Review: Worm – Necropalace

February 19, 2026

Castlevania: Symphony of the Worm

Floridian band Worm have had an interesting musical journey throughout their history; they started as a black metal band until they moved into the world of death/doom with two really great albums—Gloomlord and Foreverglade—which were the start of them gaining popularity. After that, founding member Phantom Slaughter took Worm back into black metal territory while also mixing it up with the death/doom sound mastered from the last two albums. It also comes with the addition of Phil Tougas of Chthe’list, Atramentus, Zeicrydeus and recently Exxûl. This resulted in the Bluenothing EP (which I thought could have been better) and the more promising split they had with Dream Unending (Starpath). Now, Worm has their first album delving more into the new sound they jumped into with Necropalace.

The album starts off with the intro, “Gates to the Shadowzone,” and the first thing you’ll think is you’re about to enter Dracula’s castle in Castlevania. Also, while it’s got the spooky factor spot on, it’s also shreddy and you know Tougas is going to go ham on the guitar throughout this album. Now onto the opening title track, “Necropalace” that shows off what you’re going to get into with this new Worm. The style of this song feels like a mix of the more kvlt symphonic black metal from the ’90s such as early Dimmu Borgir and Odium. What’s also mixed in is a neoclassical element especially in Tougas’ guitar soloing and shredding. This is a strong introduction and taste of what’s to come in the band’s interesting new venture; I really like the bombastic synths in addition to the adventurous guitars. However, the momentum halts a bit with the following track, “Halls of Weeping,” which is probably the weakest track on the record. It starts wild but after this it doesn’t feel like much is going on, especially during the first half, which was one of the big issues I had with Bluenothing. This 9-minute track feels padded throughout and they could have cut down the length here, especially as the second half of the track is much better in comparison.

Necropalace does rebound with “The Night has Fangs”; what I like with this song is the faster pacing and it feels like Worm playing to their strengths: leaning hard into ’90s symphonic black metal mixed with wild guitar delivery and big spooky synths. I wasn’t sure on the spoken word vocals that Phantom sometimes does—they remind me a bit of black metal bands that mix in gothic elements such as Cradle of Filth—but as I carried on through the album (and with repeat listens), it felt fitting for what they’re trying to do with their new sound. Following this is another really good song in “Dragon Dreams” that shows off how the synths are also a very strong aspect of Necropalace. This is the first time that I get the feeling of the band blending their black metal sound with the death/doom sound to a very positive result. Furthermore, the aggressive side of Worm certainly shines through here and I like that it has big, triumphant fantasy vibes, especially near the end of the song.

Continuing on from what I said about Worm mixing their black metal and death/doom together, this carries on in “Blackheart;” it feels like a song that was written for Foreverglade or Gloomlord got filtered through the lens of Worm’s new sound. This isn’t a negative though, as it feels fresh and adds some variety to the album. This shows off the lead guitars—there’s more in them than just wild shredding. Finishing this adventurous effort is the 14-minute closing track, “Wintermoon: The Infernal Masquerade.” Despite its long runtime, this actually feels like a much better version of “Halls of Weeping” from earlier as it has more going on throughout. The guest inclusion of Marty Friedman (formally of Megadeth) is actually really cool and fits like a glove with the neoclassical guitar shredding side of this album, making for an epic climax.

At first listen, I initially felt like something was missing despite having some really great moments but after further spins, it clicked into place, making this newest chapter an enjoyable adventure. While I still think I liked Foreverglade more, Necropalace is easily a massive improvement on Bluenothing and hits the bullseye on the potential they had from the Starpath split. I can see people who really enjoyed Worm’s death/doom albums feeling conflicted at first blush, but it would probably grow on them with further listens. I really like how Worm have gone full steam ahead on the ’90s symphonic black metal style, especially in its aggressive moments while giving it their own twist—whether it’s the spooky gothic synths, the wild guitar playing from Phil Tougas or using their death/doom sound on a couple tracks. It does suffer from being too long and having one of the tracks in particular feel weak in comparison to the rest of the record; they could’ve cut the song and it would have been even better. However, this was an enjoyable first album with their new sound and I’d be down for a follow-up to this that improves on its weaknesses.