Not to be confused with any of the three name emo/metalcore newcomers, here's the third full-length for Swedish atmospheric doom merchants, owing much to early ‘90s Yorkshire, England, especially the symphonic strings and spoken word enhanced melancholia of My Dying Bride. Simple, hypnotic repetition on the title cut also recalls the finest moments of Finland's Dark The Suns, a sadly too obscure reference for most. A horse drawn carriage (hearse), in pouring rain, introduces the album, on the nearly eleven minute “Reunited In The Grave”, narrator speaking atop a sobbing female. In fact, most of these tunes exceed the six minute barrier, a closing “The Spirits In The Woods” being the runt of the litter at 3:32. Cello is never far from each composition, often seasoned with piano, as on “While She Sleeps”, which paradoxically raises the tempo, compared to its surroundings. 

“Ghost Story” has the most consistent speed, surprisingly robust and with a little off kilter hitch thrown in. Following the piano ballad “Soil In My Hand”, cooing female vocals courtesy of Inés Vera-Ortiz (from Argentina's Inner Stream), “A Lake Of Frozen Tears” begins with solitary keys, then drops into slow, orchestral string enveloping chug, before the growl kicks in. The band's creative core, Jan Sallander and Peter Laustsen both add vocalizations, although differing styles: forceful bellow and airy clean throat. Crushing, the lead weighted “Drowning In Sorrows”, trades exaggerated, guttural utterances with normal speaking voice.

Mournful, classy, depressive and glorious!