Epitaphe are a progressive death metal trio from Claix, France, and «III» is their third work — the album where it becomes clear where they wanted to go from the start. Their first album from 2019 moved along funeral death/doom paths, «II» from 2022 went toward progressive, and here the two currents merge.
Country: France (Claix)
Genre: Progressive death metal / Blackened death-doom
For fans of: Opeth, Blood Incantation, The Ruins of Beverast, Disembowelment
The result is an album with two faces: on one hand the long, heavy compositions with a death metal step that the band knows how to build, on the other more atmospheric, progressive passages where they are still finding themselves. The opener «Windswept» lasts around sixteen minutes and contains almost every combination they can think of — from growls and doom choruses to clean vocals and saxophone.
The references that come to mind are early Opeth and the more recent Blood Incantation, more than The Ruins of Beverast or Disembowelment. Despite the ups and downs, the record holds interest to the end and deserves the attention of those into the more demanding sound.
See also: Opeth – The Last Will & Testament or the complete guide to the sub-genres of Metal.
