TRVE WIDOW (2008)

Earnest slowdoom or doomgaze or slownergaze(?) which verges on, whether accidentally or not, alt metal (gasp) and grunge too (along with the shoegaze), and so it shoots for Kyuss but connects at Alice in Chains instead, and because of this its soaring Slowdive aspirations feel like they're being viewed from the Deftones desert camp, Thursday morning, 2:30am. As a consequence, the slowcore leftovers appear like I Guess I Would era Acetone drove out to join them for a feel-bad stargaze session- no campfires, cellphones, or snacks allowed.
True Widow is that feel-bad desert stargaze session. Everyone's invited but what's encouraged is a few minutes of passive or vicarious participation in the vague yet (within the camp) generally well agreed upon view that all things are heavy for reasons unknown and perhaps even unknowable. Our investment in it can actually be pleasantly sincere if we can believe that the others are either a) enjoying themselves right here and now in spite of their initial reason for meeting, or b) would rather be anywhere else, rather than say just glorifying the absence we all know is there and wish to fill with something we can't seem to find and don't think we ever will. A lesser record would do just that.

try