Formed in 2017, it took the Greek band Penthos five years since its inception to craft their debut album, released independently on CD and tape. Work that paid off, as for the sophomore album the band drew the interest of Darkness Shall Rise Productions. Under this new banner, the band is now set to release their second album ‘Erevos’ on all the common formats.
‘Erevos’ is an album that deals with the dark aspects of the mythology of Greece. However, the sound of Penthos is a far cry from the Hellenic Black Metal scene. Instead, the music is cold Black Metal with its roots firmly planted in the Finnish and Norwegian Black Metal scenes. Darkthrone, but even more so Tulus and Khold are mixed with Satanic Warmaster and Horna resulting in a cold-sounding album with melancholic undertone. The aspect that perhaps recalls the melodicism to typical for the Greek Black Metal sound the most, are the rather beauty-oriented melodic riffs that are warmly woven over the tracks.
The Mediterranean sounds and strumming of opening intro ‘Nekyia’ certainly bring across a relation to Greek mythology, but once ‘Dancing God’ rears its fierce head, any association with the warm sun and majestic architecture is lost. Cold with plenty of pace, the pull-up melodies are the only sense of sunlight in an otherwise harsh landscape. ‘Bloodstained Path’ is then a more midtempo and groove-laden track, where croaky vocals dictate. Here, the comparison with Khold and Tulus is especially obvious, though it certainly recalls the more rocking tracks of Horna as well. The subsequent ‘Olethros’ contains rather low tempos as well but has a few more volatile outbursts than its predecessor. The howling solo is nice, but the balance between the guitar sound and fierce percussion is a bit off, with the drums dampeningthe guitar riffs unless the tempo drastically lowers. ‘Thanatos’ then is a typical Scandinavian Black Metal track, starting off with furious drums and tremolo riffs. The distorted strumming that follows is eerie, but the song has a couple of odd transitions between riffs that kind of break the flow. While ‘Charon’ starts off promising with ominous strumming and the rumbling bass promises ensuing violence, the sound feels a little bit thin when the pace increases. With its Finnish sound and melody, ‘Lady in Black (Witch II)’ is one of the better tracks, combining melancholy with subcutaneous melodies and moody clean strumming that swells into an apocalyptic ending. Similarly, ‘Echoes of the Sanatorium’ manages to combine strong riffs, beautiful melodies and a solid atmosphere, making it clear that the second half of the record is the best part.
But while ‘Lady in Black (Witch II)’ and ‘Echoes of the Sanatorium’ are excellent song and ‘Erevos’ certainly isn’t a bad album, it lacks a little bit in conviction. I enjoyed the melodic leads, the at time eerie atmosphere and the intensity of the vocals, but I can’t help to think that it all feels a little bit lacking. That is perhaps my main objection, that it mostly fails to withdraw itself from a role as background music. So by no means unpleasant, but not an album that grabs your attention and keeps you hooked from start to finish.
