The Syrian metal scene has been on the rise since the last two years, after a little hiatus in the late 2000’s, the early 2010’s saw the birth of many promising new bands, one of the most important being, Eulen, a Doom Metal band that had released a split with Despair and a full length album, Mother Earth,  last year. Both had been highly acclaimed within the underground metal scene and yet the band has another release under their sleeves to release: a new EP.

The idea of releasing a new EP that contains re-worked songs is a really interesting concept to see in the Middle Eastern scene. I believe it’s one of the first times that such a thing has happened in the area. The Diminished Mass Realm EP contains tracks that appeared in the band’s previous works, the major musical theme is experimentation with new, slightly different atmospheres. The first song, Desolate House (Acoustic Version), provides a nice, acoustic feel of the original song. The second, This Old Hearth (Symphonic Version), left me wishing to hear more orchestration, it was more of an alternative version than a real symphonic one.

“The Snow Still Lasts Forever”, which is a rework of “First Snow” off the album, is a really great 10 minute epic song. Mixing between the album’s original song and this EP’s general atmospheres, the first half is filled with Acoustic guitars while the second goes to Doom Metal — simply the best song  in this EP. The last song in the EP is a Piano version of, “Ancient Soul Misery”, which appeared in the band first split with Despair. There is nothing more I can add to this, it’s just as the title says, piano enthusiasts will love this track.

Despite the album having little to no heavy metal moments, this EP is a huge step for Eulen and demands to be respected. It’s a move that is only done by those bands with confidence and creativity, Eulen proved that it has both and showed that among the many Doom Metal bands in the Middle East, they are considered as one of the finest.

Reviewed by Mujtaba Badr on Jorzine.com