Terrore

At present a duo based in Bologna, Entrøpia play seriously filthy sludge / doom / death metal with evil slavering relish. Debut EP "Terrore" showcases Entrøpia in all their bloodcurdling menacing glory on four songs dealing with suicidal desperation from a life lived in drug addiction and alienation in dysfunctional Western society. Opening track "Far Away From You" is a no-nonsense introduction to the band's style of deep booming and dirty doom metal spiced with guttural death metal vocals and a brisk pace. Follow-up track "La Siempre Igual Oscuridad" sails along at expected doom-metal speed (that is, slow with pounding rhythms): the surprise is that the deep and heavy crumbly-toned doom metal goes well together with the gravelly singing, the vocalist savouring every croaking tone as he breathes out every word. This is a lengthy track held together by strong riffing and rhythms that speed up to galloping levels and reach blast-beat levels. The vocalist's groans become a layer of droning texture in their own right helping to give the song its unity despite its length.

"Where Man Were Not", another long track, reveals more of the malevolence behind the music though it is still fairly restrained. Most of the energy is carried in the rollicking rhythms and beats and the burning magma of gritty guitars and rasping vocals flowing over. Any deviations from the steaming crusty lava flow in the form of feedback guitar droning come late and can be surprisingly clear as well as noisy and cuttingly sharp. Closing track "A Big Rope" continues with the brisk pace and straightforward melodic death doom approach though in its last few moments it becomes a bit more psychedelic and noisy in its use of guitar drone effects over grinding slabs of deep distorted bass and percussion.

The emphasis is on the song-writing, the riffs and the lyrics with very limited break-outs of fiery lead guitar solo. The songs can appear monotonous as they are dominated by the singing and are minimal and restrained in their delivery save for those brief moments of feedback guitar drone carving up and warping the space between your ears. This willingness to experiment with sound and sonic contrast between the deep guttural doom metal and the more shrill guitar feedback might hopefully become a regular feature on future recordings.

At this stage of their career, needing a drummer perhaps, Entrøpia opt to demonstrate their strengths in creating and sustaining their guttural and occasionally experimental brand of doom death over four songs. Once they get a drummer, the band might be able to indulge their sludge metal tendencies much more than they do on this EP. They might achieve a heavier, doomier sound as well but this could be at the cost of playing doom metal that can be fast and flowing. This band certainly is worth watching in the future to see how their music develops though the EP is a modest low-key effort.