Barren Earth is the latest band in a long line of supposed extreme metal ‘super groups’ to have emerged in recent years, which might go some way to explaining the rather low key response to the bands formation. The list of band members reads like a who’s who of extreme metal with Swallow The Sun, Amorphis, Moonsorrow and Kreator all making the roll call. So on paper the pedigree of the collective talents should produce some output, but like so many times before expectation doesn’t always meet the reality.

The collective influences each member has brought to the table have given Barren Earth an expansive sound, drawing from all corners of world music. At any given moment you are confronted with foreboding Doom mixed with elements of Folk and even aspects of Prog raise their heads every now and then but at heart however ‘My Twilight’ is progressive Death Metal. ‘Our Twilight’ is a prelude to the bands debut album scheduled for early 2010, and as a teaser the EP does its job.

The four song offering unsurprisingly given Mikko Kotomaki involvement has more than a hint of Swallow The Sun influences about but not so much to detract from the songs clever combination of influences. The band are sure to be a certain hit amongst the Amorphis fans, whose appetite for progressive metal seems to know no bounds and more than one or two of the Opeth legion may even find something here for them also. However like so many EP’s you never quite get the same vibe as a full length release and my judgment is reserved as to whether Barren Earth have enough about them to sustain your attention over 60+ minutes. On the basis of this offering, solid foundations have been set.