Sorrowful Land - Where The Sullen Waters Flow (Digital EP)

Review
Sick and Destroy
8/10
08.02.2018

Second band from Ukraine for today, cool! In spite of previously reviewed Bergrizen – Sorrowful Land is completely another kind of music.

Sorrowful Land is a doom/death one-man project out of Ukraine’s homecity of Drudkh and many more worth bands our of the country. I’m always curious about one-man projects because they are differs, some may be shitty and some may be awesome. What can I say about Sorrowful Land is Max Molodtsov makes decent job with his rpoject! “Where The Sullen Waters Flow” drove me back into ’90s doom/death metal when My Dying Bride and Anathema released killer albums within the chosen genre.

Sorrowful Land have everything for your doom metal needs! Tragic atmosphere, catching guitars, good growls and freezing guitar solos. The songs built with all necessary tunes such like slow-downs, break-downs and mid-tempos. Certainly powerful EP-album made by huge fan of doom/death metal for the likes. I hope Max will find permanent members and will start to play live.

Classical doom/death metal, worth for attention, that’s all I can say in conclusion.

Review
Necromance
8/10
09.01.2018

Desde Ucrania, nos llega el nuevo Ep de SORROWFUL LAND, “Where The Sullen Waters Flow”, editado a través de Solitude Records. Este es otro de esos proyectos solitarios que tanto nos gustan, en concreto tras este se esconde Max Molodtsov, encargado de todos los instrumentos, letras, voces y concepto, para traernos un doom metal atmosférico y melódico de mucha calidad con toques a SHAPE OF DESPAIR, EVOKEN, COLOSSEUM…

El triunvirato lo abre “As I Behold Them Once Again”, y lo hace de una forma clásica, con unos riffs pesados pero muy contundentes, un sonido que echaba de menos, mientras que Max juega con los sentimientos y emociones cambiando las tonalidades de su voz desde el susurro hasta la narración, pero dejándonos unos guturales muy marcados, que son marca de la casa y que recrean ese toque taciturno y doom de la vieja escuela. Destaca también las melodías tan épicas y melancólicas que te llevaran hacia un sueño repleto de goticismo, a lo largo de sus más de diez minutos de duración. Pero en “Where The Sullen Waters Flow”, le da un toque más orquestal e incentiva esa nostalgia, aunque los ritmos siguen siendo doom, introduce elementos como violines, una guitarra limpia y muy onírica, que se entremezcla entre lamentos y susurros para crear una nostalgia eterna con toque muy a lo MY DYING BRIDE.

“The Night Is Darkening Around Me”, cierra este corto pero intenso Ep, con el que posiblemente sea el corte más doom del álbum, que cabalga lento y pesado entre melodías muy ambientales, trasladándonos hacia un tema donde las guitarras tienen un toque especial y acompañan a Max en un estribillo mágico, personalmente el mejor tema del Ep, sin desmerecer a las otras dos, pero esta guarda una fuerza y una emotividad que va más allá y crece a medida que transcurren los minutos, un temazo.

Gran trabajo han realizado con este corto Ep el señor Max Molodtsov, bajo su proyecto SORROWFUL LAND, el cual no deberían pasar ningún amante del doom melancólico y poderoso.

Author: Juan Angel Martos

Review
Terra Relicta
9/10
25.12.2017

Ukraine’s atmospheric doom/death one-man band Sorrowful Land is back with a new EP entitled Where The Sullen Waters Flow and if you ask me I’d take this any day over the new so very hipped Bell Witch album. Sorrowful Land initiated the ears of the listeners with the in 2016 released debut album Of Ruins…, a strong melodic and very melancholic solid death/doom record that is sure to please just about any doom fan. Now one year later they return with a strong effort, maybe even stronger than was their debut album, a three track EP featuring some fascinating heavy, slow, utterly melancholic and dramatic piece of music.

With epic melodies and slow chord progression Ukraininan musican Max Molodtsov manges to take the listener away into the vast atmosphere of their music, it’s like an everlasting journey into the depths of abyss. Much alike to the debut album the song structures remain fairly untouched which can be a good and a bad thing for some bands, but in this case its signature sounds almost perfect and it works out great. With great slowly waveing captivating melodies, great atmospheric synths, powerful rhythms when necessary and dynamic vocals, that range from deep brutal ones to clean and dramatic spoken ones, Sorrowful Land delivers one stunning piece of doleful but sweet darkness. On the emotional level is something similar in mood to what we were used to hear from My Dying Bride.

With a running time of around 30 minutes you don’t need to listen too long to understand why this EP is gonna be a doom hit in last weeks of 2017. The songs are lengthy but not boring at all, between 9-10 minutes and it dosen’t matter when the music created is done so well. Much like the latest Evadne album Sorrowful Land stands right there on top of their game with bands like Saturnus, Doom:VS, When Nothing Remains, Vanha,… but still bringing their own game to the fields.

Both 2016 and 2017 have been filled with amazing doom/death records and it makes sense in a way that this dark beauty was released now, as the darker time of the year is here! If you are into the more atmospheric doom or death metal then this band is really up your alley, and it deserves every listen you give it cause it’s a strong EP as it can be. It might sound cheesy to praise it this high but from a personal perspective it’s just a brilliant release that should really be taken into account when looking for good music in 2017.

Author: Oliver

Review
Antichrist Magazine
8.5/10
19.12.2017

Sorrowful Land figure among the growing Ukrainian doom community, impressing plenty of knowledgeable observers with last year’s debut album release Of Ruins… This three-track EP builds on those firm foundations and once again Sorrowful Land have spread their moving cloak of melancholy to sublime effect.

What is not immediately apparent is that Sorrowful Land, like the much-heralded Ukraine demon Drudkh, is a solo project – this one nurtured by the highly capable hands of Max Molodtsov, who also performs with Edenian.

Initially Max was partnered by Swedish artist Peter Laustsen (When Nothing Remains, Nox Aurea) with Peter taking care of clean vocals on their demo release in 2014. Peter left at the start of 2016 and so did not contribute to the debut album. While live performances always present a challenge, in the studio the one-man project becomes less of a hurdle.

‘As I Behold Them Once Again’ is the first and longest of the tumultuous triumvirate that make up this EP at just over 10 minutes. The guitars are given license to paint pictures as vividly as a budding artist while the timing and execution of the sullen grooves helps build and maintain momentum throughout.

Vocally the style is akin to Aaron Stainthorpe from My Dying Bride and Sorrowful Land walk the same beleaguered and barren lands as the UK’s esteemed doom giants. While the first half of ‘As I Behold Them Once Again’ is quite determined in its tempo this is interrupted by an ambient mid-song pause before the wheels again start to turn and the heartfelt strips of melody pour forth once more.

The middle title track is laced with a gently gyrating groove which acts as a transcendental contrast to Max’s deathly growls. The psychological noose is pulled ever tighter as Sorrowful Land ratchet up the tension with a slowly building orchestral flourish.

‘The Night is Darkening Around Me’ is the darkest of the three tracks, oozing melancholy through every sombre note and guttural emission. It’s a gut-wrenching doom monologue that brings this excellent release to a gratifying end, albeit one with a heavy heart.

Author: Paul Castles