Vicky
Being highly passionate about foreign languages and particularly Latin, I have to begin by telling you that Post Luctum comes from “post”, meaning “after”, and “luctum” (from “luctus”), meaning “grief”. At the same time, Timor Lucis also comes from Latin, with “timor” meaning “fear”, and “lucis” (from “lux”) meaning “light”. Ergo, to conclude my complex and meaningful introduction, the band After The Grief will soon release the album Fear of the Light.
Timor Lucis is obviously an album sinking into various styles of Doom Metal, ranging from atmospheric, light material (yes, pun intended, and erm, “Approaching Light”, I’m literally talking about you here), all the way to gut-wrenching MeloDeath with Gothic Metal influences. Now, by that, please read actual ’90s style Gothic Metal, with traits similar to those you’d find in a song by fellow labelmates Pilgrimage, Shades Of Deep Water, or even Old Night – my favorite Meuse Music Records triad, in case you forgot. Out of these three, if I were to pick a band I could call closest to the sound of Post Luctum, it would definitely be Shades Of Deep Water, due to the fact that both of them are supergroups yet simultaneously solo projects having in their lineup brilliant artists (obviously, one brilliant artist per band, and they are different people). Post Luctum is led by Ian Goetchius, also a member of Sour Milk Theorem, a band that, you guessed it, is basically his other solo project.
According to the group’s Bandcamp description, Timor Lucis has been written while feeling alone, rejected, and being isolated. An analogy for this feeling was sparked by thinking on the times of lighthouse keepers. Alone, they sit through bad weather and their own isolation, and they did it to save and benefit others. Letting their light guide sailors to safety. However, despite the fact that the lighthouse motif is mentioned here, note that the approach Post Luctum has towards this particular theme is entirely different from Old Night. While Old Night, on their song “The Loneliness of Lighthouse Keepers”, focused on the story itself, Post Luctum, on most of its tracks, ends up using the sea as a reason for contemplating sorrow and mourning. If you don’t believe me, here are some of my favorite lines, taken from the song “Shrouded by the Sea”: Basking in the light, while shrouded by the sea. Fill my lungs with the tears of the ocean and wash me from the earth.
If we are to come to a conclusion, it would probably be worth mentioning that composition-wise, Timor Lucis stands out in a less than obvious way, by creating more than just exquisite gloomy sonic landscapes, it also contributes to the world of (Funeral) Doom Metal through a unique elegance in style and nature. So far, 2026 is off to a beautifully melancholic start, and hopefully we’ll receive dozens of more glorious LPs from bands we can fall in love with the same way we have done last year. Timor Lucis can definitely be considered the first album of this year to give us genuine feeling.
Label: Meuse Music Records
Release date: February 6, 2026
Website: https://postluctum.bandcamp.com/
Country: USA
Score: 3.5/5.0
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