Pothamus (be)

In recent years Mechelen has become the Belgian metal Renaissance capital, a vibrant and bustling scene bringing us stellar acts like Psychonaut, Capitan, and now Pothamus, bands capable of branching out into new territories while staying true to metal’s fast-paced, abrasive, unrelating sonic canon.

This young trio has carved out quite a peculiar singular niche for themselves: tribal sludge-metal and that doubles as philosophical inquiry. You read it right, as Pothamus’ ambitious blend of angular riffs and theological discourse, aims to take the listener on a journey of discovery and self-discovery, through riffs designed to stimulated the mind while calming the senses. While sludge metal syncopated riffing already lends itself well to meditation, Pothamus take it up a notch and aid otherworldly immersion through the inclusion of floating drones, trance-inducing percussion, and repetitive bass lines carving something hypnotic and profound.

Ritualistic, cathartic, and immersive, Pothamus’ music bridges Eastern philosophy with Western esotericism—the search for meaning made into sound and has truly established as a new force to be reckoned with. In a Belgian heavy scene dominated by the likes of Amenra and their atmospheric blend of black metal and post-metal, Pothamus are a breath of fresh air. Well more like “not as tainted air”, we’re still talking about our beloved wretchedly bleak heavy music after all.

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