Godthrymm – Projections
Release Date: 29th May 2026
Label: Profound Lore Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Doom Metal
FFO: Fvneral Fvkk, My Dying Bride, Solstice, Vallenfyre, Paradise Lost, King Goat, Candlemass, Pallbearer.
Review By: Malte Brigge
The two founding members of Godthrymm, guitarist/vocalist Hamish Glencross and drummer Shaun Taylor-Steels, earned their UK doom pedigree in My Dying Bride, Solstice and several other related projects. Projections is the third album in what they call their “Visions Trilogy”, which began with 2020’s Reflections and hit hard with 2023’s Distortions, both critically acclaimed albums. While I found Reflections good but a little jarring and inconsistent, I have no qualms labeling Distortions one of the finest sadboi experiences of the past twenty years. Godthrymm build their identity on the epic scale, with the big riff foundations of Sabbath and Candlemass and the clear yet gritty vocal stylings of Pallbearer and Fvneral Fvkk. If Reflections held up the mirror to their inspirations and doom-filled history, and Distortions shattered it, what future does Projections reveal in their present?
One of the most notable developments in Godthrymm’s sound on Projections is the expansion of vocal ranges. Building on her excellent work on Distortions, Glencross’s wife Catherine creates scintillating harmonies and choral refrains before taking unaccompanied lead on the two closing tracks. Adie Bailey (ex-English Dogs) and Jay Walsh (Xentrix) lend harmonies to opener Trenches Deep and legend Aaron Stainthorpe (ex-My Dying Bride) reunites with Godthrymm (having provided some spoken word on Distortions), fronting most of Endure My Skin. His mid-song lamentation “Cover me from cold / cover me in gold / Before we turn to dust / Cover me in you” captures the longing and despair of the lines, and his furious death growls (a first for Godthrymm) immediately following reinforce the unrelenting depth of that exposed grief. There’s a bit of a lycanthropic quality in these growls, but the shock of their arrival more than makes up for their aptitude. Hamish Glencross does the rest, and he’s come a long way as a vocalist since Reflections, burning with pained aggression. Truth in My Own may be his best performance yet, with a simple but effective melody that sets its roots deep in the musical foundation.
There is no doubt, though, that Catherine is the star of Projections. Her harmonies are beautiful and rich, ranging from piercing soprano (the way she responds to Stainthorpe on Endure My Skin is breathtaking) to airy and angelic. She is both an earthly and ethereal presence, haunting on The Sun Never Fell and Truth in My Own as she performs multiple parts that feel like a slender fingernail grazing sensitive skin, raising gooseflesh and sending strangely warm shivers through the bones. But her work on the evocative and downcast Jewels is an album highlight, from sorrowfully reflective to powerfully keening against the minimalist descent of guitars and keys. Her astral, floating tones on closer Hope Is Eternal are an incredible contrast to the tense rhythms, her harmonies and countermelodies wafting slowly while increasing intensity.
Godthrymm’s guitar tone—huge but clear, heavy but bright—is instantly recognizable, and the addition of Kris McLaughlin as a permanent second guitarist establishes another muscular layer. Chunky rhythms with eerie lead lines build to unified, wall-of-sound movements. Oaken riffs structure the songs, but there are surprising drops (reminiscent of Hamish’s work in Vallenfyre) into fast, galloping charges, notably in Trenches Deep, a triplet chug gunning out of nowhere while three voices combine to create an almost alien atmosphere. Midway through Hope Is Eternal, Catherine’s languid melodies float atop quick guitar patterns to create a conflicting sense of urgency and ennui. Taylor-Steels really takes off here, too, in one of his more noticeable moments, hurrying the song forward beneath a shimmering, methodic guitar solo. He’s an incredibly effective drummer, holding everything together but rarely calling attention to himself. Bob Crolla’s bass is, in a word, beautiful. See especially the countermeasures he employs on Truth in My Own, the thunderous ride he takes you on towards the end of Hope Is Eternal and his masterpiece, The Sun Never Fell, whether he’s battening down rhythmic hatches or creating a cool twangy effect that makes the song feel almost Druidic.
Projections may be Godthrymm’s best work yet. The variety of this album is fresh and shows the band is just starting to hit its stride. Its economical 46 minutes leaves you wanting more. Godthrymm sound like no one else, either in tone, production, writing or execution. They are easily one of the best bands plying the doom trade today, and they keep pushing in new directions. Projections is a deep, fulfilling album offering a pristine experience I know I’ll be listening to for years to come.
(4.5 / 5)
