Review by JD on November 28, 2010.

I've been a fan of Black Metal for years; seeing how the genre has grown and become more complex has been an amazing thing and I am proud that I have watched it flourish. I have been impressed by some of the artists that have been coming out but today, I have been blown away by a band I have never even heard of yet. Virginia(USA) based Ecliptic.

I was surprised by this bands complete musicality, to the point of almost disbelief. I was expecting and hoping for something good and I got more. Strong melodies that are infused with some very heavy riffs and insanely brutal vocals. It seems that the band have taken people like Cradle Of Filth and Gravespawn, amped it up and added in some major strength of melody and with more than a pinch of Death Metal’s acrid stamp and even the progressiveness of My Dying Bride as well.

‘Sleep Of Reason’ is a track that straddles the barbwire covered fence between strong melody and brute power and is a good example of the band’s brutality, but it is the massive sounding ‘The River Flows On’ that show off the bands masterfulness of their dark crafts while talents put Ecliptic on the fast track to getting the metal masses respect.

With a wee bit better production and a letting their music grow naturally, Ecliptic are going to be one of those bands that will go far. They may not be on the top of the heap but they are climbing the granite walls and killing those who are weaker than them. Buy and enjoy!!! I think we have not heard the last from these Dark Virginians.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 9
Atmosphere: 8.5
Production: 8
Originality:8.5
Overall: 8.5

Rating: 8.9 out of 10

Review by Brian on March 5, 2016.

Over the last decade the number of original and memorable releases has definitely decreased. In an industry filled with cookie cutter bands being promoted, if you like that, then you'll like this. But, still sometimes there comes a band who doesn't follow conventional genre stereotypes, a band that doesn't so easily draw comparisons, sometimes there's a band...

...that band is San Francisco's Howls of Ebb. This being my first experience with the band, I won't be able to tell of progress or decline from their debut Vigils of the 3rd Eye. What I can inform you about is the genius that is Cursus Impasse: The Pendlomic Vows. The first thing that stands out is the guitar tone. They use a cleaner distortion. This is the first thing that separates them from their black and death metal peers. The bass compliments the guitars so well while each instrument gets equal representation in the mix. The sound is basement-esque. I believe this is intentional and gives it this decrepit feel.

The opener "The 6th Octopul'th Grin" blazes out of the gate deploying dissonant chords, thundering bass and rapid fire drumming. The vocals fall somewhere between death metal growls and black metal shrieks. In fact the overall sound is somewhere between the two genres.This is weird stuff. As I stated before, it is really hard to draw comparisons. Think somewhere in the realm of Hail Spirit Noir, with touches of Portal. However,that doesn't really do it justice.

Howls of Ebb, also know as HoB, capture and maintain your attention throughout the albums 7 tracks with dissonant assaults, amazing tempo changes, primitive barbaric drumming and tortured vocals. This all combines to give the listener a unique experience. This is more closely related to weirdo Norwegian progressive metal than anything in the black and death metal genres, but it is black/death metal. I love how strange it all is. If I had one complaint, it would be that some of the songs are arranged haphazardly. That being said, Cursus Impasse is a wonder piece of super-weird phantasmagoric black/death metal and Howls of Ebb are step ahead of their peers.

Review by Brian on March 5, 2016.

Over the last decade the number of original and memorable releases has definitely decreased. In an industry filled with cookie cutter bands being promoted, if you like that, then you'll like this. But, still sometimes there comes a band who doesn't follow conventional genre stereotypes, a band that doesn't so easily draw comparisons, sometimes there's a band...

...that band is San Francisco's Howls of Ebb. This being my first experience with the band, I won't be able to tell of progress or decline from their debut Vigils of the 3rd Eye. What I can inform you about is the genius that is Cursus Impasse: The Pendlomic Vows. The first thing that stands out is the guitar tone. They use a cleaner distortion. This is the first thing that separates them from their black and death metal peers. The bass compliments the guitars so well while each instrument gets equal representation in the mix. The sound is basement-esque. I believe this is intentional and gives it this decrepit feel.

The opener "The 6th Octopul'th Grin" blazes out of the gate deploying dissonant chords, thundering bass and rapid fire drumming. The vocals fall somewhere between death metal growls and black metal shrieks. In fact the overall sound is somewhere between the two genres.This is weird stuff. As I stated before, it is really hard to draw comparisons. Think somewhere in the realm of Hail Spirit Noir, with touches of Portal. However,that doesn't really do it justice.

Howls of Ebb, also know as HoB, capture and maintain your attention throughout the albums 7 tracks with dissonant assaults, amazing tempo changes, primitive barbaric drumming and tortured vocals. This all combines to give the listener a unique experience. This is more closely related to weirdo Norwegian progressive metal than anything in the black and death metal genres, but it is black/death metal. I love how strange it all is. If I had one complaint, it would be that some of the songs are arranged haphazardly. That being said, Cursus Impasse is a wonder piece of super-weird phantasmagoric black/death metal and Howls of Ebb are step ahead of their peers.