To call Tribulation one of the most wildly unpredictable metal acts of the 21st century would be an understatement. Over the course of 20 years, they went from ripping Swedish death metal, to a death/black/prog metal amalgamation, to their latest identity, which sees them stripping away their leather and corpsepaint for black shades and suave outfits to match, gothic metal. It’s an approach the band first hinted at on their genre-defying The Children of the Night (2015), only to further explore on subsequent releases. On their latest outing, Sub Rosa in Æternum, Tribulation fully embrace this ethos once and for all, virtually stripping away any and all remnants of their black/death/thrash past.
Sure, Johannes Andersson’s vocals occasionally revert back to those primal rasps that dominated early Tribulation releases, and there are some pretty heavy moments throughout, both riff-wise and atmospherically (more on that later). However, even 2021’s Where the Gloom Becomes Sound boasted some throwbacks to Tribulation’s early days (i.e. “Daughter of the Djinn”, “Funeral Pyre”). I can’t say the same for Sub Rosa. Now by no means is this a complaint, but rather an observation. I note this because even by Tribulation standards, Sub Rosa is an “out there” record: One that’s guaranteed to keep fans and critics alike splitting hairs for a long time.
From the ominous intro that is “The Unrelenting Choir” into the pure ’80s nostalgia of “Tainted Skies”, it becomes evident early on that this album is going to owe more to say The Sisters of Mercy and The Cure than Entombed and Bathory. Throughout the course of Sub Rosa, Tribulation manages to subtly balance weighty riffs and metallic bite with gothic fragility and distant melodies. This contrast is displayed brilliantly on songs like “Saturn Coming Down” and the closing “Poison Pages”, both tapping that dreary coldwave vein that seems to be more embraced by the metal community in recent years.
The electronic-driven “Murder in Red” stands out as the obligatory synthwave foray, while the walloping “Drink the Love of God” embodies the gothic metal aesthetic better than just about any song on here, with an extra emphasis on “metal”. And then we’ve got powerfully nocturnally shrouded cuts like “Time & The Vivid One” and my personal favorite, “Hungry Waters”, the latter of which can only be described as lying at the moonlit crossroads of prime ’80s goth rock and Blue Öyster Cult at their most atmospheric. If we were to do a year-end Top Songs of 2024 List, there’s no doubt this would crack the top 20.
With the exception of a couple songs that don’t click with me out of mere personal taste alone, Sub Rosa stands out as yet another remarkably compelling entry in the Tribulation canon. Although Halloween might be over, Sub Rosa is bound to keep this denim and leather clad metal purist goth dancing through the end of the year. Forget a mosh pit; Tribulation are ready to open up the mope pit…at least until their next inevitable musical metamorphosis.
8 out of 10
Label: Century Media Records
Genre: Gothic Metal
For fans of: Unto Others, In Solitude, Moonspell