Forest Stream delivers an album of pure sorrow and despair. These Russians take you on a 69 minute long trip into their gloomy minds. The music is a mixture of gothic doom and symphonic black metal but above all, it is dark. Most of the songs are well over 6 minutes and although the level of variation within each song is high, I can’t but wonder why they haven’t shortened them a bit. Most of the songs are very difficult to get into and it takes awhile before you can really appreciate this album.

The music on Tears Of Mortal Solitude is certainly nothing new and is strongly influenced by bands like My Dying Bride, Dimmu Borgir and Katatonia.

Nevertheless the band has managed to create an exciting mixture, while retaining their own sound. The keyboard playing is of a high level and the variation in speed and aggression makes this album simply a pleasure to listen to.

Forest Stream is a new band with lots of potential and if they can manage to create an album that is a bit more original and a bit more compact then nothing will stop these guys from breaking through. Tears Of Mortal Solitude is an album that you either love or hate, but I can highly advice it to anyone who likes gothic doom metal.