Bygone - Bygone (2025)

Bygone is an excellent first self-titled album, merging synth propelled space rock and hard rock/heavy metal. It reminds at time Deep Purple and more often Hawkwind, but with also a touch of more recent stoner sound. Epic and catchy songs with great vocals. A strong start, recommended!

 

The BC page. 

 

Beastwars - The Ship // The Sea (2025)

Beastwars (from New-Zealand) has been around for fifteen years now, and each time they release a new album it's a pleasure to listen to their epic heavy metal with a strong stoner/doom feel, and The Ship // The Sea is again a masterpiece, with again great songwriting and powerful vocals. Somewhere between early Mastodon and High on Fire, with bits reminding also Alice in Chains or Soundgarden as well. But always very Beastwars. Highly recommended!

 

The BC page.

 

Demonic Death Judge - Absolutely Launched (2025)

Absolutely Launched is the seventh album from Demonic Death Judge, and even if my favourite one is still The Trail (released in 2020), this is another good album from DDJ. They keep on producing heavy and groovy stoner/Doom metal, hardened with some aggressive sludge vocals, but softened by a southern rock melodic touch. A nice combination that is really their own and that they get to really master throughout the years. Good stuff!

 

The BC page. 

 

Mammoth Volume - Raised Up By Witches (2024)

Raised Up By Witches is the second Mammoth Volume album since their return and it's another epic piece of finely crafted progressive heavy rock. Once again they deliver a unique mix somewhere between doom metal and stoner rock, with a strong progressive component. They can remind Mastodon as much as QOTSA (or for those stuck in the previous century we could say they sit between Black Sabbath and Yes). Very nice!

The Bandcamp page.

 

JAAW - Supercluster (2023)

Supercluster, the first album from JAAW (with Andy Cairns from Therapy?, Jason Stoll, Adam Betts and Wayne Adams), is both a strange beats and a good surprise (not very surprised it's released by Svart Records). I could describe it has the heaviness of stoner/doom, the raw abrasion of noise rock, and an industrial element that really sounds influenced by Godflesh. Interesting and enjoyable, with a Bjork cover (Army of Me) providing a nice finishing touch. Recommended .

The BC page.

 

 

Mammoth Volume - The Cursed Who Perform The Larvagod Rites (2022)

Mammoth Volume is a Swedish band that has been active between 1998 to 2008, and reunited in 2020. An that's great because the progressive stoner you can hear on their new album The Cursed Who Perform The Larvagod Rites will pleasure anyone into Black Sabbath, Alice in Chains, QOTSA or Mastodon. Heavy, catchy and creative. Maybe they have the potential to become huge (Mammoth Volume indeed!), I don't know if they will, but anyway, so far I just enjoy this nice album, and suggest you do the same. 

The Bandcamp page.

 

Brant Bjork - Brant Bjork (2020)

This self-titled album from Brant Bjork (ex Kyuss, Fu Manchu and having done plenty of cool solo albums) is maybe the best he's done in recent years and a fine example of how he is COOL made flesh, I mean made music. You could say it's stoner rock or desert rock, but above all it is vibrating cool and groove.

www.Brant Bjork.net

 

 

Pimmit Hills - Heathens & Prophets (2020)

Pimmit Hills is the new band formed by King Giant members after one guitarist left, but, while keeping a King Giant flavour, especially with the exceptional vocals of Dave Hammerly, it's also a different thing musically. Their first release Heathens & Prophets is less epic and heavy metal but is more 70'  heavy blues and stoner, a bit like a mix of King Giant, Mountain and Kyuss. And they also do that with a lot of class. I miss KG but I'm happy to be able to listen to Pimmit Hills, talented musicians with one of the very best heavy metal singers. Recommended!

The Bandcamp page.

 

Demonic Death Judge - The Trail (2020)

I've been following Demonic Death Judge since their third album The descent in 2011. With their new one, their sixth, The Trail their offer something slightly different and I'd say it's their best one. The songs still have the excellent riffing, the heaviness and the groove, but on The Trail they added some more epicness, soul and atmosphere with some nice instrumentals, either in an acoustic americana style or with the voodoo psychedelia of Fountain of Acid. Like the excellently chosen cover photograph, The Trail breath wilderness and grandeur. Albums of this quality can make them a place among the "big names" of stoner / doom music. Excellent stuff.

The Bandcamp page.

Shit and Shine - Doing Drugs Selling Drugs (2019)

Doing Drugs Selling Drugs is heavy, repetitive, and dirty and I love it. This Shit and Shine album sounds very sick and filthy,  sludge noise sounding a bit like a crossbreed of Ramsses, Black Flag and Brainbombs, but worse. Highly addictive shit.

The Bandcamp page.

Black Mountain - Destroyer (2019)

Destroyer, Black Mountain's fifth album (I liked them since their first, you should check their whole discography) is maybe their more "heavy metal" one, a kind of neo proto heavy metal crossed with space rock and stoner, think a mix of Black Sabbath (maybe in its Never Say Die incarnation), Hawkwind and Blue Oyster Cult. Black Mountain at their most heavy, epic and progressive. An excellent album with memorable songs, including a good ending with a nice David Bowie tribute (not a cover but indoubitably a tribute). Recommended!

The Bandcamp page.

Lovely Wife | Snakes Don't Belong in Alaska - split (2018)

Newcastle is maybe UK's capital of psychedelic heavy rock and this split between Lovely Wife and Snakes Don't Belong in Alaska is another proof. On their track LW are more on a drone/noise exploration whereas SDBIA on their two tracks are a bit more melodic (for the guitars and the vocals) and dynamic. Both are deep in the heavy psych stoner sound and takes you on a nice trip. Good stuff.

The Bandcamp page.

Dopethrone - Transcanadian Anger (2018)

Transcanadian Anger is the fifth album in ten years for Dopethrone from Montréal (as you guessed / know they like early Electric Wizard yes. oh and Darkthrone too, but it's less evident in the music). They take you on another journey in dirty and thick stoner/doom territory, filled with heavy groovy riffs. The sludge/black metal vocals fits well the miserabilist atmosphere of their music.
Compared to their previous albums nothing new but they maintain their high quality level.

The Bandcamp page.

Warp Transmission - Tamám Shud (2015)

If you don't want to choose between tripping or rocking music and have both then Warp Transmission is a good pick. The band from Finland released two years ago a really cool album called Tamám Shud that is a nice mix of stoner / psychedelic / doom and garage rock, evoking bands like Monster Magnet or Electric Wizard as well as The Stooges. And their spaciest moments are as goods as their hardest rocking ones. Easily better than the average stoner band. Really enjoyable stuff.

Their Bandcamp page.

ps : one of the guys in WT is also in Sonic Poison, which old school grind evoking Repulsion is a really different stuff but is also excellent (HERE is my review).

Landskap - III (2016)

Landskap is among the best heavy rocking bands but few knows it. Their third album (called III for mysterious reasons) altough not my favourite one keep the quality at a very high level. Their doom / stoner / psych rock is different from the countless bands now playing this kind of music because it is a bit more progressive, the organ brings a Deep purple and The Doors something, and speaking of The Doors their great vocalist reminds more Jim Morrison than Ozzy Osbourne wich is also a very welcome change. Why is it not my favourite among their three albums? well, I feel their guitar sound is maybe a bit more modern now, getting closer to the sound of many stoner rock bands. And the best songs on the album are maybe a bit inferior to the best songs they had on their previous albums, maybe because the songwriting is a bit more traditionnal. But it's still very very good and a really enjoyable listen.

Their Bandcamp page.

Haikai No Ku - Temporary Infinity (2016)

Haikai No Ku formed in 2012 as a "power trio" with Mike Vest (Bong, 11Paranoias, Blown out, etc.) on guitar, Jerome Smith on bass and Sam Booth on drums. Temporary Infinity is something like their fourth or fifth album. It delivers the expected amount of slow and heavy psychedelic rock drowned in feedback and delays. What set it apart from other psychedelic bands is the darker feel, evoking more lovecraftian unspeakable horrors than flower power. We could say it's somewhere between Bong and 11Paranoias with more lead guitars. In fact it would be closer to a nightmarish version of Blown out. Anyway if you're into heavy rock and dark psychedelia this is something you have to listen to. Strong stuff!

The Bandcamp page.

Major Kong - Galactic cannibalism (EP 2015)

Major Kong is a polish trio playing instrumental stoner / doom at its finest. They have the heaviness, the riffs and the grooves, plus a touch of space rocking and inspired songwriting to hold things together and guarantee an interesting listen. All that makes their new EP Galactic cannibalism a very enjoyable piece (four tracks, around 25 minutes) of heavy trippy rock. I also strongly recommend their latest album Doom machine.  

The Bandcamp page.

Yuri Gagarin - At the center of all infinity (2015)

Yeah you guessed it this is space rock. Space rock with a heavy rock / stoner flavour. But the focus is on the trip more than on the heaviness. Yuri Gagarin is a swedish instrumental quintet and At the center of all infinity is their second album (their first, self-titled, one  was already really good). Cool guitar work, a good driving rythm section, a bit of synth and effects. And they take you far away... and you will like it... and will ask for more. Really cool stuff, if you're into heavy psychedelia  and space rock there is absolutely no reason you wouldn't enjoy it.

The Bandcamp page.

Bantoriak - Weedooism (2015)

The cover art makes it pretty clear, Bantoriak plays on the stoner  / psych side of heavy music. This is an italian band and their debut album, Weedooism, is released by Argonauta records. Their sound is a quite original mix of stoner / doom with some desert rock vibes and strong psychedelic flavours completed by oriental melodies and male and female vocals. This makes a unique trippy laid-back atmosphere, and combined with good songwriting the result is an album really enjoyable to listen to. Cool stuff!

The Bandcamp page.

King giant - Black ocean waves (2015)

King giant is a great heavy metal band from Virginia (USA). Their previous album, Dismal hollow, back in 2012 was one of the best heavy metal of the year and I listened to it many times (read Here the review and the interview we did). They are now back with Black ocean waves. It's another awesome album that I also really enjoy listening to. I hope it will help them get the recognition they deserves. The album starts with a good instrumental and from the beginning compositional skills and good guitar works are on display, then the first songs starts and you hear how good the singer is (clean but powerfull heavy metal singing) and that the rhythm is good at doing what is needed to make it groove. Great traditionnal heavy metal with just a touch of stoner sound to add more heaviness. I mentionned the good start of the album but it doesn't fail to end on a high note with a classy 8 minutes long closing epic. Once again King giant are really strong at heavy, epic and groovy songwriting. If you need some comparison we could say they are somewhere between Iron maiden and Corrosion of conformity. Don't expect some important evolutions compared to Dismal hollow, the new album carry on in the same tracks, but I think nobody will complain, both albums are great, the band found their formula and are really good at doing it.  If you're into this kind of music I can't recommend it too much.

Their website