Published: October 5, 2020 

This is the fourth album from Belgian death/doom metallers Marche Funèbre.

Having been a fan of Eye of Solitude for some time, their split with Marche Funèbre impressed, and made me want to check out the latter band when the opportunity arose. That time is now, and Einderlicht has arrived to carve a space in my collection all of its own.

When the press blurb states that this music is for fans of “My Dying Bride, Saturnus, Swallow the Sun, Officium Triste, Mourning Beloveth, (old) Paradise Lost“, you should have a decent idea of what to expect here. Marche Funèbre mix death metal, doom, Gothic metal, and elements of black metal and progressive rock into a brew that’s melodically rich and emotively potent.

This is epic music with an emphasis on feeling and depth of emotion. It’s textured and multifaceted, with a range of different approaches taken, as befits the different subgenres that feed into its creation. Despite this, the album still has a holistic feel with a good flow. This is largely due to the band’s songwriting and delivery skills, as well as their strong sense of identity.

Enderlicht is a nicely diversified release too, for something of this genre. Light and heavy, aggressive and tranquil, atmospheric and stark; a lot has clearly gone into this album’s creation. It’s sorrowful and mournful in some places, while being brighter and more hopeful in others. The former elements are typically espoused by the doom influences, while the latter frequently coming via a progressive viewpoint. Melody is used especially well, but everything here is hard to fault, to be honest. The vocals display as much variety as the music, with deep growls, harsh screams, and engaging cleans used. All are well-performed, but the clean singing especially so.

I was hoping for good things from Einderlicht and I have not been disappointed. Marche Funèbre have produced an extremely enjoyable and satisfying album. While clearly existing within the death/doom genre Einderlicht is not restricted by it. Marche Funèbre are a talented bunch, and I’d recommend Einderlicht for anyone into emotive heavy music.