https://www.high-endrolex.com/18

High Desert Queen Premiere Secrets of the Black Moon in Full

high desert queen

Texas heavy rockers High Desert Queen release their debut full-length, Secrets of the Black Moon (review here), this Friday through Ripple Music. The union between band and label arose earlier this year as part of the curated series helmed by Rob “Blasko” Nicholson, and in that, High Desert Queen join the ranks of The Crooked WhispersHoly Death TrioHail the Void and Mother Iron Horse, and as the series — I don’t know how long it is going/will go, but it’s going — begins to pay dividends in actual records, the coherence of form takes shape as a defining feature. That is to say, High Desert Queen sound like a band who knows what they want to sound like, and then they sound like they sound like that thing.

You with me?

Good.

Because from the rolling of heads at Secrets of the Black Moon‘s subtlyHigh Desert Queen Secrets of the Black Moon doomed outset to the breadth of its lumbering and spacious witch-burying finale, the four-piece of vocalist Ryan Garney, guitarist Rusty Miller, bassist Matt Metzger and drummer Phil Hook offer heavy fare for and by the converted. Ain’t nobody here pretending they never heard Black Sabbath, or Kyuss for that matter, and the obvious goal isn’t as much to reshape aesthetic as to add a stamp of their own to it and set themselves up for future growth. Delighting in the tropes of genre, not avoiding them, but not ignoring the drive to bring themselves into it on a level of personal expression. Aided in the cause by production from Duel‘s Jeff Henson and reaching out in a fascinating way toward European shores by enlisting Karl Daniel Lidén (Greenleaf, Lowrider, Katatonia, many others) to mix and master, High Desert Queen showcase ambition, a foundation of songcraft, and crisp but not overwrought performance. What the hell else would you actually want?

If your answer to that question is, “to stream the entire album before it’s out on Friday,” then you’re covered here.

I’m happy to host the record for streaming below, followed by a few words from Garney about its making.

Please enjoy:

Ryan Garney on Secrets of the Black Moon:

We couldn’t be happier with this as our debut record. Knowing we went into the studio after only five or six practices as a band and then having countless setbacks due to the state of the world, we couldn’t be more thrilled to get it out and let the world discover who we are. Thanks to Blasko and Ripple that is finally a possibility.

This record was really us getting comfortable with each other and learning each other musically. As this album is released we are already set to record the next album taking what we’ve learned from the writing experience of our debut. We hope everyone enjoys the ride as we just hope to write music that we would listen to ourselves and helps spread musical love to everyone.

Preorders: https://music.ripple-music.com/hdq

Fresh off their formation in 2019, High Desert Queen are on their way to establishing themselves as one of the hardest working rock bands on the Austin music scene. With their awe-inspiring display of sincerity and sonic maturity, the band caught the attention of Ozzy Osbourne bassist Blasko, who signed them to Ripple Music as part of his collaboration with the Californian label. Their upcoming debut ‘Secrets of the Black Moon’ finds the right balance between earth-rumbling grooves, irresistible heaviness and sun-drenched riffage, and the emotional power of Ryan Garney on vocals. It was recorded by Jeff Henson (Duel) at Red Nova Ranch studios in Austin, mixed and mastered by Karl Daniel Lidén (Lowrider, Crippled Black Phoenix, Greenleaf) at Studio Gröndahl in Stockholm.

High Desert Queen is:
Ryan Garney- Vocals
Rusty Miller- Guitar
Matt Metzger- Bass
Phil Hook- Drums

High Desert Queen on Facebook

High Desert Queen on Instagram

High Desert Queen on Bandcamp

Ripple Music on Facebook

Ripple Music on Bandcamp

Ripple Music website

Tags: , , , , ,

One Response to “High Desert Queen Premiere Secrets of the Black Moon in Full”

  1. Mark says:

    Pre-ordered this one. Ripple killing it as usual!

Leave a Reply