Doom… real Doom… that is what the music in this, the fourth album of Germany’s OPHIS, is all about… well, Doom / Death Metal to be more exact. The kind of Death / Doom Metal old English and Dutch bands were known for. Yes, PARADISE LOST, MY DYING BRIDE, BEYOND BELIEF, CASTLE and obviously to a lesser exempt CANDLEMASS and the forefathers BLACK SABBATH. Formed way back in 2000, they never had the need of changing their logo in all this time… as OPHIS means serpent… and surely this does crawl. The mastery of the musicians is there, and also as composer they do know how to evoke a gloomy sound of decadence and misery. Maybe my minor complain with this quite deep and heavy album will be that some upper-tempo parts would work wonders here and there, like when they do it in the last song ‘Shrine Of Humiliation’. Only 6 very long songs conform this album, that I am sure, fans of the darkest and heaviest Doom Metal will surely satisfy. Touches of the slower ASPHYX are also present, so not all is about doom and gloom, but also about death, encompassed by the cavernous vocals of band leader Phillip Kuppra. Also the band is quite active playing live in Europe so I am sure that seeing them must be a total ritual of darkness and gloom. For fans of old school Death / Doom Metal with mournful melodies, this is a great release. www.facebook.com/ophis-113159458768736, www.fda-records.com