This is a very short release in a big package—my version is a 45 RPM, one-sided 12" splatter vinyl—and it's surprising how much of an impression this EP can leave in just over 12 minutes of music. Quebec City's Apes apparently started as a grindcore band that slowly morphed into a black/grind hybrid, and the first minute or so (and a little further toward the end) certainly feels like it, even with that screechy lo-fi mindfucking sound reminiscent of Anaal Nathrakh's most nightmarish stuff. But that quickly turns into more of a slow, doomy black metal affair that shines by its dark atmosphere with a sound that seems to reach out straight from the depths of hell, the kind of stuff that you can use to freak out the uninitiated in a pitch-dark basement (for the initiated, that would be awesome). Lullabies for Eternal Sleep is lo-fi, with some static-ish parts and some cavernous, nightmare-inducing screeches, and these guys have really hit the nail on the head with this one. I wish there was more of that here, but quality over quantity seems to be what Apes went for with this one.
