Lamentos – O Livro Proibido Review

The opening piece, Preldio, featuring the soft flow of water and the rumble of thunder, welcomes the listener with its enchanted sounds of nature the instant they press the play button. Complementing this are calm acoustic tunes and a relaxing flute.

As the audience embarks on their experience with the second track, Entre a Vida e a Morte, along with the other eight pieces that span around fifty-two minutes. They will be immersed in music that resonates with the essence of 90s doom metal. It is infused with the intensity of death metal and melodic death metal. This combination creates a rich, dark, and atmospheric soundscape with melancholy melodies and strong riffs that capture themes of suffering, despair, and introspection.

As the listener gradually immerses deeper into the music, they may discover a hauntingly slow and sombre atmosphere, far from a leisurely stroll and certainly not suitable for moments of despair. This darkly infused fruit of art creation unwinds slowly, creating a feeling of mournfulness that tests one’s innermost anxieties. The eight long tracks, which amount to fifty-two minutes, were written and instrumented with the utmost caution, testifying to an exceptional level of devilmanship. At the helm of this devilmanship is John Silva, who not only plays the instruments but also expertly performs the mixing and mastering tasks.

Lamentos’ album, O Livro Proibido, is shrouded in a production that preserves the gritty essence of classic doom metal while ensuring each instrument is distinctly heard. The listener is best able to recognize the intense emotional impact of the music thanks to this intricate balance. The instrumental structure forges a lush and engulfing sound, slow, heavily distorted guitars have a tendency to intersect mournful melodies with authoritative riffs. The bass lines augment the guitars in the song’s heaviness.

Lamentos’ songs feature intentional, steady rhythmic patterns that complement doom metal’s slow tempos. The dark atmosphere of the compositions comes from the drumming, which is interspersed with short aggressive sections in line with death metal influences. Paulo Brasil, on the other side of this devilmanship, is where vocals mix ethereal clean segments with deep growls sung in Portuguese, expressing themes of anguish, hopelessness, and existential reflection, which speak to the lyrics. The layered vocals enhance the emotional resonance and atmospheric quality of the song.

Lamentos employs ambient textures to enhance their sound, relying largely on traditional doom and death metal elements—guitars, bass, drums, and vocals. A good example of this is the first track, a soundscape instrumental that establishes the dark, mysterious tone of the album. Coupled with other tracks such as Fantasma, it provides ethereal textures and delicate orchestral arrangements, suggesting the use of synthesizers or keyboard effects to create a rich, immersive soundscape.

If you have a passion for slow, sombre, and melancholic tunes, then Lamentos is your perfect match. Dim the lights, turn off all your gadgets, snuggle into your favourite chair, and allow the music to envelop your thoughts in profound despair and sorrow. ‘This album was crafted with immense dedication and reverence for the essence of doom metal as understood by the band.’

The album concludes with the final track, 2020 (A Morte Entre Nós), saying farewell, but leaving a haunting shadow cast over the listener. We want to give a shoutout to Alessandro of Coldwinter, for introducing Lamentos to us and their album O Livro Proibido. Now, we are going to conclude the review by talking about the final three sins and concluding the review.