CURSE OF EIBON hailing from Sweden were formed in 2020 by Fredrik Croona (CYNICAL EXISTENCE, CARNAGE ALPHA) and Mathias Back (REEK, CARNAGE ALPHA). They are a Death Metal band with melodic and symphonic elements. After their debut EP in 2020, "Journey Into Madness" is their second EP and it is an independent release. The EP has a length of almost 19 minutes.

"Journey Into Madness" is musically inspired by traditional Death Metal as well as by epic and dark melodies. The EP creates a frosty and doom-laden atmosphere throughout. It starts with "Colors From Beyond" which sets the stage for the things to come: aggressive and dark guitar riffs, frequent tempo changes ranging from fast pace to measured mid-tempo parts. Especially the mid-tempo parts contain epic melodic components and are intensified by a symphonic background. The growling vocals are mainly at the deep end of the gutturals and hardly vary throughout. "Forbidden Path" follows the same textures, but it contains a more pronounced lead guitar component. The melodies maintain the gloomy atmosphere but vary between melancholic parts and more straight forward and aggressive parts. The vocals vary a bit more compared to the opening track including a couple of screams. However, the vocals sound a bit subdued throughout the EP. Lyrically, CURSE OF EIBON are inspired by the mystery of the occult and mainly by stories of H.P. Lovecraft and this is something that is reflected in their sound.

"Madness" is basically a kind of intro, driven by piano and a spoken word passage. I felt that it is a weird place to put this track into the middle of the EP, the more obvious choice would have been the beginning. Some parts of the sound in "The Call" remind me on early PARADISE LOST tracks from their phase in the early 90s. The song is kept mid-tempo with catchy guitar riffing and epic and melancholic lead guitar parts including a lead guitar solo near the end of the track. "The Call" was released as concept video and the YouTube link is given below.

 "Whispers In The Dark" is basically a continuation of "The Call" with similar textures, some catchiness in the guitar riffing and a lot of chilling melodies providing a dark atmosphere. In contrast to "The Call", "Whispers In The Dark" also includes a couple of fast and more aggressive outbursts, but the track is clearly dominated by the doom and gloom of the melodies.

"Journey Into Madness" is a decent EP. CURSE OF EIBON do not enter groundbreaking new territory with their music. Their sound is dominated by a lot of epic and partially melancholic melodies and a dark atmosphere. Most of the songs sound quite similar and there is little variation in the overall sound and in particular in the melodic components as well as in the vocals. I liked the changes in rhythms in most tracks which freshened things up and made the EP more interesting to listen to. The EP is well produced, although I would have liked to hear more vocals. "Journey Into Madness" will have their share of fans and it will be interesting to see in which direction CURSE OF EIBON are going to go with their future releases.