It was February, 2021, when the single “Xifi Stramena Sto Foinika” (transl. “Swords Pointing At The Pohoenix”) was released — a ten-minute doom metal hymn of elegiac, epic proportions. Raw and unadorned in structure, it carved its path through grief and grandeur, culminating in a haunting excerpt from the “Prophetic” section of “Axion Esti” by Nobel laureate Odysseas Elytis, delivered through the legendary voice of actor Manos Katrakis.
The band behind this bold statement was TÈLMA, from Athens.
And then, a long, dead silence.
The band themselves have put it in this way: they compose and release music “as slowly as humanly possible”.
But eventually, the time came. Three years later, TÈLMA’s full-length debut, “Anthropovoros” (transl. “Man-Eater”), has emerged from the relentless currents of the underground, ready to drag listeners into its bewitching, pitch-black vortex.
The album was first released independently in digital format on September the 1st in 2024. Not even a year later, the ever-restless and discerning Dying Victims Productions is set to give “Anthropovoros” a physical release — a well-deserved move for a record that should never have remained buried in the flood of digital-only offerings.
Personally, I’ve singled this album out for many reasons — but above all, for the sheer IMPACT it has had on my very soul. Its echo lingers long after the final note, resonating through my inner being in a way only doom metal can achieve — that is, when it breaks free from the overexposure, dilution, and abuse it’s suffered at the hands of misguided experimentation and trend-chasing.
Yes, with “Anthropovoros”, we are witnessing doom metal in its darkest, most ruinously cathartic form — and this is an album like no other.
Sung entirely in Greek, this is ritualistic, mystical, unrefined doom — crafted with the solemn weight of granite headstones and soaked in melancholy. For those drawn to Greek-language metal that channels primal atmosphere and existential depth, “Anthropovoros” is a rare offering.
The lyrics are a highlight: poetic, carefully crafted, and integral to the band’s expressive identity. They imbue the music with a ceremonial aura and a visceral, authentic intimacy rarely heard in contemporary doom.
Formed in 2017, TÈLMA consists of Kostis (guitar, bass, keys), Marios (guitar), Christos (drums), and Vangelis (vocals). Their sound is steeped in the legacy of early TROUBLE, REVEREND BIZARRE, and WARNING, with echoes of early LORD VICAR and SAINT VITUS — bands that favored raw, unpolished doom, laced with psychedelic overtones and minimal epic dramatics. Yet, fans of SOLITUDE AETURNUS EVANGELIST, DOOMSWORD and even early CRYPT SERMON will also be delighted as the epic element is unmistakable.
The band describes the album as follows:
“Anthropovoros is made up of eight songs that unfold in a linear narrative. It begins with a sense of optimism but soon dives into the chaos of inner and outer worlds, ultimately spiraling toward an inevitable end.”
And indeed, this introspective journey closes on a fitting, harrowing note:
“What they call life will fade one morning.
And with its final heartbeat,
the perishable body will fall away.
What they call life, a great question.
Why?
I’ll never know why.”
“Anthropovoros” will be released on July 25th by Dying Victims Productions, on both CD and LP.
Check the discussion about the album in our forum pages.
You can pre order both the CD and LP here.
