(Andy Synn explores the depths of grief with the debut album from Greece’s Euphrosyne)
As someone who was a big fan of Euphrosyne‘s debut EP, Keres, back in 2022 – so much that it took a spot in my “Top Ten EPs of 2022” (and arguably would have climbed even higher had it been released a little earlier) – it was a given that I was going to be the one to write about their much anticipated first full-length, Morus.
Unfortunately, time and tide (and other things beginning with “t”) worked against me a little bit last week, so I wasn’t able to cover the record prior to release.
But, hopefully the band will forgive me for the delay once they read what I’m about to write.
What’s particularly interesting to me is that while the band are still billed in their press-materials as “Post-Black/Doom” the more “blackened” elements of their sound have – initially, at least – been somewhat downplayed when compared to their previous EP.
That’s not to say that the band aren’t capable of setting the airwaves ablaze when they want to – the brooding, bombastic beauty of “Funeral Rites”, for example, channels the spectre of classic Rotting Christ with its pounding metallic riffs and pristine melodic leads, while the similarly excellent “Mitera” transitions from a moody, minimalist intro to an explosive array of symphonically-enhanced shrieks and blastbeats – but it’s a surprise, and not necessarily an unpleasant one, how much emphasis they’ve put on the more atmospheric and ambient side of their sound this time around, which in turn only emphasises the contrast when they really cut loose.
The sombre strains of “21st July”, for example, rely solely on a blend of piano, synths, and poignant, plaintive vocals to set the scene, and it’s not until halfway through the track that things actually get “heavy” (but, boy, do they get heavy), while the elegant ebb and flow between driving intensity and doomy introspection which makes up “Valley of White” recalls the best work of the band’s American cousins in Oceans of Slumber (with the simmering, almost Trip-Hop inspired slow-burn of “Eulogy” only further reinforcing this comparison).
I’ll admit that the prevailing quiet-loud dynamic (specifically, the whole “understated, introverted introduction leading to a cathartic, blast-propelled finale“) does get a little predictable over multiple listens, with only the aforementioned “Valley of White” and absolutely outstanding closer “Lilac Ward” flipping the pattern, but thankfully the collective strength of the band’s performances – with particular praise reserved for the eloquent and moving performance by vocalist Efi Eva – help ensure that Euphrosyne‘s long-awaited debut album does not disappoint.