Saturnus - Martyre (2000)

Ever a favorite of mine and certainly suitable as I look outside my window and see both leafs falling from trees and rain crying from the heavens above, yes, Saturnus's sophomore album, 'Martyre' hits the spot today.

With a history dating back to '91 and originally formed under the name of Assesino, this Copenhagen, Denmark group eventually known as Saturnus is surely one of if not the first death/doom metal bands to arise from their land. More than likely initially influenced by the usual crowd of the genres stalwarts, by the time Saturnus released 'Martyre' in 2000 they had taken on new influences and had largely established their own sound.

Opening with '7' the listener is greeted by an ethereal two minute choral piece that tends to remind of Tristania's earliest effort, but soon enough it moves into the second song, 'Inflame thy Heart.' A slowly paced song awaits, paired up with both low growls and a more half grunted approach amongst whispered remorse, while lead guitarist Kim Larsen's a bit unexpectedly heavily melodic somber riffs and solo are the absolute highlight of this early song. 'Empty Handed' is another melodious though more mid-paced and slightly more upbeat Gothic metal number and a total foreshadowing of Kim's one off project, The Loveless. The next three songs are certainly similar to the second though there's little nuances that make them different, such as the pace, the vocal approach and various other sprinklings of acoustic guitars, piano, synths and the overall atmosphere that differentiate enough to make them stand out. 'Thou Art Free' is also a notably interesting acoustic piece that yet again foreshadows to Kim's nowadays main band, Of the Wand and the Moon.

Perhaps my favorite song amongst the twelve is 'Drown My Sorrow,' with its overwhelming melancholic beauty and touching words its always been a favorite within the genre, and I'm also quite fond of 'Lost my Way' with its return to the catchy Gothic metal style it feels like a bit of a picker upper after experiencing the misery of the previous song. Generally though all of the songs really do stick out in their own special way and I find little fault within this sixty three minute effort.

'Martyre' was also marked as the last album to feature Kim Larsen and the classic line-up, largely because Kim wasn't given the credit he deserved and was upset over this fact (He wrote the first two albums entirely and 99% of the lyrics), and as previously mentioned embarked on a new project with Saturnus bassist and drummer, Brian and Jesper, called The Loveless, but ultimately that band fell apart and he continued with his magnificent solo work called, Of the Wand and the Moon. In more recent times he's also started Solanaceae, which I haven't heard yet as well he made his death/doom return with Black Wreath in '09.

Saturnus would eventually assemble a new line-up around '04 and release 'Veronika Decides to Die' in '06 and more recently 'Saturn in Ascension' this year, though I haven't heard them nor am I generally interested either. And as such if you're looking for a diverse, melodic, depressing, atmospheric and quite engaging death/doom record than you surely can't go wrong with this classic known as, 'Martyre.'