Generally, I’m a proponent of as well as fan of bands that deliver records where they get in, do their damage, and get out, leaving me wanting more. But that doesn’t always apply, and it’s definitely not something that should be applied across the board. Take doom, for example. It’s best served in longer, more demanding sessions, a trek that makes you feel every bump and pull of the journey.

We’ve long been a fan of German crushers Eremit, whose body of work began in 2018 and has stretched over two challenging, rewarding full-length albums, a stunning EP, and a few other releases. But their third long player “Wearer of Numerous Forms” is a beast of a different name, clocking in at a massive two hours, 13 minutes, and every one of those ticks is worth your time. The band—vocalist/guitarist Moritz Fabian, guitarist Pascal “Kalle” Sommer, drummer Marco Baecker, and brand-new trumpet player Hendrik “Brede” Bredemann—finishes off their trilogy that began on “Carrier of Weight” about a hermit lost in an endless ocean with this massive adventure that, believe it or not, will leave you yearning for more. This album does not feel as lengthy as it is, and it is a crowning achievement for this band that should be a household name for all doom fans if there is any justice in the world.

“Conflicting Aspects of Reality” is the colossal 63:47 opener, and most bands would have cut it with just that song. Not Eremit, and for good reason. The band starts battering right away, not worrying about pacing themselves just yet and coming at you with barbaric strength. The guitars spiral and sting as much as they sludge in spots, and the harrowing cries scrape wounds. The doom trumpets fire as blackness spreads and wretches, crushing and developing a disorienting haze that eventually meets up with a long instrumental section that plays with quieter tones, often not rising much above notes that drop like a ball of lava into water. The playing blasts back in and then takes on a meaty drone, bruising and glowing, cutting through a thick fog. The ground shakes as the growls envelope, bringing misery and fury, the growls hammering away at psyches, the fuzz  building to a dangerous level. Howls crunch, weird shrieks strike, and doom power crushes in the dark, disappearing into a vicious storm cloud.

“Entombed in a Prism of Blindness” is the “mini” track of the bunch, clocking in at 21:27 and opening the lid to hell. The playing mauls and spits brutality, smearing and corroding, the growls aiming to bury your face in the cinders. The slowly dripping torture then collides with smashing hulking, shrieks tearing minds apart, the power utterly melting. Howls rip and the playing drubs, bleeding into closer “Passages of Poor Light” that runs 47:17. The track emerges in a calculated fashion, letting the heat accumulate as the devastation gets urgent, the growls digging into your chest. A heavy, colorful fog stretches over everything, the destruction suffocating all forces pouring from the mouth. The playing feels like it’s floating in darkness before the explosions happen, the growls making flesh crawl, sounds quivering with crushing weight. Sorrow grows and makes your chest well with emotion, leads re-emerge and melt faces, and suddenly it feels like you’re surrounded. The playing buzzes and trudges, and then things speed up violently, spitting fire and gutting opposing forces, acting as a battering ram. Bodies come apart, noise levels get uncomfortably piercing, and the final embers glimmer before disappearing for good.

Eremit created their crowning achievement with “Wearer of Numerous Forms,” an absolute beast of a record. Over more than two hours, this band unfurls a document that will be a sub-genre calling card well into the future, one of those records you just have to experience to believe it. For as much content as this album holds, there is not fat to be trimmed and only a complete feast of doom that will keep you nourished and satisfied for an incredibly long time.   

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/EremitDoom

To buy the album, go here: https://fuckingkillrecords.bandcamp.com/album/eremit-wearer-of-numerous-forms

Or here: https://allswordsburn.bandcamp.com/album/wearer-of-numerous-forms

For more on the label, go here: https://fuckingkillrecords.bandcamp.com/