There are many records that lead you to analyzed and appreciate the musicianship, the technique, the “groove”, well all those things that you can write in a normal review, like for example “the melodies complement each other in a great blend of guitar riffs, deep desperate vocals and atmospheric sounds” that description is not completely false in Somewhere along the Highway, but we have to go beyond that conventional way of analyzing an album to describe the newest work by Swedish Cult of Luna.

Somewhere along the Highway is something like an independent film, simple in appearance, but deep and complex; every riff, every vocal segment (there aren’t that many really) are devoted to an ultimate goal of submerging the listener inside its gloomy, depressing, sarcastic atmospheres and then leave you thinking about what depression and desperation really mean.

This album could easily become a soundtrack for a “teen facing suicide” movie soundtrack, and that because it may appear shallow at times, but the feelings involved in every tune are easy to relate and heavy in emotional resonance.

Ok so let’s talk a little less… presumptuous; this is a great album, doom metal, with many, many, many atmospheric sounds created by a beautiful keyboard and some moments of desperation and anger provided by some nice death metal vocals. The guitars are not impressive, they are simple and get the job done, and anyway I don’t think that Cult of Luna is looking to get fans because of the magnificent solos they play.

On the bad side, the album is like one gigantic song with some tempo changes and a couple of attempts to reach higher levels of aggressiveness; something they don’t achieve leaving you with a sensation of dissatisfaction that lasts until you are fooled again in another section where the vocals get a little strength but loose it after a couple of seconds.

I think there is a nice banjo playing in “Back To Chapel Town” really gets some sort of small town melancholy into play and elevates the song thanks to the slow and deep vocals that introduce a sort of whisper narration, probably my favorite track…depressing as hell!

This album is not made with great songs, or bad songs, this album is compose by feelings, by deep emotional attachments that hit you like bad news on a Sunday afternoon. Please don’t listen to this if you are contemplating suicide!!!