People have been imagining monsters as the harbingers of their doom for millennia. In Homer’s The Odyssey, men met their makers at the hands of creatures ranging from a man-eating cyclops to dangerously alluring sirens. The English epic poem, Beowulf, included the monstrous Grendel, who terrorized and ate townsfolk, and more than a thousand years later Bram Stoker would tell about a blood-sucking vampire, Count Dracula. Fears of worldwide annihilation eventually came in the form of Kaiju monsters and flesh-eating zombies. For the misery and despair these beings have wrought (at least on our imaginations), it’s only fitting that a band dabbling in epic doom takes on the theme of monsters and demons. England’s Desolate Pathway didn’t start out with an interest in this topic. They formed in 2014, focused on fantasy (2014’s Valley of the King) and mythology (2016’s Of Gods and Heroes). A decade later, on Visions in Death, they evoke the haunting beauty of monsters from a more romantic era.
Desolate Pathway harken back to the old school epic doom of Candlemass, bring modern elements akin to Behölder, and mix in some gothic melancholy from My Dying Bride. They combine your typical funeral doom chuggery with elaborate and achingly beautiful lead riffs to achieve some of the most remarkable performances in doom this year. Visions in Death opens with its strongest cut, “Creeper,” which is catchy as hell, featuring a killer lead riff and a chorus that’s sure to infect your brain and make you belt out “Calling me, haunting me” until it infects your loved ones and eventually the world.1 The rest of the album doesn’t quite reach that level of catchiness, but there are plenty of other infectious numbers that’ll get you singing along about Lucifer (“Horrors of the Night”) and vampires (“The Dark Prince,” “Vampire’s Kiss”). There’s a level of poetry to the lyrics that heightens the emotional impact of the music.
Konrad proves the heart of Visions in Death with his soulful croons and creative riffcrafting. His sudden emotional outpourings on guitar and the mic ensure this record will throw constant surprises your way. The lead riffs on “Creeper” never fail to give me goosebumps, and a gorgeous solo at the tail end of “Dark Prince” leaves me in awe every time I hear it. Vocally, Konrad doesn’t have your typical doom metal delivery, sounding more like Volbeat’s Michael Poulsen than any traditional doom vocalist,2 with a soulful delivery reminiscent of Isole’s Daniel Bryntse. Sparks of impassioned crooning often provide a lift as songs reach their conclusions—on “Dawn of Extinction,” Konrad belts out a stunner that left me feeling both ecstatic and melancholic. Desolate Pathway show a knack for such climactic payoffs, leading to lots of big feelings throughout the record.
A weaker back half unfortunately keeps this from 4.0 territory. The instrumental “Angels without Words” is solid, but it’s missing the emotional oomph of Konrad’s voice. “Vampire’s Kiss” is also good, though it does play things safer and more subdued than the earlier tunes. An appreciable dip in production quality on the closing two songs does the most to weaken the overall impact, and Desolate Pathway’s usual tricks only go so far in redeeming these missteps. “Beasts of Doom” has a rather strong payoff as Konrad turns on the passion towards the end, but this doesn’t quite save the song from its muddy and loud production choices. Closer “Visions in Death” has a cavernous quality that sounds off, and this one never really pops off like the rest. More consistent mixing would have gone a long way towards pushing this to the next level.
Visions in Death proves an astonishing return for a band that’s been out of the game for a decade. Desolate Pathway has also shown incredible growth in that span of time. Their first two albums were rougher around the edges and lacked the inspiration shown here. “Creeper” has made a strong case for my song of the year, and if Desolate Pathway continues to write tunes like that, they will prove themselves a band to keep an eye out for. If you love great riffs and soulful singing in your doom, don’t pass this one up.
Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Meuse Music
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: September 25th, 2026
