This Finnish melodic doom outfit - essentially a one-man project revolving around former Before The Dawn and Final Harvest mainman Tuomas Saukkonen - have somehow managed to make very little impact outside their homeland, despite producing what are regarded by many cognoscenti in underground circles as two of the best examples of the genre to emerge in recent years.

Hopefully that is all about to change, with the worldwide release of this, the third full length opus - especially given the weight of a highly respected German record company and promotional network behind them.

Saukkonen's previous releases very much drew their inspiration from nature, and particularly the long dark Finnish winters, and inevitably were very gloomy affairs. However, as this outing's title suggests, this is a more optimistic tome, drawing more on the musician's personal life and experiences than the landscape around him - although it's over-powering presence is still felt, as on the likes of 'Wasteland' - and the supreme ability of the human soul to overcome the most adverse of circumstances into which it is plunged.

Opener 'Brothers' mixes death and doom passages to great effect, showcasing Saukonnen's musical virtuosity to the full, combining brutal blastbeat drums with a thrashy riff, topped with a convincing line in growling, and concluding with an atmospheric, acoustic outro, topped by a female vocal refrain which actually serves as a nice prelude to 'Solitude', which introduces Lunar Path's Janica Lönn, as well as Sinamore frontman Mikko Heikkilä, into as good a slice of gothic doom metal as you're going to hear this side of Leave's Eyes or Nightwish.

The album is characterised by long instrumental passages as Saukkonen builds the soundscapes against which to indulge in his soul-searching, and by the contrast between the protagonist's guttural vocals and the almost operatic performances of the two guest artists: a great example of this is 'Horizon', which recalls the epic songwriting style of Jim Steinman, with its layering of melodies and short bursts of aggression, or 'Wasteland', with its withering death vocal and blastbeats contrasting with moments of utter calm.

At a time when many critics are daring to claim that the darker side of the musical spectrum is producing 'nothing new' or is almost afraid to experiment with new ideas, Saukkonen has not been afraid to stick his head above the parapet waving a big black flag and launch into the assault against banality with the war cry, "follow me"...

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