Out from the ashes of inner conflict, disbandment, and the tragic loss of several key members, The Gates Of Slumber has finally returned. And they’ve brought along their 6th studio album, The Gates Of Slumber on Svart Records. Formed in Indianapolis, IN in the late 1990s, the band eventually become legends in the doom metal community for their no-frills approach to the genre. Combining the cadence of early Black Sabbath with a penchant for hypnotic riffs, the return of this power trio is a victory lap, not a nostalgic cash grab.

**Acting as both a revival and celebration of doom, The Gates Of Slumber wastes no time getting down to business.**

The album opener, “Embrace The Lie,” sees the band reflect on their signature dirge approach with an added layer of rejuvenation. Despite the personally bleak and ugly origins of this project, the trio is energized with poise and vigor. It feels like they’ve approached this albums at some sort of make-or-break scenario in their careers. Although that’s clearly not the case, “We Are Perdition” not only achieves that goal, but the song is the tightest the band has ever sounded.

While the first two tracks mark the return of what fans loved about this band, “Full Moon Fever” shows that the group is willing to experiment with atmosphere and rhythms to create a supersonic landscape. I especially love the phaser effect on the opening guitar riff. As the chunkiest tracks on the album, “At Dawn” delivers a strong emphasis on the groove; well, as much as doom can groove.

The effects-laden guitar solo reminds me of Ministry’s “What About Us?” – which is a very good thing. The bass intro to “The Fog” is devilishly delicious while the rest of the vibe unabashedly takes influence from John Carpenter’s horror classic of the same name. While overtly atmospheric from beginning to end, The Gates Of Slumber finishes on a high note with the Slayer-esque tempo change during the last two minutes of “The Plague”.

**At a brisk six tracks coming in just over 35 minutes, The Gates Of Slumber is a relatively quick listen when compared to traditional doom.**

But the band’s choice to trim the fat works in their favor and gives the record a sense of urgency. Not a second is wasted on the obvious or any notion to exploit the past. There’s no denying that The Gates Of Slumber have grown considerably as artists. Where they choose to go from here is entirely up to them, but this record reaffirms that their particular brand of doom isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

The Gates Of Slumber is available on Bandcamp and Svart Records.

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