''Monotony Fields'' is the fourth studio album by
Finnish
Finnish may refer to:
* Something or someone from, or related to Finland
* Culture of Finland
* Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland
* Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people
* Finnish cuisine
See also ...
funeral doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other heavy metal genres.K. Kahn-Harris, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'' ...
band
Shape of Despair
Shape of Despair is a funeral doom metal band from Finland.
History
The band was founded in 1995 as ''Raven'' by Jarno Salomaa (guitars, later also keyboards), Tomi Ullgrén (bass, later also guitars) and Toni "Otso" Mäensivu (drums, later als ...
, released on June 15, 2015 by
Season of Mist
Season of Mist is an independent record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pag ...
as
CD digipak and
LP.
It is the first album to feature Henri Koivula on lead vocals. The song "Written in My Scars" was first released on the EP ''Written in My Scars'', but was re-recorded for this album.
Musical style
The album continues the atmospheric funeral doom the band has been playing since their first album ''
Shades of...''. It is described as "melancholic and atmospheric", with "morose guitar lines" and "tragic ambient keyboards".
The
death grunts
A death growl, or simply growl, is an extended vocal technique usually employed in extreme styles of music, particularly in death metal and other extreme subgenres of heavy metal music. Death growl vocals are sometimes criticized for their ...
are "masterfully delivered", the female vocals are "gelid" and "angelic".
Track listing
Personnel
Shape of Despair
* Henri Koivula – vocals
* Natalie Koskinen – vocals
*
Jarno Salomaa
Jarno Salomaa, also credited as J.S,, is a Finnish musician. He formed the funeral doom metal group Shape of Despair in 1995 under the name Raven (not to be confused with the NWOBHM band, Raven). Salomaa's first role was guitars and synth in Ra ...
– guitars & synth
* Tomi Ullgren – guitars
*
Sami Uusitalo
Sami "Tundra" Uusitalo (born 1977) is a bass guitarist best known from the folk metal band Finntroll and the funeral doom band Shape of Despair. He also plays in the folk/doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music tha ...
– bass
* Samu Ruotsalainen – drums
Production
* Max Kostermaa - producer, engineer, mixing
* Mika Jussila - mastering
* Juha Takalo - band logo
* Mariusz Krystew - cover artwork
References
2015 albums
Shape of Despair albums
Season of Mist albums
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