PROMETHEUS Delivers A Cyclopean Death Doom Opus
I have just been introduced to one of my favorite albums for this year, and now a band that I will certainly be following for future releases. Prometheus hail from Greece, and bring with them a colossal mix of Hellenic black metal fused with an execution reminiscent to early Morbid Angel. The result is a cosmic hellscape of relentlessly oppressive guitars, expansive and pummeling drums, and guttural vocals channeling the miasma of a desolate canyon in the blackest pits of an interdimensional tomb. The songs have a cavernous death metal feel, and fans of bands such as Portal and Immolation should feel right at home. But the sound is only a familiarity, a way to trace pedigree, as Prometheus delivers wholly original soundscapes and a battery of exsanguinated riffs meticulously described with lyrical prose inspired by texts and legends of forgotten mysticisms.
The music is thick, solid, and masterfully constructed - it is the music of the Cyclopean; Eldritch and terrifying, with evocative artwork and a presentation in a digital booklet and a sound design mix that both promote the impending doom of the tremulous riffs, but allows the instruments in the studio to breathe. Slight touches of synth help to add a dash of celestial sparkle to the maddening propulsion. Lengthy songs provide a satisfying experience; some songs get thrashy, with some progressive influences heard even in the first track, immediately conjuring images of bands such as Death and fellow Greeks, Septic Flesh, while synthy, ambient interludes add some introspective time between the fury of the next song.
This album is Eldritch brilliance, and who better to give precis to their writings than from the artists themselves? If these lyrical passages appeal to the Mythos-lover in you, then you owe it to yourself to listen to these tracks.
Try this…
“Azathoth, the slumbering, sightless prince of daemons,
who dwells dreaming in the center of rippling chaos
beyond the ordered universe in a palace” - PROMETHEUS, “Azathoth”
Or maybe this...
“In the midnight heavens burning
through ethereal deeps afar,
once I watched with restless yearning
an alluring, aureate star” - PROMETHEUS, “Astrophobos”
Or how about this one...
“On the black midnight wind
I heard the far ringing of deep-toned bells
through gateways of recalling
beckoned me back to elder towers
Fused into one mysterious cosmic drone
Echoes from outer voids
Elder signs and primal secrets
Wrapped in red as scarlet flame” - PROMETHEUS, “Resonant Echoes from Cosmos of Old”
Cavernous death/doom has few releases, and exceptional quality such as this album is such a treat that I honestly cannot recommend this album enough. If you like that heavy, oppressive death-doom feel, with the foreboding of Behexen’s Poisonous Path, but with an Eldritch, Cosmic horror scale, this may be one of the best things you listen to this year. PROMETHEUS, Resonant Echoes from Cosmos of Old is available on 12” LP, Digipak CD, and Digital format through I,Voidhanger Records coming October 23, 2020, and I cannot stress enough how much I enjoyed this album.
TRACKLIST
1. Gravitons Passing Through Yog-Sothoth (7:51)
2. Azathoth (6:00)
3. Astrophobos (8:37)
4. Resonant Echoes From Cosmos Of Old (9:04)
5. Ανεμοι των Αστρων (3:45)
6. The Crimson Tower Of The Headless God (7:47)
Total Time 42:54
Esophis: guitars, bass, synths
Aggelos: vocals
Nodens: dums
All music by Esophis
All lyrics by Aggelos, except for "Astrophobos" by H.P. Lovecraft
Additional synth by Qsnc (4, 6)
Mixed by Esophis, mastered by Stratos Karagiannides at Valve Studio
Art by Dimitrios Ch. Kosmas. Layout by Francesco Gemelli
AVAILABLE FORMATS
- 12"LP
- Digipack CD
- Digital Album
FFO: EMPEROR, SETHERIAL, early ABSU, MORBID ANGEL
MORE INFO
https://i-voidhangerrecords.bandcamp.com
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