Ecthirion Presents “King Of Wormwood” | Metal And Its Orchestal Side
The fusion of symphonic/orchestal music and Metal is nothing new at this point. The challenge lies in creating a combination that results in something superlative, original, and sublime—where tempos and atmospheres are handled with clarity and finesse. Ecthirion seems like just another one of those experiments, but it has its own unique appeal, and we set out to delve into its universe, its history, and above all, its latest album, “King of Wormwood,” which was released in late 2025.
Ecthirion has been around for a while. The band traces its origins back to 2008, when guitarists Gabriel Neale and Simon Treasure formed it under the name AxioM. However, in 2009—prior to the release of their debut album, Apocalyptic Visions—they decided to change the name to Ecthirion because there were already many bands using the previous name.
Interestingly, Ecthirion’s initial concept was rooted in Viking Metal and Power Metal, but they later decided to break free from the creative constraints of both genres to try to create something entirely different. So, around 2008, Eugen Dodenhoeft entered the picture; he offered to take on lead vocals for one of the tracks and also handled the mixing of the EP, which, incidentally, featured several special guests, including Azahel Frost of Frost Like Ashes and Josh Edwards, a classical singer with an exceptional operatic voice.
Over time, and following the release of “Apocalyptic Visions”, Gabriel Neale became the sole permanent member of the Ecthirion project, alongside his wife, Hannah, who joined as a vocalist given her background as a classical singer. Meanwhile, Eugen Dodenhoeft has also contributed to two tracks on the 2018 album “Psalms Of The Risen Dead,” a record that featured several guests such as Dave Cooney on growling vocals, Spencer Lee on drums, and Celso Alves (Allos) on vocals, among various classical musicians who contributed to the project.
The fact is that Echtirion’s music follows the classical path without any limitations, successfully blending their affinity for the classical with everything that metal represents. However, there is no clear definition or label that can adequately describe Ecthirion in words. “Symphonic metal” might be the most basic definition we could offer, but it is undoubtedly rooted more in classical traditions, with certain gothic tendencies at times—or even epic or operatic elements, so to speak.
Thanks to the kindness of Gabriel Neale, we’re listening to Ecthirion’s latest release, titled “King Of Wormwood”—an album that not only surpasses their previous work but also shines with an aura all its own, successfully capturing, through diverse sounds and atmospheres, something entirely unique, ambitious, and musically flawless.
Musically, the orchestration is truly magnificent, and the metal foundations aren’t merely an excuse—they blend relentlessly with Ecthirion’s overall vision, in a way reminiscent of Therion, to name a point of reference.
Right from the start with the instrumental “Initium,” we can tell that the sound is symphonic in nature and sets the right atmosphere for a journey into the deepest depths of this unique musical style that Ecthirion presents to us. “I, King Of Wormwood” is a song clearly inspired by classical and epic elements, featuring heavy guitar riffs that set the mood with their relentless pounding, alongside the beautiful orchestration provided by the harmonious vocals of Gabriel and Hannah Neale, evoking a sense of grandeur and majesty.
The musical beauty of the melody goes hand in hand with classical inspiration and operatic elements, as is the case with “Tyrant,” where the meticulous composition and instrumentation are truly mind-blowing, and the string arrangements in the instrumental “Light Prevail,” along with the guitar orchestration, are also quite impressive.
“Slave To The False Messiah” has an Eastern-inspired concept and a certain lean toward extreme metal, always grounded in the classical orientation that comes naturally to Ecthirion; and as if it were an operatic work, we encounter “Cometh The Leech,” a beautiful, climactic, melodic, and introspective piece.
We also encounter “Underture,” which leans toward epic and symphonic power metal but conceals within its textures another beautiful, anthem-like melody—a blend of classical instrumentation and the powerful foundations of percussion and guitars. And to top it all off, “Mortalitas” tells us that everything comes to an end—and does so, without a doubt, in a masterful way.
Ecthirion defies any label you might try to pin on them, but basically—almost generically speaking—you could say that their music is plain and simple symphonic metal, or orchestral metal, since Ecthirion is essentially a full-throttle classical and symphonic orchestra, moving back and forth across various styles of metal; there are no limits, and that’s what makes Ecthirion so great. There’s a little bit of everything—prog, thrash foundations, extreme metal, elements of classic metal, and even power metal—all within an atmosphere that’s, as they say in these cases, incredibly atmospheric and epic.
Gabriel Neale, the mastermind behind Ecthirion, says of “King Of Wormwood”; “This EP has been released as a demo as I have concluded it might never get released otherwise. I wrote and recorded most of the songs between 2014 and 2020 but since moving house in 2021 I only managed to get time to set up my studio space in 2024! Life has changed a lot and got very busy, but I kept thinking about my songs and finally concluded that there is no point in them sitting on a hard drive for years. I decided to humble my pride and be happy with my own demo mixing and all the poor takes which were just jotting things down. You, the listener, can decide if you like Ecthirion more raw!”
Indeed, the mix and sound on “King of Wormwood” are clear and rich enough, especially considering how difficult it is to work with so many textures and sounds at once. In that sense, it’s clear that the result is more than satisfactory.
On the other hand, Gabriel Neale commented on this work, saying that “King of Wormwood” is about how we can get so distracted in life, spending all our time, money and thoughts on what might be just castles in the sand. For me, my castle in the sand at the time, was Ecthirion- so I wrote a song about it. As musicians we can get tempted to put our music first, but I felt challenged to question why I was spending so much time on myself. I had a family to look after and they had to come first. We can get so proud of our own work, and so worried about whether people like it or not, that we forget to enjoy making it. I hope to just enjoy writing music, not for the feedback I get. I will be blessed if this CD blesses few or many”, he concluded.
Finally, the guitarist and creator of everything related to Ecthirion leaves us with a profound reflection that resonates with the album’s theme. “I made the imagery reflect how we so easily make ourselves kings on our own thrones. I have used the word wormwood in reference to wood that has been destroyed by woodworm and is shortlived/ rotten. I sometimes like to visually zoom out on my life, to imagine I were far above my house (and all I own) looking down. From far away the beams could look like tiny matchsticks, and some of my biggest achievements might be the size of a small dot. It is the same for everybody, no matter how rich, we are all tiny people living on a tiny planet, yet thinking ourselves so important. All the things we think are of value to us will be gone very soon, and so will we. The only legacy worth leaving is love. All legacies tied to pride and achievements are pointless. Yet paradoxically, despite our seeming insignificance, God values us more than we could ever know.”
By the way, the virtuosity found in Ecthirion isn’t limited to the music. The lyrics reflect many of Gabriel Neale’s reflections and concerns, in a way breaking free from the clichés of Christian bands. This is material intended only for those seeking reflection and the challenge of finding inspiration in truly thoughtful lyrics, which, combined with the music, create an unmissable experience.
With “King Of Wormwood,” Ecthirion has created an album that could easily be dismissed as extravagant. We prefer to call it pretentious, masterful, and truly well-thought-out. The interplay between each song—and even within the individual sections of each track—reveals a musical and atmospheric concept that aligns with the album’s message, and that is one of its main strengths. This is only for those seeking something different.
For that reason, and to explore more of Ecthirion’s work, we’re sharing the track “Tyrant” here—obviously from the album “King Of Wormwood,” an album best appreciated from start to finish. And of course, as is our custom, we’re including the band’s social media links so you can follow them and stay up to date on the latest news…
https://www.facebook.com/ecthirion
