The Knowing by November’s Doom is a surprisingly tasteful and is like a diverse storybook of a tragic documentary. Every song is a new chapter exploring fatalism and self-discovery. Every song sings a new and powerful expression. This is what sets this album apart from the others. Calm spoken word descends into pitiful growls that brings a dropping tear. Quaint folk tones meander innocently into a torrent of metal crunch. Wrought with blatant feeling, The Knowing describes this somehow without a spectacle on the side. No melodramatic symphonies. No harping women. No mob decadence. The doom is quaint, pretty, and alive. Odd for any doom metal band whose adherents typically dwell as if in cold, recessed realms of their own worlds. The Knowing is subtly vibrant and ornate in the garb of black. Gothic beauty, a contradiction for most, is the soul underneath.

Score 3/5

/author/ Alzn