Forgotten Tomb – Songs To Leave (2002)

November 6, 2023

Over the last few months, this debut record from Forgotten Tomb has cemented itself as one of my favourite records in the “DSBM” style. Possessing a crisp, clean production which is the exact opposite of what I look for in my black metal, Songs To Leave is part horrifying / scary and part achingly beautiful. Such is the fragile balance that music in this style is attempting to tread, I suppose.

I was going to report to some stand out songs but after putting this record on one more time to refresh myself, I found myself listening to the whole thing in one go and just loving the whole experience. The whole record flows beautifully, and I don’t know if it’s my imagination and that I’m going into some sort of low-key trance state, but there seems to be reoccuring motifs, or at least thematically similar riffs, that pull these epic tracks together into one coherent 50 minute experience.

Truly, excellent stuff.