REVIEW: Alone He Guards This House - a punchy new single from Epimetheus

An eventful 2023 has seen Bristolian doomgazers Epimetheus win the local Microdog Battle of the Bands heat before spreading their wings a little further out in the country, notably with appearances at Depravation Festival and Worcester Music Festival as part of their Doomgazing tour. They've also put out the excellent new single Alone He Guards This House, which has become a staple of their setlists over the last few months.

A few gentle, fuzzy chords set an ominous scene before leaning into a screeching guitar line over a swaggering rhythm. It's a lot more upbeat than most of their existing material, but with their trademark superfuzz and intelligent drum patterns, it's still very much an Epimetheus number. They've never been afraid to write a solid vocal hook (see last year's Machetezilla), but Alone He Guards This House really exceeds expectations in this regard with a leading line that really sticks in your head. James' backing vocals are excellent, with a particularly charismatic howl just before the band slow down to doom out for the second half.

They use a wickedly powerful descending chord sequence to lull the listener into a haze for a lysergic midsection. Evoking Electric Wizard, though with Cillian's much-lower guitar register, their gradual tempo drop is very effective and reminds us all what a powerful force of doom and drone the band are. By the close of the song, Epimetheus have gone into full-blown meditative tranquility, which pushes their musical boundaries further than ever before. Alone He Guards This House certainly shows the band aren't willing to rest on their laurels, with a two-sided track that expands the definition of what Epimetheus can be in sonic terms.

As a standalone single, the first half of the track is a solid choice. It'll attract many listeners with its catchy chorus and a fun, fast sense of urgency. This isn't entirely down the well trodden path for the band. Yet its trippy second half may well hook plenty of those listeners in for the long term, inducing a trance-like state above the guitar and bass tones as thick as treacle. Again... this is something fairly new for the band.

A solid new song, and perhaps a sign of things to come?

Epimetheus - Alone He Guards This House (live Apr 2023)

Epimetheus: Facebook | Instagram | Spotify | Bandcamp

Entropy EP review (2022)

MN

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