EP REVIEW: Wounds Ever Expanding – Tómarúm

If there’s one thing the planet can’t seem to get enough of at the moment it’s progressive metal bands, and fortunately TÓMARÚM fit that bill perfectly. Despite a name that translates into Icelandic as ’empty space’, their music is anything but minimalistic and they are set to release their new EP Wounds Ever Expanding, a quickfire juggernaut destined to give the world a harsh wake up call. Featuring cover artwork akin to some of the best on any extreme metal roster, the EP bodes well, and despite only running for two tracks, TÓMARÚM still manage to squeeze out sixteen minutes of progressive, blackened mastery.

Given that most debuts serve as attention grabbers, it’s important to be right on the money. It’s surprising how capable TÓMARÚM immediately feel while they are launching us into a whirlpool of fast paced, biblical carnage. Track one is Throes Of Life, Forever Entwined and it quickly becomes apparent how much attention this Georgia band have paid to intricacy. Fast and relentless it might seem, but it is an incredibly well mapped track that profits from fretless bassline and guitar work to appeal to many a prog nerd. Huge solos and sweeping riffs compete for superiority in what is frankly a warzone.

And that covers the first six minutes, before Crimson Severance swoops in with even more intent. TÓMARÚM‘s press release pegs them as both atmospheric and progressive, and that is a surprisingly hard combination to pull off. We can look at the work of bands like FALLUJAH who have obtained similar results in a tech-death capacity, and it seems that what TÓMARÚM have done is taken that principle and added a swathe of black metal over the top. Because of this, it doesn’t always feel as clean as some of their counterparts, but it certainly succeeds in terms of rampant emotion.

Keep in mind this is only a taste of what this band have in the works and it might just start as one of the years more exciting releases. TÓMARÚM are a diamond in the rough, and with Wounds Ever Expanding they have an EP that will keep them on the radar of extreme metal fans for quite some time to come.

Rating: 7/10

Wounds Ever Expanding is out now via self release.

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