On their sophomore full length, the progressive death metal band Erebor offer a deeply satisfying antidote to quick fix culture with “Infinitus Somnium”

come, as this continuous building and interweaving of ideas has the effect of pulling the listener in. The contrast of the understated growled vocal along with clean guitar is somewhat reminiscent of early Opeth. A sequence of riffs which follow increase the speed and intensity without ever losing melodic impact. Indeed, this balance of melody in the guitars with harsh vocals combines to make a rich, complex soundscape that’s an absolute pleasure to experience. At the halfway point of the track, a quick fade leaves the guitars to guide us through an extended clean section. The interactions between the instruments throughout this section show a keen understanding of tension and release. As a result the heavier riffs that bring in the final verse are a glorious thrill. The vocals here reach a new level of intensity, while the lead guitar accompanying them is sublime.

More clean guitars open “The Tower”. The differentiation in the clean parts is perhaps key to the character of each track. If moments of “The Endeavour” brought to mind early Opeth, a more apt comparison here would be Alcest. The marrying of the clean guitars with a skittering, busy drum part is brilliantly executed. As a heavier riff kicks in, the bass is particularly notable, weaving in and around the guitar rhythms before another sumptuous guitar lead precedes the first vocal of the song. In an album that’s largely instrumental in nature, the interplay between the vocal lines and the varying instrumental styles throughout the album is consistently impressive. Dual leads usher in a verse steeped in melodic death metal styling, before finally giving way to a return to the part that had opened “The Endeavour”, pulling the two chapters together before the  final stage of the album’s journey begins.

As with the preceding tracks, “The Apotheos” opens with clean, delayed guitars. Again, there’s a slight shift in the character of the parts here that holds true throughout the track. A ready comparison in this case would be Agalloch, and the track certainly makes good on the immersive, expansive promise implied thereby. It should be stated, however, that such comparisons in no way detract from the uniqueness of the experience Erebor have crafted on “Infinitus Somnium”. As the final track wends its way through a crushingly heavy verse, the melody is still never allowed to slip out of sight. It’s a fantastically executed balancing act. Here as in the rest of the album, every member of the band shows superlative ability with their own instrument, and mastery of the dynamic of the whole. As the movements of the track flow into one another, the changes are at once unpredictable and seemingly inevitable, the changes between styles never jarring but always drawing the listener further in. “The Apotheos” includes some of the album’s heaviest sections, their impact resounding in comparison to the beautiful clean guitar work they arrive amongst. The track closes with a variation on the opening guitar of “The Endeavour”, before the bird calls from that track’s beginning bring the journey full circle.

We live in an age marked and marred by eroding attention spans, where musicians (and other artists) are relegated to algorithm-chasing content creators. Bucking this trend, Erebor have instead elected to produce an expansive, exploratory musical journey. The result is a continually unfolding work of significant artistic merit, and while each track can be listened to and enjoyed in isolation, the album is clearly intended to be savoured as a whole. It’s remarkably difficult for anyone in this day and age to find 43 minutes free of distraction to be fully immersed in a work like this, but it’s worth the effort when “Infinitus Somnium” has such a wealth of rewards to offer.