Channeling raw emotions into a haunting doom album with otherworldly vocals and marching tempos to sink into and savor is no small endeavor.  Deliciously dark doom duo Oldest Sea has achieved this with their latest release A Birdsong, A Ghost.  Pulling in atmospherics, funeral doom, and a hint of folk with an underlying current of gloom, this album is one to experience open heartedly and let it carry you through to the end.  Oldest Sea started in 2017 as a solo project of Samantha Marandola with a focus on folk.  Now, she is joined by her husband Andrew as she explores (and conquers) heavier music resulting in their first full-length album.  A Birdsong, A Ghost is a dark work of art to dive into and devour.   

The album opens ambiently with some eerie vocalization and drawn out reverberating tones.  This ominous introduction could fit into a Robert Eggers film and sets the tone for what’s to come.  Listeners know to expect something haunting, beautiful, and emotive.  Soon, Samantha’s echoing vocals are heard before the track takes a turn into funeral doom.  This piece, “Sacred Destruction,” is the only single released and only music video created for the album.  It is the perfect sampling to represent A Birdsong, A Ghost.  The video is a macabre, surreal visualization and a piece of art in itself that perfectly captures a story of letting go of a former self and all of the feelings surrounding that narrative.  Another favorite track is “The Machines that Made Us Old” which is a sorrowful doom piece with a flowing atmospheric section in the middle before suspenseful synths build and jump back into riffs and harsh vocals that move etherial to feral in the best way.  The album closes with “Metamorphose” leaving listeners with a bit of a lighter piece with feelings of hope and the luster of a new beginning.

Felt in each note throughout the album is a relatable anguish and catharsis.  Samantha explains that the album is “…an expression of feminine rage, grief, and transformation.  It’s kind of just one long primal scream for me.”  That power is felt as the music surrounds and wraps listeners in a dark cloak.  Each component and layer that make up A Birdsong, A Ghost is not only deliberately placed but recognized and appreciated with each listen.  Everything feels very purposeful and thought out.  Even the band name feels apt as the music makes listeners feel as though they are floating in dark and ancient waters as old Gods whisper beneath the surface.  The slow construction of each track along with the quality production helps tell a story that results in a very poetic and artistic album.

In case you missed it, we were fortunate enough to have a back and forth with Samantha and Andrew in this profile on Oldest Sea.  When asked to describe their music in exactly one word they responded with “gloom.”  I am also happy to see that their goal is to keep making music until they are dead because I cannot get enough of this album and I am eager for more releases from the duo in the future.  A Birdsong, A Ghost will definitely be making an appearance on my end of year list and hopefully on many others’ lists as well because this album deserves all the recognition.

— Angela

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A Birdsong, A Ghost is available now on Darkest Records.  For more information on Oldest Sea, visit their Facebook Page.