Enchiridion

Oh, where do I start with this one? Will ‘o’ Wisp is a band from Italy that makes some of the most unique, artsy progressive death metal I’ve ever heard with their debut album “Enchiridion.” I love almost everything about this album and it is so damn close to being perfect, so let’s cut the shit and get to why this album has been one of my favorites to listen to over the past several months.

Labeled on the archives as “progressive death metal,” I can’t say I was expecting anything much out of the norm. Maybe another later era Death ripoff, maybe something a little jazzier in the vein of Cynic, but not anything we haven’t heard before. Boy, was I wrong. It’s hard to really describe “Enchiridion” with just a single genre tag. Yes, it’s “progressive death metal,” but there’s so much going on and so many different influences from all over the music spectrum that just one tag does it such a disservice. To be entirely honest, I’m not even sure I can name all the many types of genres of music infused with this album. There’s some shoegaze, some gothic, some jazz, some ambience, but just a whole lot of weirdness and I love every bit of it. It is such an ominous album, one that evokes such strange feelings and unveils the true beauty that music can be. The keyboards play a prominent role in all of the songs, incorporating sounds from instruments I can’t even confidently name, adding this layer of uniqueness to the album not present in any extreme metal I’ve heard. The whole album has this almost peaceful, nature-esque vibe to it that feels like you’re going through a journey in some mystical land, much like the one presented on the equally ominous album cover. I have a really hard time classifying this as death metal - sure there are growled vocals, guitars, bass and drums, but it’s not really all that death metal in nature. It’s not heavy. It focuses a lot more on atmosphere than it does just being straight up metal, and I appreciate that a lot.

The production is pretty bad, but I love it. Everything is flat, but it gives it such a unique 90s sound that can never be replaced, and it truly sounds like a product of its time. While I’m sure some people may dislike the sound, I for one appreciate the living hell out of it and I wouldn’t change a damn thing about the way it sounds.

In terms of influences, well, that’s where I’m stumped. Maybe it reminds me a bit of Cynic, Hieronymus Bosch and, very slightly, Sadist in terms of musical elements and ideas, but it really sounds nothing like any of those bands. It is, as far as I’m aware, its own beast and an album that I can listen to over and over again without getting bored. It bleeds creativity, uniqueness, and most importantly, it’s fucking great. Save for the boring instrumental Akh, this album is almost perfect and reminds me why I scour through so much mediocrity - to find that gem of an album such as this one that has me coming back to it time and time again. I hope whoever is reading this is willing to give this album a shot, and I do hope you can love it as much as I do. It’s hard to put into words what exactly this album sounds akin to, but damn is it fucking great and I will continue to listen to this gorgeous album for years to come. I hope it is remastered and made available to purchase on Bandcamp soon - I would love to purchase this one.

FFO: Hieronymus Bosch, Cynic, Sadist
Favorite songs: All of them, except Akh
Final score: 9/10