Back in 2022, I noted in my review of Wolfheart‘s then new album King of the North that Tuomas Saukkonen‘s different projects sound very similar to each other. Somewhat escaping this trend, Dawn of Solace is a project of his that centers much more around the vocals of Mikko Heikkilä (Kaunis Kuolematon, Sinamore). Heikkilä has history with Saukkonen, providing vocals for his Black Sun Aeon project stretching back to Darkness Walks Beside Me. With Dawn of Solace, the increased focus on Heikkilä‘s vocals has been a dual edged weapon, injecting a human aspect to Saukkonen‘s already morose writing, but also making songs hinge on the vocal cadence and delivery. 2020’s Waves did as its name suggested and brought attention to this duo’s knack for writing weepy melodic death metal. Much like with any of Saukkonen‘s works, I enjoyed it in the moment but found that with repeat spins, there was less and less to come back to. While Heikkilä easily is the band’s sharpest tool, he is overused on that album, blunting his impact due to a lack of variety and opportunities to change things up. 2022’s follow up, Flames of Perdition, tried to go a more atmospheric route, pushing into elongated song structures (but not really longer songs) that Saukkonen did not handle well. Going into Affliction Vortex apprehensive, I must admit I had already written it off before pressing play. Again, I was swept up in Saukkonen‘s melodic writing, annoyed at going through this process again. Scandies and Stockholm syndrome, amirite?
Is it really that simple again?
Affliction Vortex has three points of improvement over previous works that makes it better than I would expect. First, Saukkonen has some nice lead riffs that make some songs stand out. “Fortress” brings a lead riff that is urgent and pulls things along, “Invitation” succinctly makes use of the more atmospheric focus of last album to build up its contrasting chorus, and a few numbers otherwise build up to some good solos. Second, there is some good variety in the writing here, using what Saukkonen seems to have developed over the last two albums. Last, Saukkonen joins in with his growled vocals to offer some much needed contrast, saving Heikkilä for moments where he’s effective. Particularly of note, “Perennial” has some heavier doom metal made effective by Saukkonen giving an unusually aggressive vocal performance. The back half of the album offers the much needed variety that I have been hoping for from this project. Unfortunately, it’s not all great. Some songs on Affliction Vortex go back to tried and true Saukkonen-core (“Murder”, “Rival”, “Dream”), marring what could otherwise have been a good melodic death metal album. Another flaw bringing this album down is that Saukkonen doesn’t always develop his songs past the initial melody. There is often no final turn or surprise at the end, no careful development that makes the songs compelling enough to go back to. As much as I can superficially enjoy a song by Dawn of Solace, I am finding the flaws with every spin of a Tuomas Saukkonen album yet again. There are signs of improvement on Affliction Vortex, yet as much as I want to focus on those, it doesn’t come together as an album I want to return to. By now, most of Saukkonen‘s writing tricks are obvious, new wrinkles or not, and as much as I liked that Wolfheart album at the time (not that I ever revisit), the spell is broken.
