Genre: Funeral doom/death metal
Origin: Ukraine
Released: 2009
Website: Autumnia
Label: Solitude Productions
Uploaded: 01.08.09

As with most doom metal records heading my way I hadn’t heard of Autumnia before (sure, I definitely love the genre, but I’m still not all that well dispersed within its underground). So it’s with an open mind I press play for the first time, and it doesn’t take long before I’ve completely fallen in love with the band.
The majestic, melodic riffing could just as well be straight out of a Mourning Beloveth composition (not in the copycat manner, but with the same quality to it). But while I’m comparing this to one of my favourite doom acts I still find something that doesn’t fit the melodic doom/death description, and suddenly it hits me; jeez the vocals sometimes sound like Max on the early Worship recordings. And the more I think of it (bear in mind that this is just track one and during my initial listen) the music has a lot of funeral aspects.
After having O’Funeralia spinning many, many times I’m still torn between the characteristics of its doom. At times it’s clear as daylight this is beautiful melodic doom/death, but suddenly the aura changes and a hearse carries it to the funeral side of doom metal. The interaction between growls and clean male vocals as in Blessing your illness really reminds me of (yet again) Mourning Beloveth, but not with the same conviction and power. The use of piano and violin is just marvelous as it adds such depth to the already established sadness of the atmosphere. Unfortunately the vocals somehow change a bit after In heavens…among the tombs, as that’s the only song where it reminds me of the early Worship era. Now don’t get me wrong, there’s definitely nothing bad about the vocals throughout the remainder of the album; it just doesn’t have the same desperate edge. Most of the vocals are of the growl-kind, with the exception, of course, of the clean vocals incorporated in a couple of tracks.
The ultra-heavy, crushing (almost chugging at times) riffing laced with some finer melody keeps the funeral doom aspect alive throughout its entirety, all while the (still heavy-as-hell) more melodic guitar lines ease things up and traverse it towards the doom/death landscape. The thick and massive recording is capable of really delivering the powerful music with the much deserved conviction, and as the piano or violin kicks in it’s extremely difficult to resist the effective sombre starkness of it all. It’s a bit like Shape of Despair in the sack with Pantheist and earlier My Dying Bride. It’s just too damn bad the opening track is the strongest of the material presented, which makes me want to repeat In heavens…among the tombs instead of traversing into Blessing your illness, ‘cause still I prefer the tunes without clean vocals. But it's definitely a great album.

Tracklist:
01. In heavens…among the tombs
02. Blessing your illness
03. Falling asleep with entreaty
04. Breathe your mourning into me
05. By the candles obsequial