Doom Of Death: Valley Of Shadows | No Fear Of The Shadows
(2026 – Kongsblod Records)
Doom must be one of the most underrated subgenres of metal on the scene. There may be many explanations for this, but the reality is that bands that focus on this style aren’t exactly the ones in the spotlight, nor do they generate much attention. It’s true that there are many legendary bands in this genre, but when it comes to new projects or bands, if we think back, we’ll see that they aren’t the ones that stand out the most on the scene—or at least they aren’t the center of attention.
In this case, thanks to Brazil’s Extreme Records, we’ve received this album from the Brazilian band Doom Of Death—a project centered on doom metal—with “Valley Of Shadows” marking their first official release, available in physical format. The band has only been active for a short time, but they’ve already made it clear that their sound is something to be reckoned with.
Doom Of Death is pure doom, but far removed from doom death metal. On the contrary, their sound is rooted in an epic style with a certain dose of gothic influence in their music, without the typical growling vocals. Filipe Ariston’s vocals are clean, with a tone that prioritizes epic and atmospheric chanting over extreme delivery; although we can still hear some passages with guttural vocals here and there, Doom Of Death’s approach lies elsewhere, and even a few touches of progressive metal here and there add a distinctive flair to the band’s sound.
But there’s one aspect of “Valley Of Shadows” that we find particularly important: the production and recording of the material itself. You can really sense Doom Of Death’s DIY spirit and independence from the overuse of technology. The band sounds natural and authentic—exactly as it should—without resorting to absurd instrumentation or synthesizers. There’s a visceral quality to it that we absolutely love.
I’m not sure whether to consider “Valley Of Shadows” an album. Its five tracks actually make it an EP, which for posterity becomes the band’s first official release. It all begins with an intro—titled, without wishing to be redundant, “Intro (Libera Me Domine)”—featuring a sort of Gregorian chant that sets the tone for the band’s sound, as it is part of an ancient Christian liturgical hymn.
The real start comes with “Day Of Wrath,” where the melodies and harmonies provided by the guitars dominate the track, with an emphasis on a slow, heavy tempo that is only broken by some interesting riffs and rhythms that evoke the most intense elements the genre has to offer.
“Veni Emanuel” evokes the feeling of a liturgical chant adapted to the atmosphere that Doom Of Death creates, with a foundation that in itself conveys an epic sensation, tinged with gothic and contemplative elements, in a way. Its orchestration—based simply on keyboards and various guitar sounds and arrangements—is contrasted by some guttural vocals here and there, but that’s not all; the song itself seems to have different parts that come together as a whole, with the guitars firmly at the forefront.
Perhaps the most “doom”-like track on the album is “Agnus Dei,” a song that turns heavy riffs and epic choruses into a true masterpiece worth noting—and perhaps even one of the best tracks on Valley Of Shadows—which, incidentally, gives its name to the final track, which opens with galloping rhythms and guttural vocals, along with twisted riffs that frame an almost melodic and epic vocal line—one that somehow blends perfectly with the heavy guitar foundation.
“Valley Of Shadows” is an interesting album—or at least its approach sounds original enough in terms of combining different influences within a genre that isn’t usually very open to such fusion— but what stands out is the clear intention to shape the overall sound with different riffs, harmonies, and guitar chords, giving it an undeniable power and an epic tone that plays with elements of both gothic and progressive metal. The keyboards, in this case, serve as an accompaniment—a foundation that helps create different atmospheric backdrops—while the bass and percussion provide a foundation for a sound centered on heaviness and low frequencies.
Doom Of Death spent a considerable amount of time preparing this stuff. It was recorded from July 2025 to January 2026 and self-produced by the band itself. The overall sound is fairly modest considering that “Valley Of Shadows” is an independent release, but what’s interesting is that in an era of music production and recording using technological methods, they chose to do everything the old-fashioned way—that is, recording and playing with hard work and a lot of imagination to compose complex songs with an interesting compositional structure.
The artwork isn’t entirely original—at least as far as the cover is concerned—which features a retouched photograph of an old structure framed by withered trees. This alone, based on the album cover, gives us a sense of the direction Doom Of Death is taking. Even so, we commend the decision to release it in physical format, in addition to making it available on digital platforms.
“Valley Of Shadows” is Doom Of Death’s debut release—a band that offers a unique take on doom metal and seems poised for a promising future. Below, we’ve included where you can get this interesting EP, as well as the lyric video for “Agnus Dei,” so you can get a sense of what Doom Of Death is all about—and, of course, their social media links so you can follow them and stay updated on their latest news…
https://www.extremerecords.com.br
https://www.instagram.com/doomofdeath.epic
