As the name might give away, For the Fallen is not happy-sunny-funtime music, and as such, should not be played at parties — unless, of course, the party is a funeral. Then it might be appropriate. France’s Mourning Dawn is the creator of this extreme exercise in depression and paranoia. It’s an unsettling slab of gloom/doom that is effective with enough time to let it sink in. While I’m not familiar with its predecessor, 2007’s Mourning Dawn, its favorable  review at this very site gives the impression that Mourning Dawn are still carving away at the same vein.

For the Fallen’s eight tracks are all basically of the same nature — slow, drawn-out, torturously depressive pieces which, through layers and subtle effects, emit a dreamy, uneasy aura. Images of Xasthur and early Katatonia come to mind here. The appropriately titled “God Damn the Sun” is a good case in point, considering its chilly intonations and use of both baleful and beautiful melodies to relate the symbiosis between the dark and light of the soul. Tracks such as “The Rivers Flow” and “Dead Youth” run the gamut of emotions and extremes, summoning hate, anger, despair, and longing in the form of excruciating shrieks, despondent Opeth-ish melodies and long, droning passages.

For the Fallen needs to be more of an experience than just a listen in order for its full effect to come through, choking and sucking listeners into a zone of vulnerability and unease. My initial thoughts about the album were blotted out after a few dedicated and studious listens. Potentially suicidal readers…please back away from this one.

[Visit the band's website]

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