Now, when one might first think of the genre of doom metal, they may think of an overweight man clad all in blue denim with unwashed, greasy hair, appearing as if by magic from a cloud of cannabis smoke and heavy fuzz distortion. Hailing from Portland, Oregon, Dolven and their crisp, harp-like acoustics are about as far away from that stereotype as a band can be whilst still being affiliated with the doom genre. The acoustic doomers seem to be single-handedly occupying the only Acoustic-Doom space available in their very niche take on an overly crowded and saturated genre. If you were to imagine the likes of Bell Witch, Meth Drinker, Thou and Primitive Man at the sludgiest and heaviest end of the doom spectrum, you would find Dolven on the exact opposite end.
First up offered from In My Grave…Silence is ‘Sun Bleached Stone’. This is a gentle but somber song that would not be out of place in the Medieval Court Intrigues of Wolf Hall. Vocalist Jori Apedaile shines here with his tender murmuring that is almost mellifluous. The track builds with insistence as Dolven reminds us that they’re not just an acoustic folk band, they’re a doom band as well, and they possess darker undertones that they’re merely wanting to tease their listeners with in their first track of their latest offering.
As the album takes a breath from this insistence-building medieval banger, now seems as good a time as any to inform their listeners that Dolven probably can be considered an Agalloch side project, with long-time bassist Jason Walton and new Agalloch drummer Hunter Ginn appearing in both Agalloch and Dolven. Beside Me is an instrumental track that pleasantly strums along as though guitarist Nick Wusz is discovering it as he plays along, making for some wonderful improvisational picking which is reminiscent of Keith Jarrett’s Köln Concert.
Clocking in at a hair over nine minutes in length, the next track is ‘You’ve Chosen’. This instalment in the album is unmistakably doomed, proving to their listeners once again that it is very possible to create acoustic doom. It’s heavy, it’s slow, but it also sounds as clean as Barry Scott from Cillit Bang fame’s kitchen countertop. As the track progresses, it becomes heavier and increasingly emotional. Every carefully measured and decisive pluck of a low chord feels as though it’s been coordinated to emotionally devastate their listeners. Dolver are beginning to drift into Warning territory with their seminal Watching from a Distance album in a wash of ‘cry-doom tears and wretched inconceivability.’It’s also possibly the very best the album has to offer, it’s an absolutely desolating song.
As ‘You’ve Chosen’ fades out, the album picks up again with Nick Wusz’ immaculate strumming and plucking that come across as almost harp-like in its self-discovery. At this point, which is now around halfway through the album, it has to be conceded that Dolver’s latest entry is less heavy than their 2021 debut, The Tyranny of Time. The next song up, ‘Standing Amongst the Ruins’, is not able to maintain much interest beyond: “Oh, that’s nice,” in the same way your Gran would say when you tell you’re off to see a blackened post metal doom band down Manchester’s Rebellion. It has to be assumed that this song was recorded as an interlude between two epics, as queued up next is ‘Just Like All The Rest’, which is clocking in at, again, over nine minutes long. This song is giving the same sort of feelings as Porcupine Tree’s Fear of a Blank Planet. Melancholic, longing, despondent. The music may not be overtly doom, but the forlorn vibes it’s able to conjure certainly are. The last two tracks, Anymore and Seeking Solace, are much more of the same. It’s pleasant, it’s heavy, and it’s Dolven.
In summary, what Dolven are trying to accomplish deserves our respect. They’re combining two genres, Acoustic Folk and Doom, that no one’s really asking for, and they’re making something very agreeable and charming from it. However, it must be noted that the album does unfortunately leave feelings of: ‘This is just diet Agalloch, really, isn’t it?’ On a first listen, it’s not clear if their second album matches up to their debut as it does drag and can feel a bit repetitive at times, but it’s still a recommended listen even if it’s to satiate the curiosity that comes from the question: “Exactly what does acoustic doom even sound like and how the hell does it even work?”