One of the first things I noticed after hitting play on CONQUER's new EP "A Worm's Demise" is that the guitars are mixed noticeably higher than the drums. While the production is generally excellent and crystal clear, this one detail is especially obvious and therefore seems to be something the listener was supposed to notice. These work well for the opening title track, since a couple of minutes in the impressive guitars stop and are replaced with slower drums and continued demonic vocals, alongside a subtle bass. This change in tempo is great, and when the louder guitars kick back in they sound even better thanks to the production. The lead guitar also suddenly takes on a melodic tone for the outro which works brilliantly, while the rhythm and drums stay the course and remain slow but heavy.

The second song, "Hell's First Born", begins brutally. With no warning, some intense guitars, drums and vocals all launch us into the stratosphere while also building a tremendous amount of tension with how repetitive they sound. The same drumbeat and guitar riff are played consistently for the best part of three minutes, which initially sounds boring and annoying until all the tension is released in a monstrous riff that breathes new life into the song. Some much higher-pitched vocals also aid in this, until the guitar once again switches up its rhythm for the outro, which utilises the only fade-out of the EP.

"God Is The Destroyer" is probably the most varied track overall, using the same trick as the previous song by building tension through repetition before releasing it with a change in tempo. The vocals also become much cleaner in places, to the extent where it sounds like a different vocalist entirely. Around three minutes in, the whole song drops to a heavier riff and overall rhythm that simply sounds magnificent before it is once again switched up by an unexpectedly high-pitched guitar that enters with a lot more melody than anything else found on the release. As it progresses towards the outro, the melody is escorted by a contrastingly dirty guitar riff that directly opposes it and sounds wonderful until the whole EP is unfortunately cut short by a woeful ending. With no warning, as the song seems to be building towards something it suddenly stops, bringing to mind DREAM THEATER's legendary "Pull Me Under" which did the same thing, confusing many.

This dreadful ending is thankfully one of few bad things about the release as a whole, which despite its short length still manages to captivate thanks to the sheer amount of variety it crams into each song, particularly for such a heavy band. The album art is worth a mention to, as it seems to have been drawn by a very talented 5 year-old with a penchant for demons and the Eye of Sauron. I only wish there was more here, but for a free download you can't complain too much.