsiferova on keyboards and violins and Roman Nasibov on keyboards, plus the usual complement of two guitarists, a bassist, a drummer and Pavel Mayboroda on vocals. As with the band and album name all lyrics are in Russian as well. Eight songs start with brief pianos and then somewhat heavy music mixed with so-called harsh vocals. The band is labeled as melodic death doom. Perhaps there are a few elements of the aforementioned description here, for example some of the second song, Брест. A hint or two of Fleshgod Apocalypse to be heard in the overall style of Шёпот забытых холмов. Melancholic gothic might be more apt at few other times. Violins make a loud appearance on Кто будет первым?! Female vocals do the same at the beginning of Танк. This song, much like some of the rest, is all over the place heaviness-wise. The band alternates between the uses of the extra instruments and keep trying to make songs both heavy and not. The six-minute long Для тех, кто потерялся на этой войне has a heavy start but unsurprisingly brings in the violins too. The gothic style is present in the middle of the six minutes. Шёпот забытых холмов is not consistently heavy enough to appeal to all metal fans, and likely not melodic enough for others. Some bands have made the mix work but can every band? – Anna Tergel