Reaper is cool.. better than the commercial software (Tracktion 2.0) I have... and with better support and almost daily version updates, it just keeps getting better and better.

Also.. back in my youth (hehe) I used to get into a bit of Death/Doom metal.. The only bands that stick out in my mind are Carcass and Testament. These days Testament is crap compared to the stuff that used to put out.. Souls of Black is still one of my all-time favourite songs/albums.. "The Legacy" (by Testament) is a little on the ballad side of metal for most purists' tastes but it has some awesome lead guitar solos in it.

I also listened to Metallica, Megadeth and other similar bands around that time as well.. but I always loved, and still do partially, the power riffs in a lot of the really heavy death/doom metal stuff. However, without a soaring lead guitar motif to offset it I always felt a track was a bit lacking.. "The Legacy" is a reasonable example of what I mean.. Here's a youtube link for The Legacy.. it's a bit ballady.. I know.. but yeh.. I love it :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96hWg3iFp5A