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On the Radar: Dopefight

Posted in On the Radar on May 6th, 2010 by JJ Koczan

There’s an old saying in the UK I learned on my recent visit that I’d like now to share with you, having since proved its validity. It goes like this:

Dopefight will fuck you up.”

And it’s true. Dopefight, a trio based in Brighton, will indeed fuck you up. Their songs (as audible on MySpace as anything ever is), are short bursts of weedian anger, carrying stoner riffage into a darker, more aggressive place than it usually goes. Sometimes instrumental, sometimes not, the material is unpredictable and volatile in equal proportion. One imagines it’s a chemical concoction which, if not balanced just right, could blow up the whole damn neighborhood.

They’re a photo-not-available type band, so don’t expect much in the way of biography, but if Dopefight‘s music is left to do the talking, it does so with all the subtlety of scar tissue. I’ve been knee-deep in “Hound” and “Hijos de Fumar” for a couple days now and have no regrets whatsoever. “Saviour” and “Widows Smoke” should likewise serve anyone well who’s looking for a little boot in their ass.

Their four-track demo — featuring “Hijos de Fumar,” “The Thrall,” “Somnia” and “Widow’s Smoke” — is out on Corruption Recordings for anyone who wants to track it down, and Dopefight also has a split out with crusty London doomers Dead Existence that I haven’t heard yet but is bound to be worthy fodder for a scorching of the eardrums. For anyone too lazy to check out Dopefight‘s MySpace page or the aforementioned split, here’s a video of the band doing “Saviour” filmed at this year’s Loud Howls festival in London on April 11. Killer. Special thanks to Chris West for turning me on to these dudes.

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RECOVERED: Dusted Angel Interview: Into the Fire

Posted in Features on August 20th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

Doom claws for everyone!When I called Dusted Angel frontman, Clifford Dinsmore, for the following interview, the Santa Cruz singer was out riding his bike. As he’d shortly inform me, he was about a block away from raging wildfires that were, as he put it, “Like riding your bike in the middle of a camp fire.” I was largely unable to imagine the heat, discomfort and threatened feelings such a situation might produce.

Nonetheless, the former BL’AST and Gargantula frontman was willing to give up some of his time to discuss his latest project, Dusted Angel, who recently issued their self-titled debut 7″ (review here) through Corruption Recordings. Rooted in doomed-out, old school simplicity and foreboding riff-led atmospheres, the five-piece has already amassed a considerable following taking into account their still-nascent status.

After the jump, the veteran vocalist discusses the formation of Dusted Angel, their recording process with the much-revered Billy Anderson, and what they have planned for the future. Followers of a traditional doom aesthetic and a new school sensibility will want to take note. Enjoy.

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The Ashen Doom of Dusted Angel

Posted in Reviews on August 11th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

I think this is the cover. Hard to tell sometimes.The three tracks with which Santa Cruz doomers Dusted Angel make their debut on their self-titled 7? through Corruption Recordings are the kind of songs that one could easily develop a sentimental attachment to, and by that I mean although for the most part they?re stripped-down and raw unto their essential riff-based elements with little frills or unexpected movements, the post-High on Fire energy with which they?re delivered nonetheless brings out a welcome feeling in the hearing. Put on the vinyl and it?s almost like a secret you?re keeping with yourself. Don?t tell anyone, but Dusted Angel kind of rocks.

Side A is comprised of ?The Thorn,? while B gets the shorter ?Valium 5? and ?Purple Jesus,? and all three tracks manage to keep a sense of vitality in the form of varying speeds and vocal approaches from singer Clifford Dinsmore. One could argue that the last minute and a half of ?Valium 5? — which might be my pick of the bunch — is just a big doom finish. The faster, instrumental ?Purple Jesus? is a straightforward rocker that carries a ?90s groove ably in the guitars of Eric Feiber and Scott Stevens and is over before you know it. There?s really no reason the song couldn?t have had vocals, but if nothing else it sets a precedent so that when they put the 20-minute wordless jam on their inevitable full-length they can say, ?I told you so.?

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