Based out of Indianapolis and featuring a who’s who of veterans from such bands as Obscene, Harakiri, and Bulletwolf, Mother Of Graves makes a strong first impression with their debut EP. The group’s melodic approach to Death/Doom makes no bones about the influence from Paradise Lost and Katatonia, mixing the former’s mournful leads with the latter’s mid-tempo pacing. One can also detect traces of Novembers Doom in the vocals and Dan Swano’s signature touches on the mastering.

With that established, the presentation on In Somber Dreams (Wise Blood Records) is pretty damn fantastic. The production is incredibly full, making for an especially chunky guitar tone accompanied by a fuzzy bass undercurrent and occasional atmospheric piano. The vocals are also masterfully executed as the growls steer clear of monotony thanks to the legible enunciation. It’s a very polished package overall but has enough power behind it to keep from getting toothless.

While the songwriting revolves around plodding chord progressions set to mid-tempo pacing, the four tracks manage to be pretty dynamic. This is especially true of lead single ‘The Urn’ as its somber introduction eventually gives way to a tug of war between faster segments and slow melancholy. The opening title track also stands out for its heavy emphasis on those Paradise Lost influences, particularly where clean vocals briefly get to shine, and I can get into the aggressively trudging riff set on the closing ‘Deliverance.’

Overall, Mother Of Graves’ debut EP is very much of its inspirations but does an excellent job of seeing them through. The shorter format would certainly forgive any notions of limited songwriting, but the band offers a multi-faceted presentation with some terrific musicianship to boot. One hopes that any subsequent full-lengths will flesh out certain aspects of their sound even further. In the meantime, In Somber Dreams is a lovely first impression of Death/Doom comfort food.

Buy In Somber Dreams here: https://wisebloodrecords.bandcamp.com/album/in-somber-dreams

8 / 10

CHRIS LATTA