It’s been a hot minute since we’ve seen the rising of a band that immediately exudes an air of certifiable success and talent undeniable from the very line-up alone. Such things can be incredibly tricky, though, since we never really know how things are going to play out until they are simply allowed to with there being more than a few instances where such acts fall short of initial expectations. I didn’t know the background and combined experience of Suspiriorum before diving into its debut EP with the knowledge of such not necessary to see that the trio has a dark future based on the occultism of horror media ahead of them. Knowing of their experience, however, such a future seems unavoidable now.

Consisting of members currently and formerly of bands like Hinayana, Destroyer of Light, Runescarred, Temple of Love, and more, Suspiriorum really seems destined for success as occult rock’s mirror to death metal’s own Heads for the Dead with themes all too similar but approaches fantastically different from the very get-go. There are but three tracks that Suspiriorum calls their own for their debut, not including the CD exclusive cover of Blue Öyster Cult, with that being more than enough to show us that this act already isn’t messing around with their intentions clear as glass with their motives as dark as the blood-soaked tapestry of night. Wreathed in a subtle but unmistakable cloak of psychedelia that works perfectly in tandem with the horror media themes that can be pulled from all over classic films and beyond, Suspiriorum does a tremendous job at not just bringing justice to the source material but making it their own in such a way that doesn’t feel like a cheap copy or a translation between media that feels hollow or underwhelming for what the material tries to embody. Rather, Suspiriorum brings the terrifying visages back to the realm of the living yet again in the form of occult rock that really takes the cores of both the influences and the genre of the music itself into great consideration to make for a debut that is already much more than promising – it’s already an undeniable success.

Horror media is not something that is under-represented in the slightest between the worlds of metal and rock with plenty more than willing to deliver on such greatness whenever there’s an opportunity with plenty bringing further greatness to the mediums without a shred of compromisation in sight. Without a doubt, Suspiriorum is one such act who does immense justice at every turn with this eponymous debut being just the start of another immense journey for these well-tempered musicians with the prospect of a follow-up already one of the few works out there that actually deserve to be called highly anticipated.

LISTEN to “Suspiriorum” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Suspiriorum on Facebook here.