3 out of 5

Label: Escafimo Records

Produced by: Drøüyn (Alder Glade) / Morthalion (Arna)

Though somewhat lacking in the ambient nuance we’ve come to expect from Alder Glade and some overall distinction between the tracks from each band, this is a solid split: Arna is the thrash take on AG’s more expansive doom metal, with both vocalists (Morthalion on the Arna side) hitting a similar register of meaty, mid-range howls with discernible lyrics and subject matter that fits the genre but tends to be more illustrative and verbose than the outright doom-and-gloom variants. Alder’s opener The Arcanist is a winner, with a solid, grungey hook and good breaks carrying us through its eight minute run. Followup Labyrinthian Tomb is unfortunately sort of a similar pace – meaning it kind of sounds the same at a passing glance – but lacks the hook. In both cases, some of the synth or ambient touches feel way buried in the mix, losing out on some usual AG texture.

On the Arna side, guitarist and co-writer Sanguinous Moth and Morthalion rock, doing some two-man pummeling with gusto, and inserting excellent breakdowns and drumfills across the tracks to keep their contributions engaging the whole way through. That said, though I’m maybe just being fooled by the song titles – called In Æternum I and In Æternum II – there’s again not much distinction between the tracks, making it comes across as one long song, and there’s not necessarily enough evolution over the course of that long song to justify it as such. Engaging, yes, same as the AG material, but in the sense that you’re down with rocking out the whole while, but it’d be just as good as a single track.