There have been many times that I’ve come across albums from bands that are simply trying too much. Sometimes, too much can simply be mixing two styles together as the band in question doesn’t mix them together all that great leading to a slight mess. Other times, too much means too much ambition in trying to have too many different styles going on in your music. Death, doom, and dungeon synth are rarely things that I’d mix together in the same pot, but it’s with their debut that Chasmdweller has dared to try such a concoction resulting, surprisingly, in disturbing success.

The weird realm of dungeon synth is typically the sort of thing that you’d see mixed together with black metal with acts like China’s Demogorgon being my favorite example of that, but it was only a matter of time before we got a band who dared to bring the electronic style to the lands of other metal styles. Doom sounds like a solid pairing, but I never would’ve expected someone to attempt mixing dungeon synth with death much less both at the same time, but it’s through harrowing atmospheres and an unforgiving approach that Chasmdweller has made their humble debut EP nothing to take lightly. Having just two tracks doesn’t seem like Chasmdweller is giving itself much room to work with, but with both tracks clocking in roughly ten minutes each there’s plenty to go around with this ridiculous style as this act does nothing but justice for such a ridiculous sounding proposition. It’s with a very sluggish but potent slab of darkness that we’re constantly beaten with before we are surprisingly bludgeoned with a spiked mace as the doom gives way for the death metal, and it’s sandwiched outside those two massive weapons that we get the dungeon synth that both sets the scene in all of its darkness and the ending to suffocate the final notes into nothingness. And it all works fantastically well! It creates for an experience that’s equal parts suffocating and devilishly satisfying as Chasmdweller does nothing but deliver one strokes of evil madness one after another by the time this massive EP comes to a close.

It’s good for any band to have ambition, but some acts fall short and all such sight to overcome them before, ultimately, succumbing to unfortunate failure. It’s with immense dexterity and talent that Chasmdweller somehow doesn’t fall for that, but instead blossoms spectacularly in their self-contained darkness. And this is just the beginning!

LISTEN to “Chasmdweller” on Bandcamp here.