Eremit – Desert Of Ghouls – EP Review

Two years on from their debut album Carrier Of Weight and German doomsters Eremit return to the fray with a new two track EP, titled Desert of Ghouls. With only two tracks and a running time of just over 21 minutes, it’s pretty clear that these guys are in no rush to get, well, anywhere fast!

Both “Beheading The Numerous” and “City of Rash-Il-Num” are lead heavy and drenched in reverb and over the course of both songs, Eremit take a riff and bash you repeatedly over the head with it. For minutes at a time. Occasional and  subtle changes of pace do retain interest and when Eremit lock in to a bastardised Sabbathian groove – as they do in the final third of “City of Rash-Il-Num” – the results are agreeably satisfying.

While there’s nothing inherently wrong with Desert Of Ghouls, 2020 has been an absolutely stellar year for doom and, if we’re being completely honest, Eremit find themselves lacking somewhat when compared to ‘braver’ releases this year (the aggressive trad doom of Cardinal’s Folly’s Defying the Righteous Way, the exquisite funeral doom of Drown’s Subaqueous and Dopelord’s bewitching Sign Of The Devil spring to mind).

All in all, Desert of Ghouls is worth a listen but whether you’ll go back to it again is another story. 6/10

Eremit’s Desert of Ghouls was released via Transcending Obscurity Records on July 17th, 2020