The EP series continues with a four-track release written by Paul Anop alone and performed by the entire band.

Necropanther has embarked on the unique project of giving every member of the band a go at writing a set of songs and releasing them as stand-alone EPs between full-length albums. It is an interesting idea and so far it is coming off much better than those solo Kiss albums. In Depths We Sleep is guitarist and vocalist Paul Anop’s idea. The other musicians in the band are Joe Johnson (guitar), Marcus Corich (bass), and Haakon Sjogren (drums).

The story the music tells is explained on the Bandcamp page. Here is a bit of it to draw you in. “Our story is set in mid-1800s off the coast of England. Seth Davey is an entertainer and musician. He struggles to make ends meet so he joins a whaling crew for extra money. …[T]hey can’t find any whales. The crew, fed up, mutinies and kills the captain. Trying to get back to port they run into a terrible storm. … The ship sinks and they all die. But Seth Davey’s song lives on.” So keep that in mind while you listen.

The first song emerges from the watery depths accompanied by cetacean voices, “The Descent.” Hang on, descent, so it is going down, not up. Still watery. The human vocals are low, growling, and demonic. On “Benthic Storms” the vocals go full-on Black Metal and the guitars take a turn for the groove and riff while the percussion is all about blasts. “Abyssal Plains,” is back out to sea but this time it sounds like wind to me. This is an instrumental track and establishes a slow burn with quietude at the splash then a gently rising sound that grows turbulent and menacing before receding into the distance.

“Cheers To Seth Davey” is the longest song and it wraps things up nicely. Whalesong (or the like) introduces the environment that faces a lambaste of wretched necrotizing villainy. For all its darkness and melancholy, the track is melodic and possibly even hopeful amidst the all-encompassing death.

In Depths We Sleep is out this Friday in both downloadables and physicals. It is something different and it is an attention-grabber. Recommended.

Band photo by David Novin.

Links.

Website, http://www.necropanther.com

Bandcamp, http://necropanther.bandcamp.com

Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/Necropanther