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I don't think a band gets more cult than this. Dark Quarterer have been around since frigging 1969, and formed the lineup that recorded this in 1978, only 9 years before they managed to record this debut album. I list DQ as a Doom band, but really this band predates genres, and in fact calling this band "The Italian Manilla Road" isn't far from the mark. Plus, with 4 albums spread over a career spanning at least 30 years, they have a staying power and sluggish output that many Doom bands would envy.

Not surprisingly, this is very primal stuff much like old Manilla Road or Black Sabbath. The production is really weak, especially the guitar tone, but the songwriting shines through. "Red Hot Gloves" is a strange opener, but then this is a strange band. You have to get to the ten-minute "Colossus Of Argil" to really begin to hear the weird genius of this band at work – drawn-out arrangements, involved and odd riffing, obtuse lyrics, and Gianni Napi's heavily accented tenor. There's nothing accessible about this band at all, from the songwriting to the low-fi recording, but there is just no denying that songs like "Colossus Of Argil", "Gates Of Hell" and "The Entity" are masterpieces of Epic/Doom Metal.

Dark Quarterer have not released anything since 2002, and may not ever again. But fans of obscure, underground epic metal should certainly check them out. Some of their albums are being re-released, and are currently not hard to find, so if you like this kind of old-school stuff, then don't pass up Dark Quarterer.