Cleared of all distractions, set within one’s own prattling river of despair and now violently sickened by a perturbed inner dialogue the choices available are triune yet uneven in their greater spur: Torpor and escapism in taxing denial is the most common course, offering a complimentary mindset to those who would amplify the dreadful murmuring automation available within their chemically scourged mind. Falling into the dark and embracing it is one thing but not likely as profound as instead choosing to speak louder than it, however feeble the results. The flow of ruthless thoughts and the solitude of a storm-bound opus at sea offer the same starting point to be resolved within this fifth full-length album from Danish melodic death/doom metal sextet Saturnus as they return more determined than ever to free themselves from dread and reattach to the dharmic wheel. ‘The Storm Within‘ is perhaps the inevitable point of wisdom gained from decades of slow-going determination amidst self-defeat as our journey along with them today begins with turbulence, steadily aligns with purpose, and lays itself down next to personal truths redefined.

Saturnus technically formed circa 1991 as a death metal band under the name Asesino which vocalist Thomas A.G. Jensen tooled around with for roughly two years before changing their name, landing a full lineup, and switching to a sound which was quite popular around 1993: Gothic melodic death/doom metal. Without a doubt the most important result of their work in the 90’s is ‘Paradise Belongs to You‘ (1997) their classic first entry and a ‘relevant’ record for the time period which inspired them. While ‘old school’ fans will be well served hunting down the impressive two song demo tape from the band in 1994 the first record will be the authentic item from their discography and, perhaps the only one. For the seasoned gothic and melodic death/doom metal fandom it remains a meaningful mention yet the trouble with this late 90’s placement of their debut is that Saturnus were clearly a band aiming for standards set by others (My Dying Bride, Anathema, et al.) and this would begin to limit their own vision, or, at least lead to a bit of a grey area when their follow-up (‘Martyre‘, 2000) found a halfway-there step taken in leaning uneasily into the accessible gothic metal direction popular at the time. In hindsight I appreciate the second album from the band moreso today as it’d taken on a funereal dramatism, developing a theatrical exaggeration of melodic death/doom within much slower pieces. The most classic era of the band wasn’t steady in terms of line-up or style at any given point but after ten years it was clear creative and/or personal differences had arisen behind the scenes.

By 2003 there was certainly a new guard in action as groups like Draconian, Swallow the Sun and Rapture filled the void left by the awkward melodic metal capers of the time with varying degrees of success. This is important to note because there was no clear direction for many melodic death/doom and gothic metal bands who’d attempt to leave their underground comforts behind and gone unnoticed beyond the turn of the millennium. In the meantime Saturnus parted ways with their original guitarist, Kim Larsen of Of the Wand & the Moon, as well as another original member (drummer Jesper Saltoft) both of whom would go on to briefly focus on gothic rock/metal band The Loveless before moving on from the idea. Around 2004 the band would begin work on their signature third album (‘Veronika Decides to Die‘, 2006) with new members and, as they’ve remarked in various interviews over the years, everything was a bit of a struggle at that point. It is worth noting that back in 2006 Saturnus generally fit in with what much younger bands were doing with melodic death/doom at the time, managing one of their most tonally consistent and memorably writ albums and you can guess its association with modern literature had my interest back then. Some of the original magic was faded at that point, and even moreso on their fourth album (‘Saturn in Ascension‘, 2012) but the emotional damage of its themes and the general dynamic was yet what folks expected from the group. I would liken it to the nearby return of October Tide where they’d gotten the style right and the records sounded pro but had lost sight of what made their early works standouts. This was where I’d started with my first impression of ‘The Storm Within‘, reaching a point of expectations met which’d felt sub-genre appropriate but not necessarily specific or inventive.

A foil for open-wounded suffering and self-redemption. — It is worth gathering this provenance and some of my thoughts in reflection for the sake of not being sure what the enduring fandom might expect from these folks after a decade-long hiatus. If you’ve some mountainous memory of ‘Saturn in Ascension‘ in mind then I’d say you’ll be happy with this experience as fairly persistent wandering harmonized lead guitars are similarly the focus of key pieces here: “The Calling” is perhaps one of the most effective guitar-driven melodic metal pieces the group has managed to date and “Breathe New Life” feels genuinely pulled from a dimension where 2010’s Amorphis links up with the late 90’s ‘Discouraged Ones‘-era headspace where Saturnus made first contact. Though the main voicing that Rune Stiassny provided for great stretches of most every song on the previous record are no longer here we find the band leaning into growled vocals and listless doom rhythms (again, a la nowadays October Tide) while featuring a softened, oft piano-gilded sense of brooding, searching listlessness. In this sense the songcraft, not only the hooks but the contemplative ease of movement trumps the impact of lyrical themes which are somewhat plain, or, not nearly as inventive as some of their past inspirations.

Making the easily read, obvious connection between the quiet turmoil of the inner self and the image of being stranded in a hopelessly tempestuous sea speaks well enough to the solitude of being mentally or emotionally “stuck” and while this is an effective thought (and certainly not all there is to this album) ‘The Storm Within‘ doesn’t land in such an engaging, affecting sense but rather a performative one. In this sense my appreciation for this album did ultimately end up being somewhat similar to my thoughts on ‘Martyre‘ as it seems this is the sort of album a Saturnus fan would write in direct study of the band’s first two albums. The addition of two new guitarists for this record, including members of Autumnal and a former guitarist for Eye of Solitude, helps to create the brand of melodramatic-by-design music their theatre of misery, tragedy and occasionally triumphal revelation is rooted in but their efforts ultimately feel more interested in conveying an old feeling than they are in bringing a refreshed point of view here beyond a bit of hopeful optimism. That said, there are yet some notable successes worth celebrating here.

Oddly enough per my usual preferences within this type of music the most sombre, dark romanticist poetic points of turmoil and revelation available to ‘The Storm Within‘ tend to be Saturnus‘ strongest showing points here overall, starting with the patiently built groan-to-life of “Chasing Ghosts“. I’d appreciated both the lyrics and the leads which rise to prominence in the second half of the song after a bit of a break, one of many which (again) get a bit of help from keyboards/piano in refrain. Likewise the pairing of the aforementioned standout single “The Calling” and the piano, strings and spoken word of “Even Tide” recreate this general dynamic with greater potency applied to each respective part. I’d found the sheer patience of the band in developing the impact of each song, simple as it often is, is one of just a few ways their work wears a bit of wisdom on sleeve; Granted there are a few songs on here which are somewhat throwaway compared to the rest with “Closing the Circle” revisiting a similar song structure with a bit of redundancy and closer “The Truth” delivering a bit of a death/doom escalator to a ‘just alright’ conclusion. Excess and redundancy aren’t going to be valid complaints to truly invested melodic death/doom fans, so, take that as you will but I’d felt this album could’ve landed with just as much impact if cut down to an all-killer ~45 minute return.

Otherwise I could go on for another paragraph or two considering the long-standing relationship with Flemming Rasmussen, which yields their best results yet in terms of dynamic sound, and such but I believe this record will naturally be a crowd pleaser for the niche these folks do well to embody with this updated sound. For the Saturnus fan who’d waited eleven years in anticipation I doubt there will be any real disappointment to be found here, especially those who have understood melodic death/doom metal from its infancy. A moderately high recommendation.

---