Returned to the underdark for a tale of a mind thrilled unto its unrequited downfall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based epic heavy/doom metal quintet CRYPT SERMON speak to power and possession through angels and demons on this third and most refined full-length album as they step beyond their first decade of existence and deeper into their own. The ambitions and intentions of the now reconfigured crew are clear enough on ‘The Stygian Rose‘, making it crystalline that they’re in it to create the best possible heavy metal album, taking one more crucial step into heavy rock and epic doom informed style of their past work and away from too obviate inspirations. Still striding slow and leaning heavy on their most expressive qualities these folks now more than ever focus on songcraft beyond their satisfyingly over the top beginnings. Anyone who’d fallen head-first into the dramatism of past works should appreciate the way they’ve dialed back to their most essential personae yet left none of their classic late 80’s/early 90’s heavy metal appeal behind.

Looking back in time for a legacy of personage to expound we retreat about eleven years ago to a point of origin with clear enough intent. It arrives as soon as the first dual lead beckons, the whole ordeal comes rushing back into mind, wherein a return to an album like ‘Out of the Garden‘ (2015) is a call back to an era of Crypt Sermon which seemed entirely in service to a best version of epic doom metal. It was an obsession of mine at the time, infectious and eccentric in a way which’d stood above anything else doomed that year at #14 on my 30 Best of 2015 list at the time. The flaws of that record, if we can put on a critical hat in hindsight, only added to the atmosphere it’d projected with heavy use of vocal reverb, a thrash-forward guitar tone and production that’d aimed for a blustering early Candlemass-esque effect with its sometimes grinding keys and brilliantly over the top vocals.

There was a lot to admire about this new doom metal band on an extreme metal label but I’d particularly admired that the artwork was done in-house via vocalist Brooks Wilson. It was novel that the style of the record was something entirely different than the black metal, grindcore, and death/thrash they’d collectively been doing elsewhere yet it’d been fully fleshed, a highlight and a grand perk to anyone seeking something more ambitious than the usual lip service given to ‘Nightfall‘ styled doom. Per the times they weren’t necessarily on the level of say, Argus at their peak but brought a standard which matched the dramatism and performance of a contemporary group like Wheel and the early 90’s classics from Solitude Aeternus. Perhaps the bigger point to make up front is that these folks brought doom metal, an epic and traditional shade of it, and made it feel a grandiose and exaggerative as possible.

The assumption to be made here is that guitarists James Lipczynski and Steve Jansson were the primary songwriters on the first and second Crypt Sermon albums with the former having been responsible for the big first impression each album made. With such a large role in their quickly hyped (and just as quickly out of the conversation) second album ‘The Ruins of Fading Light‘ (2019) it should be some cause for concern that Lipczynski had left the band since then as the pair of guitarists and collection of songs resultant had created such a strong tonal match at the time. Upon review I’d suggested their sophomore release “does exactly what a sophomore release should in moving beyond formative years towards sticking points that’d establish new horizons to explore in the future.” At that point the signature sound of the band seemed to have arrived through the hydra-headed production, passing through many hands and heads contributing to its big-deal release, there the band seemed to have found its foundation and identity. The one criticism to the longevity of that record, depending on your perspective, that I’ve recognized since is its oppressive use of studio effects for atmosphere, being given a dirtied up but hugely resonant sense of space via Arthur Rizk. Point being that many things were established then and just as many things have changed in the ~5 years since that album released… including a large revision of their line-up and a glossier, deeper obsidian tone achieved per a reconsideration of their production values.

The goal and major intent of ‘The Stygian Rose‘ is clear enough as stated, to bring something they’re not hearing anywhere else into the traditional heavy metal space while striving for a timeless-as-possible statement. This involves taking a step away from the slower “epic” spectrum of doom metal without entirely losing the taxing strafe that’d made their first two records a trip and a trudge-through. This means that the major voice of the album, a combination of inspired dual guitar muse and the slightly less outsized personae of vocalist Brooks Wilson, are the focus of a perfectionist touch even moreso than before as they retain a keen sense of dramatic melodicism in a narrative mode. Production values found on this album are one of its finer points to be sure but not nearly as compelling as the story told and the method undertaken, putting all of the weight of this album in its general concept which uses nigh mythopoetic symbolism and bits of what I’d read as Robert E. Howard‘s Hyborean age lore to spin a yarn which may require a few footnotes to shape in mind but should still read as effective enough via lines like “I’ll die with my / eyes open wide / Just to get a good look at hell” on the circa ’91 “Nobody Hears”-level hooks n’ torment of opener “Glimmers in the Underworld“.

As above, so below. — Of course delivery helps sell these golden moments as they arrive within each song. There is a high level of charisma, an idea behind every movement, and a sense of style conveyed within Wilson‘s delivery (+ lyrics) which has taken several years to hone which should rightfully be the initial/main point of conversation here. Though it won’t be long before the snap of their riffs and the experting source of leads that help each and every song stick in mind becomes the major focus of most listeners. Besides its wash of lingering keyboard magick to start “Thunder (Perfect Mind)” offers the most immediate example of the epic/heavy doom metal spectrum Crypt Sermon‘ve always operated under: The leads are tight as ever, the maze of the narrative is pained and crawling slow, and the restraint of the guitar performances help fill the song with its own tension as they find key impetus for momentum going forth. Sure, a roundabout way of simply stating that these folks still sound like themselves despite the line-up changes and shift to more pristine, depthy production values but we get there fully conscious of the different level of performance available.

Are we actually missing the doom metal side of things here? If anything the grey area between heavy and doom metal is fictive or simply dissolved at a mid-pace, already blurred by the epic doom metal tradition by nature, and this is still squarely where Crypt Sermon‘s rhythm machine and its function are virtually unbroken on ‘The Stygian Rose‘. The way I’d typically delineate this sensation is nearby ‘Tales of Creation‘-era Candlemass, a similar transitional point of style reflected here but also a more full range of expression beyond gloom-stricken plod. Deeper signifiers, such as feeling conveyed via performance, still warrant the epic heavy/doom metal tag as we reach for the middle third of the album as this is justified more readily on the darker bane of “Down in the Hollow” as it thrashes through despair and the mind-in-a-maze torment of “Heavy is the Crown of Bone” which features probably my favorite chorus/vocal melody overall and another signature moment long-standing fans should appreciate.

Looking beyond the captivating varietal melodic interest and cadence developed within each individual song, soaking in the still-knotted style of dual rhythmic riffcraft available, enjoying the extra illustrative color offered by the keys, and admiring the personae upheld I’d yet found ‘The Stygian Rose‘ was a grower, a slow to blossom in mind record that’d offered increasingly effective relief each time I’d run back to the start. It certainly has a replay value of the last record as an immersive and engaging experience though there is a certain candlelit sorrow to even the catchiest pieces (“Scrying Orb” probably has the most insistent hook, and wah-juiced leads) and instead of demanding a low mood it’d left a residue of graven dirt and wonderment, a high fantasy vibe with a morbid hand, and… once I’d gotten there it was hard to put this record down. Pair this feeling with the perfectly appropriate cover artwork from Wilson and my experience was made whole, the right feeling achieved, and to the point that I’d wanted an extra week (or, month) to continue to sink into their work. A very high recommendation.

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