Orodruin - Epicurean Mass

The first thing I noticed on the biography for Orodruin is that their influences include Trouble, St. Vitus, Candlemass, and Cathedral- well now bring on those Sabbath riffs and doom brother. Apparently Orodruin started out just about two years ago with guitarist, organist John Gallo and his former bandmates vocalist and bassist Mike Puleo and guitarist Nick Tydelski. Soon they were joined by drummer Mike Wake and entered to studio to record their debut full length, Epicurean Mass.

After a brief intro ("The Welcoming"), "Peasants Lament" kicks in with some retro doom rock and Puleo's vocals in that classic St. Vitus/ old school doom sound. "Maloncholia" is more like Cathedral's slow doom. "Pierced by Cruel Winds" sees a little tension with the guitar playing and one can be reminded of some of Brainticket's best (i.e. Las Cruces, Last Chapter). "Burn the Witch" is back to the slow paced doom. "Unspeakable Truth" does a good job on all fronts as Orodruin show they can play killer doom riffs but also rock out a little. "War Cry" and "Epicurean Mass" also return to the roots of metal with some seventies based sounds. Epicurean Mass may not be as good as those four previously mentioned influences, but it's clear that they are well on their way to following the footsteps of the great ones. Hopefully they can add a dose of originality as well.