Woods of Ypres - Woods 5: Grey Skies & Electric Light (Earache Records)

The Grey Skies are wet with tears; the last recording made with David Gold (RIP) takes on a new, powerful Romantic dimension while still retaining their bitter cynicism and expert musicianship.

There’s a particular twinge of grief that threads itself through this record – of course, the untimely passing of David Gold was as saddening as it was sudden. As he mournfully and sonorously rattled off his desperate words, screaming “Only death is real!” one’s eyes feel pregnant with tears and almost nothing can stem the flow. The heinous crime the Earth has committed in prematurely claiming our dark dreamer only serves to intensify this monochromatic vista of doom metal, like a portrait washed in rivers of hatred and modern bile, dripping with venomous, jarring guitar lines.

Though Sentenced are now merely etchings in our memories, this record could quite rightly serve as the anointed successor to the Northernmost Killers; the uptempo belter Career Suicide (Is Not Real Suicide) is like an answer to their echo left as their caskets creaked shut seven years ago. Bafflingly, our Canadian gloom merchants try their hand at balladry with Alternate Ending sounding a bit like a My Dying Bride-80s New Romantic chimera furnished to the hilt with slow, rising strings; that admittedly works better than it ought to. They attempt – and totally nail – a marriage of 80s Goth and metal with Silver, shuffling beats anchoring a desperate melodious lyricism. Hell, Traveling Alone is probably the closest we'll ever get to another Amesoeurs track, guitar riffs running thick with dark post-punk minimalism and leads as staid as blank expressions.

Neo-baroque guitar touches paired with twinkling keys rule the middle-order as does Gold’s mellifluous baritone; haunting in more ways than one. Lead guitarwork is always a highlight for Woods of Ypres fans, a rock n’ roll swagger is given liberties that would horrify most other traditional doom riff-wraiths none more so on the lachrymose Death is Not an Exit. There’s nothing finer to end with than to play out WoY’s own “2112” – Kiss My Ashes (Goodbye) Parts I and II comprising eleven minutes of concentrated woe, burying headlong into thrash passages and crushingly heavy old school doom; endlessly and powerfully enthralling as Mr. Gold takes his final yearning and unsolemn bow, his voice dominating like the miserable face on the cover as it shadows the skyline with sadness.

Though Gold screams at us "We shouldn’t worship the dead!" over and over in the severe black metal cut Adora Vivos – the Woods of Ypres will still see many a fan supplicate before them in testimony of his incredible talent for one of rock music’s darkest artforms. We will miss you, brother. Thank you for everything.