REVIEW: Cavern Deep - The Bodiless (Pt.III)

The Swedish trio Cavern Deep have returned with another dive into the depths of doom, whilst wrapping up their conceptual trilogy, with The Bodiless (Pt.III). It’s slow, gloomy and weirdly tantalizing. The band appear to have stuck to their hypnotic, crushing doom roots and this final chapter really leans into the storytelling approach.

The opening and title track, 'The Bodiless', wastes no time setting the mood - as the longest song on the album, we find ourselves delving straight into the thick, eerie vibe that it embodies. Yeah, it’s heavy, but not only in the sense of its riffs making you gurn - it has an immersive borderline oppressive atmosphere that draws you in. Martin Harvey (Slomatics) provides guest vocals, which have an echo that could come from the depths of the sea. This song is slow and gradual - just like a well told story.

'Queen Womb' and 'Putrid Sentry' definitely turn things up a notch with a constant push and pull within the riffs. By now, the album feels thick and heavy with a distant floating of psychedelic sound in the background. It doesn’t feel too chaotic - the soundscape gradually attempts to suffocate the listener within its grasp (in a good way), like pouring all their feelings into a pot and letting it stew.

'Moskstraumen' takes a completely different turn, making this the big curveball moment within the album. Featuring an unexpected otherworldly feel from Martin Ludl playing the saxophone, his eery brass melts into the sound like a faint haunting, without disturbing the heaviness of the storm. Combine that with vocals feeling like they are echoed from a god, this track gives a powerful transformative tone of dread.

We then step into a surreal, hazy space in 'Galaxies Collide' where everything slows down. The guitars drift like waves, pulling you under with an ancient feel. The drums stay patient, suspending your perception of time all throughout the run time. The heaviness carried throughout the album looms and yet calms, as the story starts to come to an end. The guitar and vocals together develop into an ethereal performance three minutes into the song, with the highs and lows more than pulling their weight into creating one big release of emotion

Coming to a closing chapter with 'Full Circle' providing a slow, drawn out exhale. Still carrying the weight of all the music that has come before, yet it is no longer crushing but a tired heaviness - like you are in the thick fog. Yet it feels right, like this murky downward spiral just had to end this way. Nothing explodes, nothing resolves cleanly - it just fades in its own time. It’s a good note to end the trilogy on.

The Bodiless (Pt. III) is a powerful piece, but you can always sense that it's able to hold itself back from just overrunning the listener with an onslaught of pure heaviness. This record creeps in, slowly wrapping itself around you track by track. Cavern Deep have developed something really immersive here. It's heavy, but there’s a strange beauty to how restrained and patient it all is. If there was ever a prime time and place for an LP, this is definitely one to sit with late at night, with your headphones on, when everything’s quiet and a bit weird.

Score: 8/10

The Bodiless (Pt. III) was released on May 9th 2025.

Words: Fern Seymour

Photos: Cavern Deep