News: Forever Autumn Returns with 'The Lamentations'
- The Metal Crawlspace
- Dec 4
- 2 min read
Independent Release • January 3, 2026
There’s a certain kind of silence that exists only in winter—where wind, flame, and memory all speak at once. That’s the world The Lamentations invites you into. It’s the space between breath and ritual, between shadow and firelight, where the old truths still whisper if you’re willing to listen.
That world belongs to Forever Autumn, the long-running artistic vessel of Massachusetts musician Autumn Ni Dubhghaill. For nearly 25 years she has carved out a sound that refuses to be boxed in: part pagan folk, part acoustic doom, part atmospheric black metal, and entirely her own. Her work feels ancient without being nostalgic—music tied to the earth in a way that feels lived rather than performed.
Through albums like Patience of ðm Fire-Keeper and Howls in the Forest at Dusk, Autumn has collaborated with talents such as cellist Jon McGrath and Aaron Stainthorpe of My Dying Bride. But for The Lamentations, she chose total solitude—writing, performing, recording, and producing the album herself. The result is her most intimate and haunting work to date.
The Lamentations opens with “Beltaine,” a deceptively simple melody that pulls you straight into the circle of firelight. Autumn’s voice has that rare quality of sounding close enough to touch while carrying the weight of something older, almost mythic. From there, the album unfolds like secret pages turning.
“Self Portrait in Blue, Black and Grey” drifts through melancholy hues as if the seasons themselves were speaking.
“Hexes and Wards” moves like an ancient dance—uneasy, powerful, filled with the wisdom and weariness of old spirits.
“Fylgia and the Fetch” might be the album’s most stunning moment: an acoustic, elemental interpretation of black metal built entirely on raw intensity and presence.
The journey winds through reflections, warnings, half-remembered dreams, and the kind of emotional honesty that only comes from creating in total solitude. By the time “The Salt of Mortality” closes the record, we’re walking through late-autumn shadows—thinking of what we carry, what we leave behind, and what waits for us in the turning of the year.
Mixed by Robby Baier and mastered by Jack Control (Darkthrone, Inculter, Ice War), The Lamentations has a sonic richness that matches its emotional depth. Autumn’s own artwork from her Self-Portrait in Winter collection adorns the release, completing the circle of creation.
Released on January 3rd, under the Wolf Moon, The Lamentations is an invitation—quiet, powerful, and unforgettable—to step out of the modern noise and return to something deeper.
Line-up
Autumn Ni Dubhghaill – All music and vocals
Genre: Acoustic Doom / Pagan Folk
FFO: Hagalaz’ Runedance, Myrkur, Wardruna, Stille Volk, Jo Quail
More Information
“…invite the ancient spirits to the crossroads where dark folk meets black metal...”
— GhostCult Magazine
