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This is a re-pressing of the 1996 demo of Russian Doom band Painful Memories, who put out a demo in 1996, then 1997, and then apparently broke up some time before they ever went anywhere. Ironically, Solitude Prod. Has picked this up 10 years after the fact and released it as a CD. I'd like to say it's brilliant, but actually it's just decent.

Painful Memories play a rather mellow brand of Doom/Death with more melody than despair. There are obvious similarities to the giants of the day: Anathema, My Dying Bride, and Paradise Lost, and actually, in my jaundiced view this is far better than anything MDB ever put out. But then I have never liked MDB very much, so that's damning with faint praise. This is a solid album, and fans of the style will find a lot to like, though not much they have not heard before. The production is quite good for a demo, though not as heavy as I would like. The songs are all long, and they all sound pretty much alike. The vocals are the expected growl, and the melodies are suitably gloomy.

This is an entertaining if not arresting disc of vintage Doom/Death from the early days of the style, and while it is good for what it is, it is hardly lost classic material. If you love Doom/Death this will be your thing, but don't expect too much from it.

Additional Information

Originally released in 1996.