Review: “Through the Dying Mist” by Crowen

Rising like a phoenix from the ashes of Rain Of Acid in 2019, Crowen reunited multi instrumentalist and vocalist Esa Uusimaa with lead guitarist Sami Sandberg having initially been cast as Uusimaa’s solo project. Seven years on the pair are joined by bassist Tuomas Saukkonen, a man known for his prior convictions in Wolfheart, Before The Dawn and Dawn of Solace for “Through the Dying Mist”, the third in an unholy trinity of EPs. On their journey thus far the Tampere Finland based musicians have consistently woven mournful melodies together with aggression in the form of crushing riffs with 2024’s “Where the Darkness Falls” a real experience.

A tale of the spirit of vengeance “Ember Wraith” begins with icy keys setting an almost mournful tone before the Melodic Death Metal guitars come in like a swing of the executioners axe. Sandberg’s impressive leads are insanely infectious and take us back to 1997 and In Flames as the Gothenburg sound, the modern guitar tone delivering a satisfying crunch as Uusimaa’s harsh vocals cut through them like a hot knife through butter. The dirge laden introduction to “Line of Silence” then introduces clean vocals which have an haunting, eerie quality to them before layering them up against the harsh ones in a powerful stompy closing passage that really brings it home. The mid-tempo melodies are livened up with the melancholia of the lead guitars which add a real energy before the rumbling bass of “I Am The Sorrow” serves as a storms warning. Staccato riff breaks take us to the 2003 era of American Metalcore as the guitars race like the wind, the intertwining clean and unclean vocal parts giving the impression of two vocalists where there is only one. Its the Scandinavian melancholia provided by the keys and acoustic guitars at the end of the track that bridge it to “The Unwritten End“, giving the piece a momentary Folk Metal feel before the power gets turned on once more. A bleak introspective lyrical narrative accompanies the thunderous drums and weighty riffs, a moment in the Finnish language adding more grit and integrity to the sombre lament. A powerful finale to a collection of impressive tunes, all that remains is for Crowen to commit a full length album to tape because this leaves you wanting more [7.5/10]

Track Listing

1. Ember Wraith
2. Line of Silence
3. I Am The Sorrow
4. The Unwritten End

“Through the Dying Mist” by Crowen is out 20th February 2026 via Inverse Records