All The Beauty… is Mortal Love’s first album, releasing in 2002 under Massacre Records. This is a band I never really listened to a ton, but as I’m lying in my bed with my cat it just clicked. Something about this listen makes me want to break down in tears, the emotion pouring through my speaker is something I had to share.

If you haven’t listened to this album in a while, do yourself a favor and throw it on. I recommend a warm bed and a cat for support.

"Healing Hearts", from Dark Love Poems, the third and final album by German gothic metal, alt rock, goth rock, nu metal fusion band Bloodflowerz. Another album that recently had a 20th anniversary, DLP was originally released June 23, 2006, on Silverdust Records.

This album was produced and mixed by Alexander Krull, and it definitely sounds like it. Its less dark than their debut and less thunderous than the sophomore, but there is an elegance to this album's sound. The way the faux-orchestra keyboards are incorporated feel very reminiscent to early-Leaves' Eyes, and the programming reminiscent to early-Elis, both DACH+ bands Krull was producing for around this time.

"Healing Hearts" is not my favorite track from this album, but it has grown on me a lot. It's a nice piece of gothic fluff.

For fans of: Mortal Love, HIM, Evanescence, Dark Princess, The Crest, Entwine, Lacuna Coil

One of my main surprises of this year was the new album "Vaketimen" by Evig Natt. I was never a major fan of their previous work, but after a hiatus of 10 years, they seem to have returned stronger than ever. It's the classic 'beauty and the beast' sound with clean female vocals and male growls, but the sound goes beyond gothic metal, rather being a blend of gothic, doom and folk metal with lyrics in both English and Norwegian. I was really impressed with this one, to the point of liking it more than the new Draconian album!

This is a release that I completely missed. I understood that Weeping Silence had undergone some lineup changes between previous albums and this one, making "Opus IV: Oblivion" their standout release for me. You can expect classic 'beauty and the beast' style gothic metal with heavy doom influences, not unlike Draconian. Diane Camenzuli has a wonderful voice, and the music is great too. A very nice surprise for a rainy Tuesday!

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