I can’t recall ever coming across any other bands from Belarus, which I guess shouldn’t come as a surprise since, according to Metal Archives, only about 250 metal bands have ever existed there. Despite that lack of a fertile scene, Crypt of Reason have crafted three of the strongest, most promising death/doom tracks of the year on their self-released debut EP.

Maybe I’ve grown too accustomed to all the raw, cavernous metal I’ve been listening to lately, but the first thing that struck me about Creation of Despair is its direct, punchy approach. At times, it comes across like a brutal/tech death metal band trying their hands at atmospheric doom with all the palm-muted chugging, deeply guttural vocals, and segments resembling slow-motion breakdowns amidst the melancholia. I imagine this could be what it would sound like if modern Suffocation covered early My Dying Bride. That might sound like a negative, but it actually makes the sorrowful guitars and atmospheric breaks all the more poignant and there are still plenty of subdued tempos and despondency to satisfy the doom quotient.

This mix of forceful anger and stirring ambience isn’t entirely new — shades of Revelations of Rain, Evoken, and Disembowelment abound — but it’s far from an abundant style and Crypt of Reason is working a slightly different angle. I’m excited to see what they can do with it on a full-length. It could help to finally get their country on the metal map.

[Visit the band's website]

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