ALBUM REVIEW: Devotionals – Cardinal Wyrm

Four years on from Cast Away Souls, Californian doom outfit CARDINAL WYRM are set to self-release their fourth album Devotionals. It’s an ode to their DIY roots and the faithful that have stuck by the underground outfit through the years. Worshipping at the altar of classic BLACK SABBATH doom but with enough twists and turns to satisfy those who want a little more from their metal, Devotionals significantly ups the ante from its predecessor. 

Where Cast Away Souls’ sound was spread rather thin, Devotionals has thick guitar tone with rumbling bass and thunderous drums. This is all done without overshadowing the vocal interplay between the three members. Opener Gannet charges into view before slowing somewhat to allow Pranjal Tiwari’s baritone croon to emerge from the swirling guitars. His more traditional doom approach is offset against blackened rasps that are often paired with sludgier riffs. This fusion of styles has come to define CARDINAL WYRM’s approach to doom; taking elements from traditional doom, progressive doom as well as sludge and melding them together to tell their stories. 

Speaking of storytelling, there was a deliberate choice to return to the band’s roots here. Mrityunjaya is centred around the Hindu epic Mahabharata and the character Karna being reincarnated as a stray wolf. On a similarly spiritual theme, Canticle tells a story as old as time of a devil at a crossroads, but from the perspective of the devil making an offer to the listener. Appropriately for this year, closing track Do We Have Another Battle Left In Us? serves as a question and a rallying cry. Despite 2020 being so physically and mentally draining for most, if not all, the song asks if we seek to give in or to continue fighting and forge a new path into the future. It’s an emotional, stirring number from its soft, more minimalist opening that builds and crescendos to a towering conclusion. 

As promising as it all sounds, the melding of styles often leads to some meandering moments that leaves Devotionals feeling a little unsure of itself, such as the slow crush towards the end of Selimesh or the opening to Imposter. These don’t derail the album by any means, but it does mean that its fifty-plus minute runtime feels a little longer than it is. That said, CARDINAL WYRM have crafted a record that, while rooted in doom, explores new territory both new and old. They craftily meld their influences together to create an album that occasionally misses the mark, but is a unique and mostly engaging listen. 

Rating: 7/10

Devotionals is out now via self-release.

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