Voidwatcher - "Voidwatcher I" (Self-released, 2020)

Band: Voidwatcher
Title: Voidwatcher I
Genre: Doom Metal with Thrash and Heavy Metal influences
Time: 19.24 min
Release date: 13th January 2020
Vote: 74/100












Lovecraft and heavy metal: the perfect wedding! This young band from Rome Caput Mundi, Voidwatcher, that I included in the third episode of “Come on, burn my ears!”, confirms again the success of this wedding with their debut EP "Voidwatcher I", that was self-released in the early days of this unlucky 2020. Be prepared for something really fit to celebrate the Ancient Ones!

This EP contains 4 tracks, which show a sort of particular form of doom metal where there are thrash metal and heavy metal influences. This mix is comprehensible if you think that into the line-up you can find members with a recent past not only in more strict doom metal bands (like the trash movie maniac bassplayer Mark Mason, known for his militancy in the Suum) but also with a classic thrash metal education (like the singer Mirko Von Bismarck, strong of experiences in acts such as Biding the Reprisal). In fact, the thrash metal influences are listenable especially into the vocals of Mirko, so there is a strong and interesting contrast between his very angry and HC punkish vocals and the gloomy and dark music played by the band.

With the addition of the guitar solos of Maim_ and of the heavy drumming of Tinto Blast (Tinto Brass, anyone? Fuck, Mark Mason told me today the origins of the noms de guerre of every band member... and I made a lot of laughs hahah!) who creates sometimes patterns more focused on the tom-toms, the EP opens with “Lord of Change”, that is surely the most heavy metal-oriented track in the list. Then, there is the macabre “R’lyeh Rising”, the only song to feature a fast thrashing passage and where there is also a classic Lovecraftian evocation (“Iä Iä Cthulhu fhtagn”). After that, here you are my favorite song of the EP, “King Ghidora”, in which there are tough thrash metal mid-tempos and also a short break with menaceful spoken vocals in Italian by Mirko. Finally, “Dark Mantra” closes the EP adding no more particular features but well synthesizing in 4 minutes the style of the Voidwatcher.

No other words, I think that this band, that is strong of fantastic riffs and especially of a very intense singer, promises a lot for the future days to come. For now, my only suggestion to give to them is to play a bit more fast moments, also briefly, because the one present in “R’lyeh Rising” (that in December 2019 was choosen by the band to be a preview of the EP) gives more intensity to the song. I remember that just in this month they were supposed to play their very first gigs (one of them along with the post-hardcore band I Maiali) but this fuckin’ Coronavirus changed unfortunately the plans for all of us. Ha, and do you remember also that once I loved to describe the style of the Voidwatcher as sludge metal? Well, I changed my mind about it, as you see! But, instead, the band dubs itself even as heavy/thrash metal. Fuck that, you guys play doom metal!

Tracklist:

1 - Lord of Change
2 - R'lyeh Rising
3 - King Ghidora
4 - Dark Mantra

Line-up:

Mirko Von Bismarck - vocals
Maim_ - guitars
Mark Mason - bass
Tinto Blast - drums

FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/Voidwatcherband/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGIL5YCvdIMjRxn-Iwv-7AQ