What usually draws me to an unfamiliar band is an association with a familiar one, a novel concept, a superb album cover, or any combination of the three.1 For Seattle, Washington’s Telomyras and their debut record Duskfall, however, it was their promo’s “For Fans Of” list: Sanctuary, Metallica, Ignea, Crimson Glory, Death, and Seven Spires. This list is thorough War-Hall bait. Though I worried that Telomyras were doing what I normally do while cooking dinner—throw everything I love into it, flavor profiling be damned—I nonetheless eagerly snatched up Duskfall. “What could this possibly sound like?” I thought. Symphonic death thrash? Theater kid extreme prog? Hot garbage? Regardless, Telomyras promises “a unique blend of heavy metal and extreme metal” led by the operatically-trained Sammie Gorham. For me, Duskfall’s success depended on whether Telomyras could harness their multitudinous influences into a cohesive package or not. So, did they?
If you look for it, Telomyras’ FFO list isn’t wholly inappropriate to Duskfall. For starters, there’s a muscular power-thrash vein running through Duskfall, imbuing “Burden” and “Reckoning” with early-Metallica/Sanctuary aggression. Crimson Glory’s influence is primarily felt in the guitar leads (“The Altar”) and overall prog-power approach, but the kick patterns of “Harbinger (…The Eternal Night)” feel straight out of Transcendence, while the Death namedrop seems to arise from Gorham’s cavewoman howls on “Reckoning.” Including Ignea and Seven Spires is false advertising, however. There’s nothing symphonic about Telomyras, and though Gorham performs the beauty-and-beast vocal dynamic solo like the other two acts, her darker tone sounds more akin to Tower’s Sarabeth Linden than the other acts. When Telomyras are at their best (“Attrition,” “The Altar”), Duskfall is an enjoyably thrashy, powerful, and darkly atmospheric exercise in extreme-leaning heavy metal.
Though Telomyras are a talented bunch, Duskfall suffers from chemistry issues. In the guitar department, Telomyras can crush some respectable riffing by way of half-time Metallica chugs (“Witch”), speedy palm-mutes (“Burden”), and bruising thrash chops (“Attrition”). The solos on Duskfall are exquisite; they’re not especially flashy, but they bring a frantic energy to “Burden” and an 80’s power ballad pathos to “Duskfall” without resorting to basic Boomer Bends either. However, problems arise with how the instrumentals fail to mesh with the vocals. Gorham’s cleans sound off production- and performance-wise, sounding much muddier than everything else and at times out of sync with the rest of the band, almost like a karaoke take of itself (“Begin the End”). She also frequently leans flat, which stands out due to the aforementioned production issues and are especially evident during the layered vocal segments (“Reckoning,” “Attrition”). Interestingly, Gorham’s harsh vocals don’t have these issues at all, making Telomyras’ more extreme-influenced cuts like “Harbinger (…The Eternal Night)” and “Attrition” Duskfall’s smoothest cuts. Otherwise, Duskfall sounds like a band not exactly on the same page.
The real trouble with Duskfall is, somehow, that Telomyras play way too close to their chest. Telomyras can riff, but much of Duskfall is stuck in a mid-paced, meat-and-potatoes heavy metal mode playing out stock riffs. By the time “Begin the End” rolls around, I’ve heard everything simply too many times. Further production issues mute Duskfall’s potential, leaving Telomyras’ low end dull and high end slathered in copious gain. But the sad part of Duskfall is that it’s just too reserved to succeed in the genre. There are few soaring hooks, no truly nasty solos, and the only drastic tonal shift—”Duskfall” bringing in the whole band for the climax—feels jarring and unearned. There’s nothing wrong with honest pocket playing, but when the drums, riffs, solos, and vocals are all in the pocket, that pocket gets cramped and leaves the listener without a hook to grasp. It leaves Duskfall feeling fairly banal, which is just disappointing considering the evident talent behind it and the promise of Telomyras’ influences.
I was initially concerned that Telomyras would be balancing too many ideas, but, conversely, Duskfall doesn’t do enough to stand out. Duskfall too easily slips into the background while listening, and precious few moments stick in my memory afterwards. What kills me about this is that Telomyras are evidently better musicians than what’s being played on Duskfall. Better production would’ve certainly helped, but no amount of mixing can redeem songwriting without audacity. Hopefully, Duskfall is only an awkward first step for a band still getting their footing, as its best moments prove that Telomyras possess a serious upside. Here’s to hoping dawn breaks on that potential next time.
Rating: Disappointing
DR: 9 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps MP3
Label: Self-Release
Websites: facebook.com/Telomyras | telomyras.bandcamp.com
Releases Worldwide: May 8th, 2026
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