World Below – Repulsion

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At only five tracks Repulsion would seem like a short third offering from World Below, a band who’s version of doom metal is probably the closest to early Black Sabbath since sHeavy. But with the fifth track, Monument, clocking in at an epic twenty minutes, the whole disc ends up being deceptively full length. Opener Monsters In The Closet is pure ’70s Sabbath. Ozzy-esque vocals over a constant string of riffs and raw leads, which continues to be the theme over the other songs, bringing in some slower Cathedral riffs. 731 adopts a grander feel to some of it’s passages and incorporates some extreme vocals to contrast Mike Danielsson’s higher tones, but the centrepiece is of course Monument which truly runs through the full repertoire of doom metal music from it’s acoustic intro to some of the albums heaviest riffs and softest Planet Caravan verses. They will probably be criticised by the most predictable of listeners for “ripping off” Black Sabbath, but World Below are far more adventurous than Sabbath were, turning what Sabbath started into true epic doom, and doing it well. Criticism for this would be grossly unfair.

Written by Andy Lye
More: Albums, Doom Metal, Quick.Play Reviews, World Below