DEORC ABSIS are not easy to define. Part black metal, part symphonic, part death metal, some other stuff... the first track here starts with 30 seconds of ambient orchestrals before bursting into frenetic, noisy, and mile-a-minute riffing. One really has to listen to 'Stasis' a lot more than once to figure out everything that's going on; especially as it is so short. At under four minutes, DEORIC ABSIS packs in atmosphere, brutality, and technical skill cohesively. The riffs are wild and change in feel often, but the drumming-a band's backbone-stays pretty constant throughout, never lapsing into odd meter or breaking the groove. Appropriately, 'Statis' is followed by 'Epanastasis' which enters on similarly grand stings before the death metal riffing starts. The guitar is a bit more acrobatic here than on the previous song, oscillating between melodic bursts and brutal chugs. As which its predecessor, even though it's only a little more than 4 minutes long, 'Epanastasis' packs easily double its length in terms of varied parts. I this at this point if I had to categorize the band's sound, I would call them progressive death metal.

Some of the riffing on 'Epanastasis' reminds me of Obscura, which is why I say that. They also throw in a few tremolo-based riffs more typical of melodic death metal. The album (or, more accurately, EP) definitely succeeds in creating a consistent mood; though they are by no means uniform or 'the same song', I can definitely tell that common threads bind the three songs found here together. 'Metamorphosis' is the only song here not to start off with strings or orchestration, but does not suffer for it. In fact, it boasts a memorable melody recurring throughout, even though it is just a few notes, the haunting dissonance it creates matches perfectly with the band aesthetic. The drumming also shines on this song; towards the three minute mark there is a very clear showcase of what Taiti can do.

You might think it would be hard to write a substantial review of something so short-the entire thing is less than twenty minutes long. Thankfully there is a lot in each song to analyze. I think my pick for favorite of the three is 'Epanastasis'; from the first riff it sounds like a slightly psychedelic interpretation of Sound of Perseverance, which is my favorite Death album. I had a similar reaction to it as I did that Shabti album I reviewed a while back-I wasn't expecting to be as big a fan as I am for various reasons mostly about my preconceived biases against black metal. But the blending of technicality and atmosphere is done impeccably and in a way that does not sacrifice clear production in the name of preserving the vibe.