Initially started in 2017 as a solo side project to Lucifer’s Fall by Phil Howlett and later helped out by longtime collaborator Kieran Provis (also of Lucifer’s Fall fame), the Adelaide-bound Solemn Ceremony has been crafting the purest form of barbaric, raw, and obscure old school Doom ever since. Moreover, they have been doing it in the style of the 80s. Equipped with past experiences in songwriting for Rote Mare and Lucifer’s Fall, the ever-talented Phil Howlett brings his listeners a distinctive style of aggression-laden vocals that appear fiendish and savage.
Keeping it gnarly and wicked in the attitude of traditional doom metal, Solemn Ceremony has always been consistent in presenting the best of soaring riffs and ferocious resonances with thematic undertones surrounding existential contemplations. The music they present marks how far the trajectories and passages of their hellish journey have taken them.
They are now back on presenting yet another belligerent release to note, which is their third studio album Chapter III (Devils Victim Recordings). Solemn Ceremony annotated some grand names as their major sources of inspiration, including Cirith Ungol, Saint Vitus, Pentagram, and Reverend Bizarre. And it turns out that the influences coming from the said names appear to be highly obvious on this album. To me, they also appear to be doing their thing in an Electric Wizard style on this album, somehow– as they manage to retain the traditional doom imagery. Not only are they presenting their music in a traditional doom metal kind of attitude, they are also persistent in maintaining a DIY ethos that appears to be almost Punk– and it is also what makes their persona distinctive among other doom metal acts. I can also sense some 80s heavy metal influences on some of the tracks.
The artwork of Chapter III is also what makes this release captivating; featuring the contribution of visual artist Adam Burke, the artwork has color tones and nuances that remind me of Misþyrming’s Söngur heiftar single artwork. Overall, both music-wise and artwork-wise, this album is an all-around nice discovery to me. It’s taking the style of traditional doom metal into a visceral level that is always exciting to listen to.
Buy the album here:
https://solemnceremony.bandcamp.com/album/chapter-iii
8 / 10
RALKA SKJERSETH