Warthur This debut release by The Mire presents crushingly heavy sludge metal that exists in and advances the Neurosis tradition. Unlike some outfits which keep noodling away unnecessarily, The Mire allot their songs no more time than is required to make their point, with song lengths varying from the three minute title track to nearly seven minutes in the form of the epic Pale Heart; in no track do the group outstay their welcome or belabour the point. Doomier than your typical sludge metal or post-metal act, Glass Cathedrals represents an exciting new entrant into the genre, and I'll certainly be up for hearing more from the group.

UMUR "Volume I" is the debut release by UK, Brighton based sludge metal act The Mire. It´s a 2 track, 12:10 minutes long demo and was originally only released in 50 copies through Eyeofsound Records in 2009. The original 50 copies included a set of badges, stickers and a cigarette lighter. After the original version sold out, Eyeofsound Records has given the demo away for free with any item purchased through the label.

The music on "Volume I" is sludge metal with atmospheric post metal parts. The vocals are mostly aggressive hardcore type shouting, but there are also clean vocals on "Fears", which provide the music with a more accessible element. The band are generally very well playing and the vocals are delivered in a convincing manner. In fact it´s not obvious at all that we´re talking a demo recording. The sound production is professional and powerful and the songwriting is also on a pretty high level.

The only thing that´s a bit lacking on the demo is how original the music is. However well played, well written and well produced the demo is, the music just doesn´t stand out much from the rest of the sludge/post metal pack. It´s a minor detail though when the rest are of the great quality it is. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is warranted. A promising start for the band.