Beastwars - IV

After over a year off for various reasons, we have returned solely because we wanted to review the new Beastwars album. I really wanted to review this as I was at this band's debut album release show in their hometown back in what now seems like many years ago.

If you're unfamiliar with the band common reference points are early Soundgarden (by that, forget Superunknown and anything afterwards),early Mastodon (pre-Crack the Skye) and High on Fire but as far as this listener can tell Beastwars have for the most part put their own spin on sludge. This is a reunion album of sorts which means it could easily be forgettable like the final Soundgarden album, what was it called again?

On this album, Beastwars initial call for attention is entitled "Raise the Sword", and they sound like a band ready for battle, which is fitting since frontman Matt Hyde was battling lymph node cancer before this album. The song is slow with an early Soundgarden dueling the Jesus Lizard sound and you have to give a New Zealand band huge props for using a very fitting Bruno Lawrence sample from the New Zealand dystopian movie, The Quiet Earth. "Wolves and Prey" is one of those songs that the word sludge was invented to describe. It sounds like the musical equivalent of a concrete mixer's end result before drying and it's the kind of heaviness you get stuck in and have difficulty escaping in a hurry. "Storms on Mars" shows that Matt Hyde can do much more than just roar although he also does that here, this song sees getting tuneful and able to carry a melody (although if you're familiar with their song, Iron Wolf you would have known that he possessed this ability). Beastwars really build an oppressing atmosphere and the entire band changes tempo a few times in this song using a quiet/loud soft/heavy dynamic combined with the sheer emotion conveyed vocally make it one of the highlights of the album.

The early Soundgarden worship is incredibly strong in "Omens". It runs a little too close to the original for my liking and detracts from Beastwars' own musical stamp on sludge. Hyde's vocals on "Sound of the Grave" evoke a haunting feel as he takes a much more melodic approach yet manages to sound like he has risen from the grave. A lot of death metal vocalists are going to go green with envy. At the beginning of "The Traveller", Matt howls over a guitar are reminiscent of blues players like Howlin' Wolf. The song is shortly pulled back into the modern world of music and the slow building tempo changes lend the tune motion.





The piano in "Like Dried Blood" will take a number of listeners by surprise as it takes nothing away from the musical heaviness and aids in weighing down the sheer heaviness of the subject matter of the song. Relax though, Beastwars haven't turned into Ben Folds Five as the heaviness is turned up more than a notch around the mid-point of the song where the guitars just about drown out the sound of the piano.

"IV" is not only a strong comeback album but a strong album overall. "Storms on Mars" is the song most likely to hook new listeners in and it is baffling that it wasn't released as a single rather than the early Soundgarden alike, "Omens". IV is definitely designed to be listened to as an album with three slower somber songs concluding the album you just know that thought went into putting the songs in order. I'm crossing my fingers that I get to see the band live the next time I'm in New Zealand.

3.5/5

Edit: A little over 12 hours of writing this and the band released this video for "Storms of Mars".


Release date: 28 June 2019


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The Second Coming of Heavy (Chapter Eight)

Label: Ripple Music


"Already recognised as one of the world's leading purveyors of Rock ‘n’ Roll, Stoner, Doom and Heavy Psych, Ripple Music upped the ante in 2015 with the arrival of one of their most ambitious projects to date, The Second Coming of Heavy Series.

Serving as an ongoing showcase for some of the best and heaviest bands emerging from the underground, each installment shines a light on those worthy of your attention. Consisting of one, 12” slab of multi-coloured vinyl with full colour sleeves and inserts, the series is designed to be saved and treasured, like a fine anthology of books. So much so when the albums are filed next to each other, the complete collection of aligned spines form a mind-blowing image direct from the underground".

The above quote was taken from the electronic press kit that accompanied the review copy of this album and it hits the nail on the head with the information about this series and the record label releasing the material.

This volume features a North American and a European band. The American band, Ride The Sun hail from Southern California and the European band, The Trikes are residents of Germany. The balance of this LP favours the US band, Ride The Sun get five songs and The Trikes get four. Time for some US/European trade balance discussion. There's a raw rock sound to a number of these tracks which is more Motorhead than Kyuss. According to Ride The Sun's bandcamp, there are two vocalists in this band, which maybe why sometimes the vocals are close to close to Neil Falloon of Clutch and at other times much rawer.

While Ride The Sun are about rocking your face of, their German offsiders, The Trikes are more laid back and instead of going for the throat, this band creep up on the listener with catchy melodic, jamming guitars and a reliable drummer providing the background beat which all fit into a psychedelic groove of fuzz together. Just listening to the music, it's impossible not to get the feeling that these musicians know each other well. A further inspection of their bandcamp site reveals that the vocalist/drummer and the bassist share a family name.

If I had to declare a winner between the two bands, then the prize would go to The Trikes as their musicianship is clearly of high caliber however it's clear Ride The Sun achieve their goal of rocking out and taking others along for the ride.

3.5/5

Release Date: 4 May 2018

The Trikes on bandcamp/Ride The Sun on bandcamp



The Trikes on Facebook/Ride the Sun on facebook

Bang - The Best of Bang

Label: Ripple Music

Bang were a cult band back in the early seventies. Power trio Bang released their debut album in 1971. Since the band were considered the American Black Sabbath by some, it could be argued by many whether they fit under proto-metal umbrella or not.

The Black Sabbath influence is so strong on tracks like "Lions...Christians" and "The QUeen" that you wonder how many bats the singer has bitten the head off. There's undeniably heavy UK influence on this group in both senses of the word, "Questions" sounds like a missing link between Stray and Led Zeppelin due to the vocals doing the high-pitched part that Robert Plant became renowned for during his Led Zep days.

There's a delightful simpleness to the rock of "Mother". The song is catchy and there are echoes back to the fab four but while Bang were looking to the past, they were also looking forward. "Keep on" is from a similar mould and you can check this tune out on soundcloud. (Yay, I finally got my head around Soundcloud. Oh, no. I didn't. That site still sucks for embedding music on blogger). Many listeners will hear the roots of both what is now known as classic rock and also doom metal on tracks such as "Feel The Hunt". If "Windfair" was stacked up through more amps and turned up to 11, it'd sound rather similar to an English band named after torture device. There's some great soloing on "Don't Need Nobody". "Feels Nice" has a huge Zeppelin influence and if you've never liked Zep, this track will also beg the question, why does he sing like that?

This Anthology will nestle down in the vinyl format in the record collections of stoner and psychedelic rock/proto-metal fans and meat and potatoes hard rock fans. If you've enjoyed any rock albums that were released in the early seventies or if you'd like to, then "The Best of Bang" is a good arrival point.

4/5

Release date: 20 April 2018

Ozone Mama - Cosmos Calling

Label: Ripple Music


Can you name any Hungarian bands? I sure can't. Here's comes Ozone Mama. Problem solved, I can now name a Hungarian band. What would a Hungarian band signed to Ripple Music sound like? My guess and probably yours was Sabbath tinged stoner rock. We're wrong though. Ozone Mama have a southern rock sound.

From the first full song, "Straight On Till Morning Light", it's loud and clear that Ozone Mama possess strong songwriting skills and are aiming and succeeding at producing rock radio-friendly tunes. The Black Crowes are an easy reference point as Ozone Mama take a very similar stylistic approach. "High Ride" contains a vibe not unlike an Ozzy eighties single, which in a world where Black Sabbath clones are a dime a dozen actually feels like a breath of fresh air , although vocalist Márton Székely resists temptation to go full Oz which works in the band's favour. There's a Stones swagger to "Shout at The Sky" and the vocals go in Led Zeppelin era Robert Plant direction. The title track starts with licks that contain a very swampy southern flavour. If you didn't know you'd likely swear this band was from one of the southern US states. "Freedom Fighters" features some tasty guitar solos from András Gábor and it is a catchy little ditty with the vocals up front in the mix. The catchiness continues with "Cold Light of Day". Those who like stories in their southern rock songs will enjoy, "The Alchemist" which is a laid back yet rocking tune. The early seventies influence is strong in "Moon Pilot" as it is reminiscent of early Bowie, Pink Floyd plus a number of hard rock bands without sounding like a mere copy.

Although this is the third album from Ozone Mama, it was my first time hearing them and they're a band we're all likely to hear more from if they're given the right push. It's very easy to see why Ripple Music has signed this band. This album begs for and deserves rock-radio airplay in a major way.

3.5/5

Release Date: 19 January 2018



Ozone Mama on Facebook

The Hazytones - The Hazytones

Label: Ripple Music


There's an undeniable psychedelic haze in the music of Canadian band The Hazytones but there's also a love of traditional hard rock. Take for example, the opening track on this self-titled debut, "Light of Day", which has elements of Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper and AC/DC yet doesn't sound like any of these bands as a whole. The track isn't patchy, it's just that The Hazytones have the patchwork know-how of a decent musical tailor. Through the fuzz, there's a sleazy and slightly metallic beat to "Fool's Paradise" that wouldn't be out of place of all those eighties hair metal albums. The psychedelia is strong in "Marked By The Devil", there's a definite time travel trip back to the 70's although The Hazytones manage not to sound like a simple throwback to a previous era. It's difficult to listen to "Children of the Universe" and not think of the music and style of Uncle Acid and The Deadbeats although the Hazytones vocals are not close to John Lennon but somewhere between Black Sabbath period Ozzy and Alice Cooper.

There's a muscular sound to "Day of The Dead", although there is a lazy stoner rock groove. The guitar sound is reminiscent of Brant Bjork's solo work. There's a driving rock beat running through "Kill to Survive" which drives the song nicely away from turning into merely straight out heavy metal. More than a touch of Sabbath comes through in "Moon Struck" but there's also a touch of The Cult (especially in the vocals). This track features some smoking hot soloing.

While The Hazytones take influences from the past they manage to sound like a modern band by not sounding like clones of the bands that they are clearly influenced by. You can take a listen to the whole album on the Montreal band's bandcamp page posted below.

3.5/5

Release Date: 3 November 2017



The Hazytones on bandcamp




The Hazytones on Facebook

Howling Giant - Black Hole Space Wizard Part 2

Record Label: Self-release





The band's chosen handle, Howling Giant suggests a gargantuan blood-curling beast and their latest EP title, "Black Hole Space Wizard Part 2" and song titles like "The Forest Speaks", "Circle of Druids" and "Earth Wizard", leaves little doubt that these three guys from Nashville, Tennessee are not only music nerds but also sci-fi and fantasy nerds.

From the outset of the EP, Howling Giant let you know they aren't just messing around with sound, the album opener, "Henry Tate" is nearly all instrumental groove as their are haunting spoken parts. Howling Giant let you know through their psychedelic space rock that they're going on a trippy ride and want you to take a seat and strap yourself in alongside them for the journey.
"The Pioneer" begins as a radio-friendly rock tune. The vocals of Tom Polzine are reminiscent of Jon Toogood from Shihad and the first three minute of the song do remind me of that band's recent rockier tracks but Howling Giant take off into more fuzzed out territory than the long-running New Zealand band have dared to.



There's a warning of an onset of ominous doom to come in "Visions", due to some slowed but incredibly heavy Sabbath riffs. While the melodic clean and incredibly accessible vocals are at the forefront of the mix, the music carries a heavy sense of foreboding doom through the heavy fuzzed out riffs until around the five minute mark where the band veer further into space with a more psychedelic stoner sound with wailing guitar. "The Forest Speaks" is an instrumental track with aucoustic guitar, baritone sax and synth. This track will draw the band many comparisons to the progressive sound of Jethro Tull and the space rock of Hawkwind. Comparisons aside, "The Forest Speaks" is a beautiful and relaxing soundscape.

After lulling the listener in, with a tranquil piece, Howling Giant take a medieval twist with "Circle of Druids" and conjure up Black Sabbath era Ozzy vocals with an emphasis on percussion and chants to come together (intentional nod to The Beatles, that you'll get when you listen to the track) and ascend from Avalon. The fuzzed out guitar leads voyage all over the place searching for Excalibur.







Mammoth crushing doom riffs set the tone of "Earth Wizard". This is the type of song that slowly creeps up behind you and makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up as the band lay down breathtakingly heavy riffs.


To merely say that this EP is good would be understating a fact, the six songs on this release are fantastic and all fans of space rock, stoner rock and metal, psychedelic rock should listen to this Howling Giant. The whole album can be streamed and bought for name your price at the band's bandcamp page. You know what to do and if you want greater riff sensation do what the band tell you to on their bandcamp page and play these songs at maximum volume.

4.5/5

Release Date: 25 August 2017


Howling Giant on Facebook


Howling Giant on bandcamp


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The Flying Eyes - Burning of the Season

Record Label: Ripple Music



On their fourth album, The Flying Eyes open with a scorching fuzzed out psychedelic rock tune entitled, "Sing Praise". There's a strong early 60's/late 70's vibe modernized and amped up to arrive at your ears through modern technology. There's a laid back approach to the Jim Morrison tinged vocals in "Drain and you can easily hear and smell the joints being passed around when the band play live in the song's quieter spacier moments. The track builds up to a finale with the sort of bluesy hard rock with a controlled chaos that Danzig achieved on the first few albums. The cosmic vibe continues in the nine minutes of "Circle of Stone" with some great guitar shimmering' and shining through yet allowed to fuzz out.

The vocals on "Farewell" are reminiscent of Gary Moore's approach to both his blues output and his slower hard rock tunes. Musically the track is equally muscular without The Flying Eyes flapping well away from the psychedelic rock highway. "Rest Easy" is as dreamy and laid back as its moniker suggests. This is music designed for putting the headphones on and contemplating the possibilities of life on other planets while gazing up at the stars in the night sky.

As none of the lengthier tracks outstay their welcome, it is very difficult to find fault with this album with each listen to "Burning of the Season, there is the discovery of something new to like about the album. Ripple Music has chosen another winner with signing The Flying Eyes.

4/5

Release Date: 22 September 2017



The Flying Eyes Website




The Flying Eyes on Facebook


The Flying Eyes on bandcamp

Mindkult - Lucifer's Dreams

Record Label:Transcending Obscurity


One Man band Mindkult hails from the USA and crosses doom metal with shoe gaze, which has lead to great results. There's a pop sensibility to the doom of "Nightmares", think the John Lennon sings for Black Sabbath sound of Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats meeting My Bloody Valentine. Check the tune out for yourself below.





Whilst the Sabbath riffs come out strong in the over nine minute track, "Behold the Wraith", the song veers into shoegaze territory. "Howling Witch"opens with with a horror movie sample then it's equal parts Jesus and Mary Chain and Uncle Acid and The Deadbeats. Mindkult mastermind, Fowst creates an otherworldly feeling in the album's title track combining the more psychedelic side of Pink Floyd with doom and stoner rock.

The bottom line is that much of "Lucifer's Dream"sounds like Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats gone shoegaze but not veering far from the template that makes Uncle Acid so listenable. Mindkult have discovered a winning formula.



3.5/5


Release Date: 20 September 2017


Mindkult on facebook


Mindkult on bandcamp

War Cloud - War Cloud

Record Label : Ripple Music

Bay Area band War Cloud are a new band having only formed in 2014. The band are made up of Alex Wein on guitar and vocal duties, Joaquin Ridgell,on drums,Sean Nishi on bass and Tony Campos also handling guitar. War Cloud took their name from a song from the UK band Wicked Lady, which will inform some readers that the band are influenced by hard rock from the late 60's and 70's.


There's a definite 70's influence coming through the fuzzed up guitar that leaves little doubt that Deep Purple, Thin Lizzy and UFO feature prominently in the collective listening diet of War Cloud. There's a hard rock boogie feel to "Chopper Wired"that forces a listener to not just listen but to also move their buttocks. With the band based in the Bay Area and lyrics about four horsemen in "Divide and Conquer", it's impossible not to think that within their musical stew, War Cloud are not only taking in and spitting out early hard rock and traditional metal but also early speed metal. The suspicion of an early speed metal influence is confirmed in "Hurricane" as it harks back to the first couple of Metallica albums but the vocals are more in the hard rock singing style than than the near punkish shouting style of early James Hetfeild. Wein can really sing but doesn't venture outside his range, which helps give the band their sound.

The guitar leads on "No Man's Land" are attention grabbing as it's apparent that both Wein and Campos are highly accomplished musicians. "Red Witch" sounds like it would have been a hit on the radio if it had been released in the 70's. It's a really catchy number due to the chorus, tempo and distorted guitar all shining from the speakers. It's easy to imagine people hearing the song on the airwaves and then seeking out the 45 rpm vinyl. "Speed Demon" is so full of punk'n'roll grittiness, you'll need to wash your hands after hearing the track. The album closer, which you can listen to below, has a NWOBM but War Cloud manage to stamp their own identity on the track.









At first I didn't really think much of this album but after listening to it a number of times, there are many things to discover and like about War Cloud's debut. An obvious criticism could be that with their retro style War Cloud look too much to the past however it's clear that the band have a genuine passion for hard rock from the past and their passion boils over in their songwriting and musicianship. Standout songs are "Speed Demon", "Red Witch"and "No Man's Land" however no song on the album is weak.


Release Date: 8 September 2017

3.5/5





Warcloud on Facebook

Necromancers -Servants Of The Salem Girl

France's Necromancers appeared out of thin air and are blowing away a number of reviewers with their debut album, "Servant's of the Salem Girl". The band are signed to Ripple Music, who are knowledgeable people in the type of music that Necromancers play. So exactly what type of music do these young French guys play? Their sound is hard rock/heavy metal with a heavy touch of the 70's era. For those looking for band comparisons, the track, Lucifer's Kin had me thinking of Uncle Acid and The Deadbeats and Trouble so think psychedelic Black Sabbath.

Although some will insist it's pure Black Sabbath, "Black Marble House"is reminiscent of the softer side of early Stray and Wishbone Ash due to guitar sound and the harmonies. Check the video out.

Necromancers contains lyrics about voices from the past and takes in NWOBM plus a smidgen of early Danzig style blues/hard rock. There's a doomy side to Grand Orbitor but Necromancers combine the slow paced with chest-beating traditional metal and this elevates the doom and a very strong tune smacks the listener right in the face.

Servants of the Salem Girl is a great debut album and it's very easy to understand why Ripple Music signed them as they fit the sound the label has and the band are clearly high grade songwriters and musicians. If there is a complaint to be found, it's that due to the variety of styles in the six song on the album, it's not clear that Necromancers have stamped their own identifiable identity with their sound. I suspect that it will become easier to identify this band among the herd of soundalike bands in the hard rock/metal/stoner rock genre. Hear this album soon!

4/5


Necromancers on facebook


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The Judge - Tell It To the Judge

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Damn, this is great! The Judge unashamedly play retro-rock. The band are incredibly influenced by the seventies hard rock and metal. There are obvious Led Zeppelin and Sabbath references but these guys are no mere clones. There's no denying the influence of Sabbath on "Empty Halls" but The Judge's singer, Tyler Swope, has own thing going rather than just copying Ozzy and sits more in hard rock genre than heavy metal. He has the voice most who don't like Led Zeppelin wish Robert Plant possessed in the seventies. It's melodic warmth is easy on the ears. The bass, drums and guitars just seam together perfectly throughout the album. There's a laid back groove to the whole album but it's strongest in "High Flyin'". Fans of guitar noodling and blues style boogie rock will enjoy "Darkest Daze", which has been reworked since appearing on an early EP.

Seventies hard rock fans could play games picking the influences for hours whilst they knock back a cold one or more listening to this album but it's more likely that they'll wind up just listening to "Tell it to the Judge" and just kicking back while enjoying the album. "Tell it to the Judge" sounds like one of the better hard rock albums from the seventies but the production quality is modern. The mix is great with all the instruments coming out nice, clear and loud. Drum cymbals give off the sound they should rather than sounding like sticks hitting canned food.


The Judge manage to have that retro sound and the dart hit the bullseye on "Tell It to The Judge". Go and grab yourself a copy when this gets released.





4/5

The Judge on facebook




The Judge on bandcamp

Sasquatch - Maneuvers

Soundgarden are history as are Kyuss but for those of us who were fans of both banging bands along come Sasquatch(actually they've been bubbling away for a while but they're recently risen to the brim). The opening track to Sasquatch's fifth album, "Rational Woman is pure Kyuss style desert rock fuzz but if that Chris Cornell guy was on vocals. Keith Gibbs vocals are really that close that's an amazing feat. Anyone that says Cornell was unique is proven wrong. Close your eyes and listen to "Destroyer" and there are a number parts where you could swear you were listening to Soundgarden at their peak. There are many moments where the instruments bind together in a similar hypnotic fashion as the first Queens of the Stone Age album.


Bottom line with this album is that you just need to imagine a top notch stoner rock band with Chris Cornell on vocals. This album deserves to be on a lot of end of year lists.

4.5/5

Sasquatch on facebook

Check out the opening track "Rational Woman" here.

HAG - Fear of Man

Sometimes you get a knockout punch first blow from a band with their first track and the dirty noise wasn't delivered in the title track which opens this album by Londoners HAG. The song has a heavy Pink Floyd influence running through it although there is a grungier feel. Think Soundgarden's "Down On The Upside" album. The second song is an unbathed version of Rage Against the Machine with a heavy Cows noise-rock dirtying proceedings even further. There's a dirty grunge metal heart beating through "Rainbow Dust", Once again think Soundgarden but go back to their earlier work. "Trauma Yauma" is damned heavy and kicks close to High on Fire's unashamed metal. The slightly rapped parts betray the metal leanings of the tune. There's a definite heavy stoner-metal heart to "White Lion" which rips and aims and shoots straight for the throat. This is easily the stand-out track of the album.

The riffing throughout "Fear of Man" assault the senses with the dirty sludge that will make many a metal fan as happy as a pig caked in mud.

3/5



Check out Hag's "Fear of Man" on bandcamp

HAG on facebook

Desert Suns - Desert Suns

There aren't any prices for guessing which style of music San Diego band Desert Suns play. Their bandcamp page states, "In that space where psychedelia, blues-rock, doom and sludge coalesce, it’s there you’re likely to find Desert Suns." This is heavily 70's tinged desert rock,

The band provide knockout blows early in the album with the psychedelic hard rock of "Burning Temples" and the hard-out jamming groove of "Space Pussy" with its wailing guitar. There's a definite Sabbath influence in "Passing Through". The vocals sound close to Ozzy but Desert Suns have the talent to manage not to sound like yet another Sabbath clone. "Ten Feet Down" is a serious change of pace with a huge dose of Southern blues. The opening vocals on "Memories of Home" remind this listener of "The Real Thing" period Mike Patton although there's also Ozzy simultaneously shining through.

This is a great debut and it's easy to see why the two labels wanted to re-release this. I hope Desert Suns stick around for some time.

This album was originally released on a limited 300 run of vinyl but has been re-released in Nort America on vinyl and CD by Ripple Music and HeviSike music.

4/5


Desert Suns on facebook



Check out the whole album on Desert Suns bandcamp page.

We Hunt Buffalo "Living Ghosts"

Here's some Canadian Stoner Rock for you. We Hunt Buffalo hail from Vancouver and put the hunting weapons down and picked up a joint or two along with some musical instruments.

Despite the influence of the likes of Kyuss, at times it is easy to imagine We Hunt Buffalo being played on your local rock radio station. The melodies are there, the fuzzed-out guitars come through strongly and the vocals are easy to listen to and likely to have a mass appeal, and the songwriting is strong especially in tracks like "The River".

The band describe their music on their facebook page as "Dirty, Grimy, Fuzz-Rock" A track like "Hold On" works against them as despite the fuzz, the band sound like they showered many times during the day. It's all a little too clean. "Prairie Oyster" does contain some dirtier parts with hoarse shouted-type vocals that border on hardcore or metal. The band do seem aware that they're not really treading any new ground as Guitarist/Vocalist Ryan Forsythe sings "I've been here before. I know I've seen this place over and over again". I know I've seen this face over and over again" "Comatose". "Fear" is an interesting offer with the Alice In Chains vocals but sadly the song is too short. "Looking Glass" contains a slow building progressive rock edge, mixed with bursts of psychedelic guitar and the song is easily the strongest on the album

"Living Ghosts" sounds polished and it's not hard to imagine this band gaining a huge audience in the very near future. Sometimes the radio-friendliness makes it difficult not to think of a hugely successful Canadian band that many people love to hate simply because others have told them too. Although "Looking Glass" is a great song, there's not enough here to capture this jaded reviewer for a lengthy amount of time.


2.5/5

Don't take our word for it. Check out the band's album on their label's bandcamp page. Write a comment and let us know what you think.

Mojo Waves - 7x7 single

The more observant among you may recall Mojo Waves who featured in this blog a couple of years ago back when posts came a lot more regularly. For a memory refresher read the album review here.

The band have released a single with a new album entitled "All The Right Parts Fit The Wrong Way" due out on May 11th this year.




Download the single.

Clouds Taste Satanic "To Sleep Beyond The Earth"

  Instrumental albums have always been tricky beasts to review.  New Yorkers Clouds Taste Satanic wear their influences and sound a lot like "Dopesmoker era Sleep. There's that same Sabbath at a turtle's pace vibe over two long songs.  That's one more than "Dopersmoker" had!   However, it's clear at times that these guys come from a post-rock background and ambience takes over as heaviness isn't always the goal. The two songs are an enjoyable listening experience.

3/5


The band are selling CD's from their bandcamp site.


Clouds Taste Satanic on bandcamp



Clouds Taste Satanic on Facebook





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Drawers "Drawers"

France isn't exactly the first place you'd think of when you think about metal, rock or sludge.  However there are always a few that are willing to kick against the pricks.   There's no way French sludge/stoner rock band named Drawers could comfortably fit into the mainstream in any county.  The band released their second album which is self-titled earlier this year.

The band are heavily influenced by a few bands from the South part of the United States.  It's difficult to not think of Phil Anselmo whenever the vocals kick in and the reference is more to the slower songs on Far Beyond Driven than any other Pantera.  Thankfully the allusion doesn't mean that Drawers sound like a modern metal claiming to be hardcore outfit due to riffs kicking around in the world of sludge.

Drawers are at their best when they slow down in "Take Stock" as it isn't nearly as reminiscent of other bands.   "Bleak" also takes the slow route and the band comes off better for it as the band are clearly aware that a 10 ton truck driving slowly garners more attention than the same vehicle at ramming speed.  Overall though sadly Drawers aren't much of attention grabber so they get knocked down a peg or two and that is largely due to the plethora of Pantera wannabes in the hardcore and Metalcore arena in the last few years.

Check the album out on the bandcamp link below and feel free to leave your opinion in the comments.

2.5/5

http://drawerskvlt.bandcamp.com/album/drawers-2

Home "Bound To Gravity"

As a longtime supporter of the underground it's always great whenever a band takes the time to email me rather than just go through a label or a publicist. I'll admit I appreciate hearing from labels and publicists too if they actually have taken the time to look through the blog and realize whether or not the music they are currently pushing fits with the blog.  The amount of rap and country music that comes my way astounds me as it just doesn't fit with the context on the blog.  Anyway enough about the blog and back to the recent email(it was actually received in late February), I really wanted to talk about.  It came from Austria from a guy named Amadeus who said his band Home were Austrian Sludge/Stoner/Post-whatsoever and that because it was release day of their album "Bound to Gravity", the trio were going to get drunk.

On listening to the first track it became apparent that post-whatsoever really means post hardcore as there is a bit of both Quicksand and Fugazi in both the music and the vocals.  The sludge label makes sense for the track "Next To Last", though the song opens with stripped bare metallic riffing, the vocals recall the likes of Killdozer and Clawhammer.  There's no prettying things up here.

I'm willing to bet that "Not Even Me" is a live favourite and unites hardcore and metal kids only to battle it together in the pit before the abrasively raw sludge applies sandpaper to their wounds.  Often the direction where Home go with their rhythms takes the listener by surprise and the unpredictability adds to their charm. The lengthy "Dead City" slowly pulsates with a Black Sabbath heart although Home take a more experimental turn with speeding up the rhythm and lightly applied sandpaper raw vocals.

The initial description of the band by Amadeus still rings true to my ears as this is likely to appeal equally to fans of Eyehategod style sludge, rawer post-hardcore and amphetamine reptile fans.  Check out "Bound to Gravity" on their bandcamp site linked below.

4/5


Bound To Gravity on bandcamp



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White Orange "Onawa"

 It'd be easy for (m)any regular readers of this blog to guess what White Orange sound since they have a song called  ".....And I Leave The Circus" and the fact that we reviewed them before here may help those without memory problems.    There's no denying that Kyuss and Queens of The Stone Age are likely influences but the fuzzed out feedback places it as the odd man out since it leads into "Either/Or" has more in common with alternative rockers Sonic Youth than the desert stoner rock crowd.    As comparing any band to QOTSA is pretty much useless unless an album is named ".....And I Leave The Circus" is very reminiscent of the slower material from "Rated R", which is an album that was play-listed as a soundtrack to my life for quite sometime. White Orange are keener to get lost in a seventies inspired haze of smoke and guitar.  The band don't resist the temptation to jam out for both their own and the listeners benefit.  It may not be intentional that Dustin Hill has a vocal sound akin to Josh Homme but it works although others may be shaking their fists and cursing at clone bands.  Baby, this rock grooves and the groove rocks.  Vinyl junkies needing  physical grooves in and on black disks should take note that the three songs on this EP are available  in your favourite format from the band's bandcamp site, which is linked below.

3.5/5



Listen to Onawa


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