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A side project of keyboard player Winter, who formerly played with the great Sear Bliss, Forest Silence is pretty much a one-man band with some session players from Sear Bliss thrown in. I think Sear Bliss are awesome, so I was all about this when I heard about it. Being made by a keyboard player, I was expecting this to be more atmospheric than it is, but this is actually a quite heavy and visceral album

Any fan of Slavic Black Metal will know what to expect here. Philosophy of Winter is five epic songs with sweeping arrangements, a freezing cold guitar tone, and tons of atmosphere. Winter uses the keys almost purely as a backup instrument, adding a layer of feeling and mood to this album it would otherwise lack. The guitars are mixed upfront, playing these churning, marching riffs that call to mind epic bands like Evilfeast or some mid-period Graveland. Powerful, involving music that creates a really cool deep-winter feeling. The vocals are mixed low, providing a sound that is almost like just another element to the overall sound, not standing apart from it. Really, the only complaints I have are that sometimes the songs drag a bit; and that as a whole the album is too short at only 35 minutes total. I suppose that sounds contradictory, but all I mean is that the songs need to change it up a little more within each composition, and I want more of them. This is an excellent debut, and I hope this is not the only work we get from this act. Recommended.