Doom has covered many different themes in its thousands of incarnations, but one I’ve never really seen is Satanic panic which fits far too well with what modern doom usually brings to the table. It was only a matter of time before any band brought it forth in any substantial form. Even though Bog Wizard puts it on the back burner for a good chunk of this album for a different but still loosely related theme, its presence alone gives “From the Mire” a special flavor that is simply undeniable.

Looking at the creation that is “From the Mire” as a whole, it’s easy to say that there is nothing really special going on here. It takes the same route many other doom bands take where they feel like an amalgamation between many major influences from Black Sabbath to Sleep to Conan, but Bog Wizard manages to bring their own personalities and spirits into the fold virtually without strain. It’s too often that we get bands that just copy the sound without doing anything new whatsoever with some being plain copycats without any sort of shames, but I can’t stress enough how much that isn’t the case with “From the Mire”. With a heavy Dungeons and Dragons theme with a dash of Satanic panic that came around decades ago, Bog Wizard’s special concoction is absolutely delicious to eat up no matter how often you listen to it with all the delectable fantasy elements that are constantly being thrown our way to make an already exciting album all the more tantalizing. We’re constantly bombarded with unending heaviness and terrific talent that’s on full display in every track, and it’s with a grand 10-minute closer that Bog Wizard closes an immense record with so much going on in it that it’s hard to deny how fabulous of a trip the listener just went on. All the over-played tropes are there in plain view, but the angle that they’re approached from are just different enough here make them feel just fresh enough that you can sink your teeth right into its meaty excellence without feeling like you’re being fed the same jargon that many try to pass on as a new recipe.

This record definitely caters to many long-time doom fans who aren’t really looking to shake up the formula all that much but still want something new and interesting to munch on because “From the Mire” fits that description all too well in every single way. Bog Wizard played every single hand they were dealt incredibly well throughout this whole album, and, surely, this is just the tip of the iceberg for this act.

LISTEN to “From the Mire” on Bandcamp here.

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