SNAKE HEALER is a doom metal band from Miami, Florida that formed in 2021. Their concept is an interesting one. The band speaks of lore leading all the way back to the bible, specifically when the snake came to visit Adam and Eve, which the band called the “Serpent Lord.” The band preaches that ‘paradise without free will is nothing but a prison.” I don’t disagree with the band’s message and, if anything, it made me want to like this EP more than I actually did. My problem isn’t the subject matter, or the music that brings it to life, but instead of the execution. It is a short EP, at just over 21 minutes in length. However, it is rendered much shorter because of the seven tracks presented, only four of them are actual songs. Although I’m sure the other three tracks make sense to the band, and I will admit they fit into the album’s themes, as a reviewer, they just don’t do anything for me. The intro track, “Serpentis Dominus” is a short, atmospheric piece that doesn’t go anywhere. The first interlude track is “Record Entry February 22 1922,” which is nothing more than a recording featuring Robert E Brown’s first contact with the rituals and ideals of this cult. The second interlude is another recording.

However, I’m happy to say that the four actual songs on this EP are pretty damn good and have me eagerly anticipating a full length. The first of these songs is "Evocation" and it starts off with incredibly dense riffs, lead heavy bass and solid drumming. Much like the EP as a whole, the album has a truly dark, mysterious atmosphere wrapped up with hints of arcane danger. The clean vocals are solid too and only add to the occult themes. The band shows their prowess for making clean sections just as engaging with the opening moments of "In His Name." Around the 44 second mark, the song gets about as heavy as a black hole—seriously, one of the heavier moments I’ve heard in doom this year. The vocals take on a ghostly type wail while the bass takes over the song—the effect is very surreal and chilling.

I love how the drums compliment the riffs in "Call On Me," because it makes the song all the more menacing. The choppy, mid paced galloping riffs are a nice touch too but it's the atmosphere/mood that gives the song its true power. The title track ends the EP on a bang by being the song that combines riffs, atmosphere and storytelling the best. The keys are very well done too and lead the song back into a worthy heavier end movement. All in all, I can’t rate it higher because of all the filler but the actual songs are worthy of quite a few listens. If the band can trim the fat and focus on actual musical pieces, I suspect their future full length will be a big