I am guessing the title here refers to being so beaten down by life the only way of coping with it is being euphoric. A way of dealing with hopeless anxiety before the crash down at the other side. Seems like perfect subject matter for French act Mourning Dawn who have been crafting misery since 2002. The last time I caught up with them was on EP Waste, a really interesting experience that was too with 2 songs both at the 25-minute mark with them layered on top of each other to create a 3rd. I missed The Dead Years, their last album via Pest Productions unfortunately in 2017 but fast forward 5 years and here we are with a new album via Aesthetic Death.

Naturally this is an epic listening experience and things are not done by half measures here. The album has 6 weighty numbers and clocks in at just shy of 70 minutes but we would not have expected anything short from these masters of atmospheric doom. Indeed ‘Dawn Of Doom’ is the first slab drawing us in with highly melodic guitar work and mighty roars to its sombre domain by these “ones that hate the day.” One thing that always impresses about this lot are the expressive vocals of Laurent Chaulet. He really hits both ranges of gruff and clean with aplomb and elongates his verse in both English and French giving the gravitas needed to match the music. That in itself is again exceptional here and clings to the listener with its melodic textures that have you revelling in melancholic gloom and smiling as despite the dead-beat vibes there is plenty of warmth in the playing. Reverting to English we watch someone’s life not so much as flash by but crawl away through time, the message that is given is that they are ‘Never Too Old To Die.’ It’s never too late are the words snapping at their heels and the band appear to be slowly stalking them towards the grave narratively. Musically and theme wise it’s the sort of thing I would expect from a band like Forgotten Tomb although they would probably adopt a more sardonic fashion and here it seems deadly earnest. The anguished vocals really hit the spot and bring the grimness to life; or should that be death? The title track has staccato riffs and backing chants building with a sense of grandiosity although it is a short number by the band’s standards. By now one thing is apparent though, there are no big surges here so far, the rudiments of death are not at the forefront stylistically and it is a slower crushing atmosphere that is all about the beauty in the melodies that is at the forefront of the shimmering music. It draws in like a moth to a flame and bathes you in numbness, solitude and isolation and is most definitely a listening experience one should take by themselves without any form of interruption.

It may seem early for a ‘Conclusion’ and here we get the album taking a bit of a gallop before simmering back down and oozing out some strange guitar work that would not be out of place on an Esoteric track. Everything leads to the album’s anchor though, ‘The Five Steps To Death’ a monumental track which no doubt refers to the Kubler-Ross Model based on her 1969 book on death and dying and taking in the stages of Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance. Massive in every way this is a number to really lose yourself in. Sounding as though we are in the midst of an ancient funerary rite there’s a near shamanic vibe about this at first leaving the listener feeling like a voyeur watching the practices of an ancient civilisation. But the inevitability of death is something we all have to face and there is some relief here in the form of a lovely acoustic guitar interlude. It sounds a bit Opethian and provides a heavy bass line into proceedings as well as some spoken French parts full of sorrow reflected upon by someone “above the pain of a dying scene.” Its heavy stuff in every sense and a trembling melody that is reminiscent of a band like November’s Doom at their best entwines around things as we fly off to the departure of wherever death takes us but with all the painful time it takes for the suffering to finally end, which it certainly does not do here in any respect. It’s a fascinating track no doubt composed with the respect of people who have witnessed those they love going on their ultimate journey. And that leaves us with ‘Adieu’ a goodbye for now but hopefully not for ever as far as Mourning Dawn are concerned. They have taken us on a fascinating journey here make no mistake and there is an utmost sense of honesty about what they have achieved, making this an essential and engrossing dark opus.

(8.5/10 Pete Woods)

https://www.facebook.com/MourningDawn

https://mourningdawn.bandcamp.com/album/dead-end-euphoria

https://www.aestheticdeath.com/releases.php?mode=singleitem&albumid=4869