Another excellent first long-distance release in the funeral doom sphere is this one from Depleted, a solo project by US musician Matt Sullivan. Failing is a work that comes after several years of activity during which Sullivan has composed two demos, an EP and a split album; the full length features four medium-length tracks for a total of about 40 minutes and if it seems slightly more grim and death doom-oriented in its first half (with Cold and Distant, the longer track with no particular melodic outlets), it then opens up melodically starting from The Cocoon, the qualitative peak of the album, and then confirms this trend also with the last Already a Ghost. This also entails good overall variety of the album from a compositional point of view, with the sound thus oscillating between funeral and death doom, while always maintaining a very slow pace and avoiding violent accelerations altogether, as is often the case with other bands. The vocals are constantly in the form of a rather convincing growl, while the sound is guided by good guitar work, which, if it occasionally indulges in a few solo passages, is in fact aimed above all at imprinting a melodic line that is always very distinct. Sincerely, this is another excellent work that brings Depleted to the forefront, a name that until now has remained under the radar but deserves the utmost attention.
2023 – Transylvanian Recordings
Mournful Sounds 
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