REVIEW

Second album from Denver, Colorado–based doomgaze band BleakHeart.

Building on the lineup from their previous release—JP Damron (Gt), Mark Chronister (Gt), Kelly Schilling (Vo/Key/Syn/Ba), and Joshua Quinones (Dr)—the band are joined here by Kiki GaNun (Vo/Syn). The addition results in a distinctive configuration centered on twin female vocals and dual keyboards, a setup that significantly reshapes their sonic palette.

While the debut leaned heavily into funeral-doom levels of darkness and weight, this album appears to expand outward, incorporating more delicate and graceful elements that evoke post-rock, folk, and even neoclassical music. The interplay between Kelly Schilling and Kiki GaNun’s vocals, layered over double keyboards and complemented by a string quartet, creates rich, multi-dimensional harmonies. The overall effect suggests the sensation of drifting into sleep while wrapped in jet-black velvet—luxurious, heavy, and quietly enveloping.

The album opens with #1 “All Hearts Desire,” which makes full use of the dual-keyboard approach to build a slow-burning, dramatic swell. On #3 “Where I’m Disease,” the intertwined vocals trace an image of gradual emotional erosion, their harmonies tightening as the song progresses. Later, #6 “Falling Softly” unfolds as a solemn elegy, where graceful string lines and monolithic guitars merge into a deeply mournful procession. Each of these tracks points toward a new creative territory for the band, balancing doom’s gravity with an expanded sense of beauty.

Listeners drawn to doom music infused with folk or ethereal elements—such as shedfromthebody, Lethian Dreams, or Darkher—will likely find much to appreciate in BleakHeart’s evolution on this release.