Chelsea Wolfe has released her ninth studio album, 'The Dark', a gothic-folk record that finds the American singer-songwriter in a more introspective and slower-paced mode than on previous work, while retaining her signature blend of goth, metal, industrial and folk influences. The album matters as the latest evolution from an artist long regarded as a leading voice in dark, atmospheric songwriting, with Clash's review praising its ability to channel moments between life and death through carefully layered, haunting production.

The record features guest contributions from Icelandic trio Kælan Mikla on the track 'Humours' and Queens of the Stone Age guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen on 'Swallower'. Tracks such as 'Cold', 'Seethe', 'Turn The Key', 'Death Is Not the End' and 'Halo' move between doom-laden heaviness and near-whispered vulnerability, with Wolfe describing the album's overarching concept as a séance.