Flowing Tears is very much a surprise as this German four piece plays a relatively generic, commonplace style of heavy music yet still somehow comes across as very enjoyable and worth the time spent. Now several albums deep into their career, Flowing Tears has come up with a sound that is reminscient of both The Gathering (from Nighttime Birds era) and Left Hand Solution. In fact, Flowing Tears can probably be recommended as therapy for those who couldn't fathom the changes The Gathering on How to Measure a Planet as they retain the prerequiste heaviness that those fans seem have an insatiable desire. Naturally, comparisons aren't equal, as singer Stefanie Duchêne has a bit lower range (similar to Left Hand Solution's Mariana Holmberg, thus we get another easy comparison) in her delivery. The music is a slow paced affair that doesn't quite hit doom moods, but is most certainly somber and brooding. There are ample passages of heavy guitar playing at moderate tempos with the occasional underlying synth waves and quiet passages. Serpentine's main strength lies in their ability to sell the song via very pleasant melodies and moods. Sure, this style has been covered many times by the likes of Madder Mortum and other female fronted doomish bands but Flowing Tears has the songwriting ability to elevate the commonplace into something a bit more interesting. Serpentine is a very pleasant surprise in an otherwise dismal influx of new music this year.

Review by John Chedsey

Review date: 04/2002

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