When Lord Heikkinen formed Soulgrind in 1992, it was a rough and raw solo death/doom band. He released two EPs and two LPs between 1993 and 1995 for the now-defunct Malodorous Mangled Innards Records before deciding to invite some band members along for the ride. This would drastically alter Soulgrind’s musical direction towards gothic black/thrash, a decision likely influenced by the introduction of vocalist Tanya Lilith. Lilith and Lord Heikkinen remain the only current band members from the 1997 record, Whitsongs, as long-time drummer and sometimes vocalist Agathon “The Beast” sadly passed away in 2022 from cancer. Soulgrind experimented with harsh vocalists until settling on keyboardist Azhemin in 2001, though they still incorporated a vocalist committee for some time. In 2010, Soulgrind released their ninth full-length album, The Tuoni Pathway, before suddenly disappearing. It took sixteen years until they finally found the time and inspiration to release their tenth album, Ad Pulchram Mortem.¹

Soulgrind has seen a significant evolution in their sound since the beginnings of their life as a gothic act. Their early material was raw and evil-sounding, with demo-level production quality. The blackened rasps from Lord Heikkinen and Caesar McLaulone were sometimes grating,² yet there’s no denying a hunger and passion in their music. The early 2000s felt like a period where Soulgrind were trying to figure themselves out, with some inconsistency in identity from release to release. Then something clicked in 2007 with the release of Pakana, and the music grew more cohesive as it began to revolve around Lilith’s melodic touch. The Tuoni Pathway would see this direction improved before Soulgrind’s lengthy hiatus. Ad Pulchram Mortem brings about a mix of the old and the new, continuing the melodic direction of the last two records while still including some of the rough blackened touches of the older material. This sounds like a veteran group that hasn’t lost an edge of its passion despite the long hiatus.

Ad Pulchram Mortem contains gothic touches resembling fellow Helsinki natives Hanging Garden and the melodic black metal of Sojourner. They dabble in thrash on the likes of “Jylhä Metsämies” and “A Whispered Curse Upon the Gale,” as well as Paradise Lost-style death/doom on the terrific “The Origin of the White Serpent.” The deep, grizzled blackened growls of Azhemin delve into a darkness and ugliness that bring a harsh edge to the music—sometimes at the risk of putting off listeners. Soulgrind occasionally gets weird, such as on the sinister “In the Circus of Tuonela,” yet typically the weirdness is offset by the melodic and catchy choruses from Lilith, as exemplified by “Tears of the Earth.” The duo of Lilith and Azhemin proves a boon, as she serves as the foil of beauty to his beast. Her emotionally charged cleans lift the spirits and act as a soothing balm. This culminates in an outpouring of passion and melody on finale, “Into the Shadows of Devotion,” that is simply jaw-dropping.

For a band with a sixteen-year gap between releases, there is, understandably, still some rust to shake out—in this case, struggles with consistency and length. The record generally works better when Lilith is singing, and she sometimes rescues songs that are otherwise just okay, such as “Tears of the Earth” and “As a Narrow Fjord Descends.” Even so, she occasionally has distracting issues with pitch or odd-sounding vocal tones. Perhaps the biggest miss is the mid-album tune, “In the Circus of Tuonela,” which feels out of place with its lack of memorable hooks. The inconsistency goes hand in hand with a need to edit. While Soulgrind has pretty consistently pumped out 45-minute records throughout their career, this one feels a bit YOLO, reaching the 65-minute mark, including an eleven-minute finale. This last song, incredible as it is, would have a greater impact in a tighter package.

Soulgrind write the sort of melodic music that I love to overrate, with choruses that have me swooning and a heavy crunch of guitar and growls that beautifully contrast with the gentler side of the music. Yet Ad Pulchram Mortem feels as if the band was a touch over-enthusiastic, unable to make the edits necessary to create a more cohesive record. In my heart, there is a 4.0 lurking within these 65 minutes. The compositions revolving around Lilith as well as her soaring performance are just too good. Now that they have this one under their (onion) belt, I hope Soulgrind can return to the studio and create another work with this level of artistry, but a little more cohesion.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Inverse Records
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: August 14th, 2026

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