Band:	Triptykon
Album:	Eparistera Daimones
Style:	Doom metal, Gothic metal
Release date:	March 22, 2010
Guest review by:	vezzy

01. Goetia
02. Abyss Within My Soul
03. In Shrouds Decayed
04. Shrine
05. A Thousand Lies
06. Descendant
07. Myopic Empire
08. My Pain
09. The Prolonging
10. Shatter [Japanese bonus]

Following the permanent disbandment of the cult Swiss metal act Celtic Frost in 2008, which came as a shock to many, Thomas Gabriel Fischer announced his formation of a new band named Triptykon. Two years later, we have their debut Eparistera Daimones.

The whole album is very atmospheric. Haunting melodies, dissonant and thick riffs coupled with dark ambience and interludes which create tension and a few intimidating, energetic solos to strengthen it all. Tom's raspy pseudo-demonic and angry voice fits well here, at times shifting into a vocal echo or coupled with a female voice. His vehement expression of rage can come out quite fierce at times (especially in "A Thousand Lies"), which also happens to be the fastest and most ruthless track on the album, consistently keeping its fast tempo, whereas the other songs generally tend to change their tempos. The drumming is a crucial point, as it balances the overall rhythm while being distinguished in its own right. Many genres can be identified here, from progressive and thrash to black and doom metal, even though the general sound lies in the latter two genres. The bass is murky but also muffled in the music's gloomy feeling. The guitars are the dominant part, as they control the pace and direction of the songs.

I guess, in the end, it's indeed a spiritual successor to Monotheist. The sludgy and raw tone is the foundation, but in my mind, is divided between many other elements that weren't featured in Monotheist and make this a more-or-less worthwhile experience. Then again, Fischer himself stated that he wanted it to be a "darker, heavier and slightly more experimental development of Monotheist." Well, he does it.

To speak of highlight tracks, I'll choose "Goetia" (a formidable opener, if not very original), "In Shrouds Decayed" (starts out chilling and tuneful before evolving into a raging dark metallic part), "A Thousand Lies" (I already mentioned it as the fastest and most relentless track on the album), "Descendant" (features some memorable, intimidating semi-thrash parts including the well-executed chugging/rolling) and the 19-minute monster composition "The Prolonging" (this one really evokes a feeling of despair, but it may drag far too long for some people, which is when the ironic song title comes into play, nevertheless it's worthy, including the grim finale of it). There are two tracks beforehand that lead up to "The Prolonging", those are "Myopic Empire" (somewhat repetitive but decent) and "My Pain" (this is your standard mournful track, nothing new or interesting in it).

If you disliked or felt that Monotheist was too slow and mundane for you, then you might as well skip this release. But for those who liked it and would like to hear a logical evolution of it, then go for it.