Memories of an Old Man

Quebec's Memories of an Old Man's debut album is an experiment in solemn, drawn-out gloom metal. To give you an idea of just how drawn-out this album is, three of the disk's six songs clock in at over eight minutes and album closer "Picture" is over 12. The length of these songs is, for the most part, unjustified, with long, droning intros or outros (there's a full three-minute fadeout on "The Black Truth"). Don't let the in-between stuff get you down though. Despite all the sleepy, long-windedness, the quality of the band's doom/sludge metal is quite good. In the sections that aren't nearly silent, opener "The Storm" lurches into a slow, apocalyptic grind, while "Sunshine" emerges with a thrash-inspired number that sounds like Metal Blade-era Slayer, with a blackened breakdown. Memories of an Old Man is very lo-fi, to the point where it can be frustrating, and some of the act's more experimental nuances are hard to audibly pick up, at times. Hopefully, we'll see some increased production quality in their future, but in the meantime, this will satisfy if you're in the mood for a gloomy, apocalyptic soundtrack.