Truster - Creeping Thing
Self-Released
Releases on July 10th, 2026
From Edmonton, Alberta, this doomgaze trio have created a work of art that is not only massive in respect to the sound they have managed to capture, but also in the depth of emotion that they have poured into their performances. In Truster’s upcoming album Creeping Thing, each instrument sings its own sorrowful tune, intertwining with each other to create a dense and hauntingly beautiful soundscape that engulfs the listener.
The album begins with a chilling tape recording from a church in small town Alberta with what sounds like some kind of mass exorcism event. The tape is apparently labelled “Demon Manifestations" and listening to it gave me chills and an extremely uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach, like when you watch a horror movie and the screen reads “Based on a true story”. The recording is raw, gritty, and haunting. It is the perfect opening for this album. Following the tape recording we are introduced to the thundering sound of drums, bass, and guitar, demonstrating the intensity that Truster has brought to their newest release. As the only single, “Wretch Collector” offers a good glimpse into the rest of the album. It has very catchy vocals that gracefully wind together in a dreamy trance. The lyrics, however, offer a much different vibe. “I am the smell of the rot in the forest. I’m a knife cast aside in an alley left for children to find”. The very first words sung in the album are a strong statement: I am powerful, dangerous, and worthy of your fear. But there is also a deep longing to be loved hidden amongst the poetic anger and sadness which can be found throughout the album. Cutting briefly into these floating melodies are harsh, abrasive screams, keeping you on your toes and never letting you fully relax. The song ends on a heavy breakdown with pauses that leave the screams hanging on their own to deliver the final lines.
The third track on the album, “She Who Requires Blood Remembers Them”, brings a more doom-y sound than the previous track, with circulating guitar riffs and drums and bass that drive the song forward like a mammoth trudging through deep snow. The next two songs, “The Fire” and “The Flood”, are updated/expanded versions of past recordings that Truster released on Sacred Animals Return Home from 2020. “The Flood” takes a slightly different perspective than the previous songs; rather than focusing on the anger felt towards others due to being wronged or disrespected, this song focuses on the anger felt towards someone for treating them the way they needed to be but then ultimately leaving at the end. It ends with the lyric “I’ll never stop hating you for that”, showing a very deep emotional pain that comes from being loved by somebody but also not being enough for them. “Lest I Tear You to Pieces and There Be None to Deliver” is the most lyrically dense, although it feels more like an incantation or curse than a standard song. The final track offers a little bit of a hopeful feeling to close off the album. Paired with a more upbeat groove than the previous slower doom riffs and drum beats, “A Home for the Lonely” describes an imperfect relationship between two people where one attempts to help the other get out of a dark depression despite their persistent pushback. The harmonies near the end of the song feel cleansing and offer a kind of clarity that you might feel after a good cry.
Bringing an unapologetically raw and untamed energy, this hard-hitting album also brings with it a unique restrained softness, a dim light amidst the darkness, but as you approach the light rows of sharp teeth reveal themselves, waiting to swallow you whole. Accept your fate and allow yourself to be cast into the dark abyss of human emotion that is Truster’s Creeping Thing.
