Wither – Necropolis (2012)

Delivering a highly melancholic debut full-length release, today we have “Necropolis” from the Australia two-man band Wither. Featuring a very diverse and depressing sound, this band will surely put you on suicide watch after listening to 50 minutes of brilliant Funeral Doom with some Black Metal and Gothic Rock elements. With elements from bands like Katatonia and the Russian Gothic/Doom band Autumn, this Aussie band has a very well defined sound that is extremely emotional.

Opening with the heavy riffing of “Sonar Sphere”, the band’s sound immediately starts aggressive but as the melancholic melody sets in, this moves to the background. The raspy vocals are quite desolate and greatly add to the very moody atmosphere of the track. As the song progresses, the mood changes to a slower and even more desolate atmosphere, very similar to what Autumn used to do in their releases. Being the first track, we are completely hooked on how this release creates very bleak landscapes with their music.

“Chromatic” delivers another moody piece with a very playful bass guitar line and Katatonia-esque riffs. The drumming is very minimalist and it greatly serves the purpose of letting the rest of the instruments create the atmosphere while keeping them in line. Things get a bit more aggressive with “Lament”, a suicidal Black Metal track that fits the overall picture of the release, but feels a bit weirdly placed. Our favorite track of this release is the very bleak “Cosmos” and it’s very simple but effective vibe. The clean vocals are very mellow and when paired with the Katatonia-esque riffing, they work wonders for the overall mood of the release.

After the acoustic instrumental “Damage & Loss”, the stage is perfectly set for another very emotional track titled “Seeming”. The riffing is a bit repetitive, but the excellent clean vocals and the awesome percussions and bass guitar line make this another very good and atmospheric song. Closing with the experimental “Transpression”, the band leaves on a very confusing note. This track has very sparse drumming, hellish vocals, and a weird drone-ish feeling to it, not the best in this release for sure.

Overall, Wither is a very promising band that has a lot of potential thanks to their bleak atmospheres. The music is good, but a bit more of consistency between the tracks would be appreciated. “Necropolis” is by far a very solid debut album that needs a bit of polishing here and there to make it outstanding, and so does the band. If you like melancholic music and are a fan of bands like Katatonia and Autumn (Russia), you will definitely love this one.

Release: October, 2012

Genre: Funeral Doom/Black Metal

Country: Australia