(written by Islander)
And now for something completely different….
The always interesting Mexican label Chaos Records describes the music of Hermit Dreams as “experimental death/doom metal.” All those words are relevant — but especially the “experimental” part, because it’s the nature of the experiments that makes the music so unexpected, so distinctive, and just as fascinating as the cover art of their debut album Desperate Anomies.
A lot of death/doom provides soundtracks to personal or physical catastrophe and their abysmal aftermaths, but the music you’re about to hear goes off the usual beaten paths and into glades that really will make people think of a hermit’s dreams, a hermit from ancient myth who lives on the border of realms where the rules of our world have no sovereignty.
This new Norwegian group harnesses a group of experienced musicians and a diverse set of influences. As the Chaos label explains, it began “as a creative outlet for founding member Eyvind‘s songwriting, allowing a somewhat different take on obscure and weird death metal that did not fit comfortably within the (admittedly already rather wide) DISKORD frame.” As you’ll soon see, the music also prominently features banjo, upright bass, cello, and theremin.
Traditions of death and doom metal are also certainly present and accounted for in the music, from the tandem of harsh and clean vocals to the methodically plundering and wildly obliterating drum work and the moods of gloom and danger. But again, it’s the experimenting that makes the song you’re about to hear stand out, and the unusual instrumentation is only part of the inventiveness (though a significant part).
The opening music of “Directionless Haze” (the song we’re premiering) is a rarity, a combination of classical and folk ingredients, a union of the upright bass, which deeply moans across the channels, and the banjo’s brighter but still moody lilt. Hermit Dreams periodically punctuate that haunting duet with sudden percussive jolts, but the music still has the air of a funeral procession.
The song also layers in harrowing howls and beastly roars, as well as feverishly sizzling tones, a darker foreboding of things to come. What comes is an attack of ruthlessly hammering beats, slashing and boiling chords, and weirdly warping melody. The flickering banjo still slowly meanders through the percussive and vocal outbursts, as if off on its own strange frolic, and it brings along with it the echo of a soaring singing voice.
The music seems to stumble and smack as the bass hums and the banjo wails and wanders — none of which would prepare you for a sudden scorching scream and the vicious sonic churn around it.
This isn’t a song that allows listeners to find a steady mental groove. It’s about keeping people off-balance and bewildered/dazzled yet necessarily focused lest you fall and sprawl in the dirt. The pacing continues to ebb and flow; the vocals continue to trade off between monstrous roars and extravagant singing; you can feel the snare crack your skull, but the beats are also unpredictable, sometimes steadying and then also lunging into gallops and blasts.
In the closing phase, the banjo and shimmering backing instrumentation with an ancient resonance seem to lead the listener through a shire, beckoning us through some woodland marvel toward something out of this world and possibly subterranean, because the mood is somehow as perilous as it is spellbinding.
HERMIT DREAMS Lineup:
Eirik Waadeland (CELESTIAL SCOURGE, RUUN) – Vocals
Bjørn Tore Erlandsen (BOLVERK, ASPHERIUM) – Drums
Martin Storm-Olsen (VINGULMORK, DEFECT DESIGNER) – Banjo, guitar, clean vocals
Eyvind W. Axelsen (DISKORD) – Cello, upright bass, bass guitar, theremin, shruti
The album’s marvelous cover painting was created exclusively for this release by Den Unge Herr Holm, the Bergen-based artist known for his evocative works with Vreid and Sólstafir. As Chaos states, “His expressionist approach perfectly embodies the album’s introspective and dissonant nature.”
Desperate Anomies was mixed by Martin Storm-Olsen (Sounds of O Studio) and mastered by Colin Marston (Gorguts, Mitochondrion, Behold the Arctopus). The album will be released December 5th on CD, cassette tape, and digital formats, with vinyl coming in early 2026. Orders will eventually become available through Chaos Records at the links we’ve provided for them below.
HERMIT DREAMS:
https://hermitdreams.com/
https://www.facebook.com/hermitdreams
https://www.instagram.com/hermit_dreams
CHAOS RECORDS:
https://www.chaos-records.com/
https://chaos-records.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/chaosrecords
https://www.instagram.com/chaosrecords