Relationships can make your spirit uplifted, and you’re invincible with your partner. But then something happens, and the spark goes out, there are accusations and distrust; both of you are trying to break each other down until you’re shells of your former selves. Loss, disconnect from the joyful aspects of life, and venomous anger are the themes for the new Green Carnation album A Dark Poem Part 2: Sanguis.

Last year’s A Dark Poem Part 1: The Shores of Melancholia was, in itself, an emotional roller-coaster, and on A Dark Poem Part 2: Sanguis, they take that somber pace and crank the depression to eleven.

From the get-go, we’re dropped into a relationship that’s falling or has already fallen apart. Anger and emotional distress take hold with “Sanguis (Blood Ties)” and the music perfectly matches. Punching the sky with some killer Hammond organ cranked out of its comfort zone. The opening lyrics “A house not a home, a heart made of stone… I survived you” fucking hell, that’s quite a statement, and it sets the tone quickly and succinctly. This is not a happy album.

A Dark Poem Part 2: Sanguis is a shorter album than Part 1. Clocking in at 37:14, it’s about ten minutes shorter. That’s not a bad thing, I’m just mentioning it in passing. I do think that the shorter run time lets the album stay focused and more to the point. So there’s that.

“Loneliness Untold, Loneliness Unfold” is depressing as fuck. Like, I’ve been in some shitty relationships, but the one happening within the barriers of A Dark Poem Part 2: Sanguis is imploding like the Titan submarine. The music is slow-burning and malicious, the lyrics drip with vitriol and resentment. A heartbreaking track if there ever was one.

“Sweet to the Point of Bitter” has an Arcturus vibe to it, interspersed with some epic Enslaved harmonies. The slow build at the 4:16 mark takes the song in a whole different direction; it takes on a life of its own. There’s not much in the way of blasting on this release like the last album. These are more restrained, more precise, and, dare I say, more brutal in terms of message.

“I am Time” gets up to some Enslaved-style melodies; it’s uplifting and gets the job done. “Fire in Ice” literally almost brought me to tears, and I’m not even ashamed about it. This is such a somber yet forceful attack. The music touches the soul in ways that few albums are able to hold a candle to. It’s a revelation of life after unbearable trauma. The worst break-up in musical history is played out with this killer track.

“Lunar Tale” is such a beautiful song. It’s a track about closures and regrets. The music is like a warm, comforting blanket. Unless some band puts out an album with nothing but people crying, it might be as impactful as A Dark Poem Part 2: Sanguis. Around 4:00 minutes in, the harmonies take your breath away.

Sporting a glorious production that makes you feel like you’re in the studio with the band, Green Carnation has achieved a masterpiece in the world of Metal, an incredibly emotional album that stays with you even after it has ended.

At the end of the day, Green Carnation has fully surpassed their previous albums in every way, shape, and form. This review has taken longer to write than I expected. Although I love this album, it’s so emotionally heavy-handed that it brought back memories for me that weren’t pleasant to think about. This is a DEPRESSING album. But maybe that’s what they were intending all along, and if so, they have most definitely succeeded because A Dark Poem Part 2: Sanguis is probably the most depressing album I’ve heard in a long time. Like, even DSBM is more uplifting than this… It’s where Green Carnation excel, though, and that’s why you need this album. We live in an apathetic society these days, maybe music such as this will remind us that we all share the same place when it comes to matters of the heart.

So yeah, this album sticks with you. I can still hear those riffs in my head while I sit here writing this. I’m not even sure of a ‘for fans of’ section because this is in a league of its own as far as I’m concerned. It doesn’t sound like anything I’ve heard before (at least that I can remember). My advice is that you go out and get this album post haste. Long live love!

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