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Fires in the Distance - Air Not Meant for Us

It has been a full month since the last sighting of this column.  In that time, I've listened to scads of music, but usually, there will be a couple of records that stand out from the pack.  That's just the nature of things.  Your listening rotation probably operates in the same manner.  My May has been saturated with what I consider to be "autumn metal."  Fires in the Distance write songs about leaves and idiopathic despair, as illustrated in the track "Idiopathic Despair."  They monopolize the realm of melodic doom/death, a subgenre I know inside and out.

One could argue that 2023's Air (not to be confused with that Nike movie) relies too heavily on a lumbering gait.  And yeah, the tempo could stand to be kicked up a few notches, but this is doom.  That's what doom does.  Tack on a multitude of majestic guitar solos and you've got yourself a righteous album.  Favorite tune?  I'll go with "Psalm of the Merciless."

Redemption - Snowfall on Judgment Day

I love progressive power metal.  Can't get enough of the stuff.  I found Redemption through then-frontman Ray Alder, a throat you may know from Fates Warning.  This guy is steadfastly becoming one of my favorite vocalists.  Dude can write a chorus like nobody's business.  Apparently, this project now employs Tom Englund of Evergrey fame.  As an aside, I suppose you could slot Evergrey into the same bracket.  I dig them, too.  Anyway, Snowfall was Redemption's fourth long player.  It came out in 2009, and I can't believe I missed it.  The musicianship is preeminent.  Listen to "Walls" and tell me those aren't powerful melodies.  You simply can't!  Favorite tune?  I mean, "Walls," but listen to all of them.