Las Vegas instrumentalists Sonolith self-release their mostly-self-recorded new LP, III, tomorrow, Oct. 4. It is the third release from the sans-vocal outfit, and somewhat counterintuitive to the title, their second full-length behind 2019’s Fire Thunder Wanderlust, but it follows behind 2021’s Voidscapes EP (review here) and is the first offering from the four-piece incarnation of the band, comprised of guitarists Alex Lidey and Ben Dubler, bassist Adam Sage and drummer Ian Henneforth.

Fleshed out atmospherically through a series of three short mood-setting pieces, the first of which is the album intro “Sine Misericordia,” the album gets fairly dark and metal-adjacent by the time they’re doing the guitar-as-keyboard (unless that’s just a keyboard; could be) in “Divide et Impera” or nailing that slowdown in closer “Dweller on the Threshold” before a final sample rounds out, but by and large it is a celebration of heavy dynamics and methods, full in the knowledge of from whence it comes and executed without pretense in homage to heavy ideology itself. Unless a given listener for some reason has a predisposition against songs without vocals, Sonolith make it easy to get on board.

Of course, Karma to Burn are a touchstone for the niche Sonolith occupy, but the mood and purported storyline across III is darker than the West Virginian forebears ever were and the evocations of titles like “Under the Torturer’s Attention” and “To Brave the Desert of Despair” distinguish Sonolith even from where they were three years ago. Picking up from “Sine Misericordia,” “Under the Torturer’s Attention” has a doomier lumber as it unfolds, and as the interlude “Effugium” follows, a background drone and some noise wrought over a sub-20-second break, it aids in the shift into “Midnight Flight,” which is both faster and reveals something of a heavy desert gothism, a surprisingly fun bounce emerging in the bassline as it follows the relatively careening guitar line into the song’s midsection. “Midnight Flight” becomes the entry point to a stretch of four cuts that does a lot to craft the personality of III as a whole.

That’s a succession which, on vinyl, is likely split between album-centerpiece “To Brave the Desert of Despair” and the seven-minute “Legion,” which is the longest inclusion of the bunch. Both establish a foreboding rumble early and build off that, each in its own direction, with the former upping the tempo late and the latter shifting after four minutes in to a stop and rebuild around a stark figure of guitar that’s smoothly brought to a full, all-in nod that’s eventually brought around to the progression from the first half — one hesitates to call these parts verses and choruses, but Sonolith are by no means hookless — to give a sense of completion and make “Legion” a highlight before giving over to the aforementioned “Divide et Impera,” which is more upbeat, sure, but still plenty grim to suit the LP’s narrative.

The story — one of escaping a torturer and finding actual and metaphorical liberation; an analog perhaps for being able to get away from the cruel voices in one’s own head — is telegraphed in the sense of movement throughout the tracks, with the names of the songs intermittently laying out the time and place, whether it’s “Midnight Flight” or closer “Dweller on the Threshold.” The finale follows the creaking-ship penultimate interlude “Seas of Fate,” and is by no means hopeless in mood, but neither does it resound or shimmer in a way that would undercut the brooding of the songs before it. If the character formerly in the grip of this obscure torment has managed to get away, there’s pretty clearly some processing to do in the aftermath of that escape. Off to therapy, then.

How much one does or doesn’t engage with III on a narrative level will ultimately be up to the person hearing it, but even at a more superficial level of engagement — that is, if you listen without following the progression of story to the final bit of dialog that follows “Dweller on the Threshold” as an ending — the songs hold up, expanding on what Sonolith were doing on the spacier Voidscapes and finding new, more individualized expression. Growth in craft as well as lineup. It’s still self-produced, so don’t expect any grandiose largesse in terms of sound, but there’s something appropriate to the plot in the band’s ability to create a claustrophobic feel, and that encourages appreciating III for the depth of purpose brought to it through the arrangements within and between the songs.

The album streams in its entirety below, followed by more background, courtesy of the PR wire.

Please enjoy:

Wizards of riffage cruising the stars in search of the heaviest groove in the universe, Sonolith return from their sojourn to the dark edges of space to deliver their new full-length, “III”.

IN THE BAND’S OWN WORDS:

“Sonolith’s third release was envisioned and summoned into being over the course of two years, burning the candle from both ends while working day jobs, performing live shows, writing, and recording. Sonolith became a four piece with the addition of our second guitarist, allowing for live performance of the densely layered, cinematic, and kinetic instrumental compositions that the band’s come to be known for. ‘III’ tells a story in sound and symbolism of a fraught journey undertaken to escape the persecution of a psychotic tormentor, through the high peaks and low troughs, towards eventually obtaining freedom and spiritual emancipation.”

Tracklist:
1. Sine Misericordia (0:41)
2. Under The Torturer’s Attention (5:33)
3. Effugium (0:18)
4. Midnight Flight (3:36)
5. To Brave the Desert of Despair (6:48)
6. Legion (7:25)
7. Divide Et Impera (5:18)
8. Seas of Fate (0:31)
9. Dweller on the Threshold (6:31)

Written, performed, recorded, and produced by Sonolith at Sonolith Sound Studios in Las Vegas, NV. Drums recorded by Cody Leavitt at Asteroid M Records. Mixed and mastered by Adam Sage & Sonolith. We would like to sincerely thank all of the fans, friends, and family that have supported Sonolith over the years. You know who you are, we know who you are.

Sonolith is:
Ian Henneforth: Drums
Adam Sage: Bass/Sound Engineering
Alex Lidey: Rhythm & Lead Guitars/Artwork/Video
Ben Dubler: Lead & Rhythm Guitars

Sonolith, “To Brave the Desert of Despair” official video

Sonolith on Facebook

Sonolith on Instagram

Sonolith on Spotify

Sonolith on Bandcamp

A remastered version of Howling Giant‘s 2015 debut EP, being released in January for its 10th anniversary with a bonus track and demos? Yes, fucking of course. Duh. What, you’re gonna say no to that? I repeat: Duh.

In the band’s recounting of their beginnings, they note that “Whale Lord,” which opens the Howling Giant EP, began as a mixing project in college in Boston. I’m pretty sure that’s the Berklee School of Music they’re not namedropping — though admittedly it would be more hilarious if they were a Harvard-educated stoner rock band — and that accounts for some of the method behind their particular brand of madness and the fact that they’ve sounded all along like they know what they’re doing. Because they do.

The four tracks that comprise the original Howling Giant release can be streamed at the bottom of the post. In comparison to 2023’s Glass Future (review here), which the band will continue to support on the road with France’s Mars Red Sky this December; I’ll be at that Brooklyn show so help me Robot Jeebus — it sounds raw, but the energy and the songwriting are there along with hints of the harmonies to come. “Camel Crusher” still nods like a beast. Have fun with it.

Preorders for the thing are up as of tomorrow, as the PR wire details:

HOWLING GIANT announces special 10th-anniversary reissue for “Howling Giant” debut EP this January!

Nashville heavy psychedelic and prog metal goldsmiths HOWLING GIANT are set to reissue a 10th-anniversary remastered edition of their self-titled debut EP this winter, with vinyl and CD preorders starting on Friday 4th October!
Recorded live in guitarist and vocalist Tom Polzine’s bedroom, Howling Giant’s 2015 self-titled debut EP still holds true to the band’s core tenets of soaring melody, spacey jams, and fuzzy riffs. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of what propelled these Nashville pillars of sci-fi and fantasy-driven psych-metal into the heavy rock world stratosphere, this fully remastered edition of the “Howling Giant” EP will also comprise three unreleased demos, a spoken word history on the beginnings of the band, a newly recorded cover as well as the digital-only bonus track “WZRDLF Origins”.

About this special EP reissue, the band says: “For the 10th anniversary of our self-titled EP, we wanted to reflect on our origin story. With this release, we included the original 2012 demos recorded during our time in Boston so that the listeners could hear the evolution of our sound. We’re very excited to repress the HG EP on vinyl, newly remastered by Tony Reed with a bunch of goodies on the B-Side. We recorded the original demo for Whale Lord as part of a mixing project in college. We booked the only available studio time (a 4-hour block from 2am to 6am) to record 2 tracks live and on the spot. From the witching hour, we brought Whale Lord and Tusk of the Thunder Mammoth into existence. We hope you enjoy comparing the original 2012 demo to the final product, recorded live in Tom’s bedroom. These are the tracks that started it all. The wizard lives.”

The “Howling Giant” anniversary reissue will be released in Standard Purple Variant vinyl, Light Blue/Yellow Splatter Special Edition (with silver laminate cover), CD and digital on January 13th, 2025, with preorders starting on October 4th at midnight Pacific Time via Bandcamp. All vinyl and CD preorders will receive a digital download of all the remastered tracks, demos and special “SKLDZR Origins” bonus track.

HOWLING GIANT “Howling Giant” EP Anniversary reissue
Available on January 13th, 2025 (vinyl/CD/digital)
Preorders start Friday 4th October from midnight PST

Howling Giant upcoming shows w/ Mars Red Sky
Dec 5 – Baltimore, MD – Metro Baltimore
Dec 6 – Brooklyn, NY – TV Eye NYC
Dec 7 – Cambridge/Boston, MA – Middle East Upstairs
Dec 8 – Philadelphia, PA – MilkBoy
Dec 10 – Asheville, NC – Eulogy
Dec 11 – Louisville, KY – Portal Louisville
Dec 12 – Detroit, MI – Sanctuary Detroit
Dec 13 – Youngstown, OH – Westside Bowl
Dec 14 – Toronto, ON – Monarch Tavern
Dec 15 – Montréal, QC – Foufounes Electriques

Howling Giant are:
Tom Polzine – Guitar and Vocals
Zach Wheeler – Drums and Vocals
Sebastian Baltes – Bass and Vocals

howlinggiant.bandcamp.com
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Howling Giant, Howling Giant (2015)

Howling Giant, Glass Future (2023)

Look. I’m not gonna fart around here. This is Solace we’re talking about. It’s not just another oh-hey-band-who-tours-all-the-time-is-announcing-a-tour sort of announcement. This is a different thing. The New Jersey stalwarts, in defiance of science, any and all gods, and general common sense, will in January embark on a rare-these-days stretch of dates outside the Garden State, making their way to Las Vegas to leave a bruise on Planet Desert Rock Weekend V alongside the likes of Mos Generator, Sergeant Thunderhoof, Unida, and so on. I’ll be honest, I’m looking at flights for it. I don’t know that it’s something I can make happen — finding a place to crash will be a crucial determining factor — but if I end up going, Solace will be a big part of why.

The tour launches Jan. 24 in Richmond, Virginia, after a Jan. 3 show in Atlantic City celebrating the birthday of one of the two members in the band named Justin, and if you’ll notice, there are still a couple TBD dates as they make their way through Texas and into the Southwest. They’ve got Dallas, Austin and Phoenix listed, so if you’re in any of those places and can help out, do. Not only is it good karma sure to be repaid by the universe in some manner, but you’re also bound to reap a sick payday from the insurance when Solace blow the roof off whatever room you put them in. Book the gig and get ready to make a claim. I’ve seen them any number of times in any number of situations and they have never, ever, ever, not delivered.

Bonus that they’ll have new material to work out on the road. Their last record was 2019’s The Brink (review here) on Blues Funeral, and 2025 would be as good a time as any for a foll0w-up. But Solace don’t owe anyone anything, so whatever they do and whenever they do it, it’s a thing to be treasured.

From the PR wire:

SOLACE will be hitting the road January 2025 on our way out to Vegas for Planet Desert Rock Fest.

We are thrilled that we’re finally going to play a few cities that we haven’t had the chance to visit.

Right now we’re polishing up new material and plan to get into the studio next spring for the follow-up to The Brink. We’ll be playing some of this on the road for sure as well as a few “classics” from our earlier years.

Solace live:
-Fri Jan. 3rd Atlantic City, NJ @ Anchor Rock Club, Justin’s Birthday Bash w/ Michael Rudolph Cummings & Johnny Pipe, Featuring “Master of Ceremonies” BRIAN O’HALLORAN
-Thurs Jan. 23rd Richmond, VA @ Bandito’s w/ Book of Wyrms
-Fri Jan. 24th Atlanta, GA @ Star Bar w/ Hot Ram
-Sat Jan. 25th New Orleans, LA @ Siberia
-Mon Jan. 27th Houston, TX @ Black Magic Social Club
-Tues Jan. 28th TBD, Dallas
-Wed Jan. 29th TBD, Austin
-Fri Jan. 31st TBD, Phoenix
-Sat Feb. 1st Las Vegas, NV @ Planet Desert Rock Fest
-Fri March 28 Baltimore, MD @ The Depot
-Sat March 29 Columbus, OH @ Ace Of Cups

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Solace, The Brink (2019)

[Press play above to stream Ruff Majik’s Moth Eater in its entirety. Album is out tomorrow, Oct. 4, through SOL Records. The band are currently on tour in Europe with Gnome. Dates are here.]

Hail narrative, and double-hail the wielding of it. Ruff Majik‘s fifth album in six years, Moth Eater is also their first for the Sound of Liberation label arm SOL Records and it finds the South African four-piece — vocalist/guitarist Johni Holiday, guitarist/vocalist Cowboy Bez, bassist Jimmy Glass and drummer Steven “Boz Moon” Bosman — with grueling tales of underground debauchery, trials and triumphs, set to dizzying instrumentalist turns and full-rush party-vibe conjurations. To aid in the telling are guests like South Africa’s Reegan Du Buisson (Evergloom, Facing the Gallows) on opener “What a Time to Be a Knife,” and Lerato, who appears on the side B funk-fortified groover “Ingozi” (the Zulu word for “danger” as the lyric sheet notes), and Sweden’s Arvid Hällagård (Greenleaf, Young Acid, Pools), and an overarching structure that brings the sometimes disparate tracks together with transitional recordings of voicemails that are mostly funny and no doubt have their foundations in stories too.

Because make no mistake, even though the songs are short, shove-prone, and fun, what’s happening on Moth Eater — which is not-coincidentally subtitled ‘The Lorekeeper’s Bible’ — is nothing less than Ruff Majik realizing the power of and taking control of their narrative. “Dirt and Deer Blood?” Oh that’s a story. The angry voicemail before the drums start opener “What a Time to Be a Knife” that ends with the threat, “I’ll make sure you never play another show in this town, bru!” as if the band’s intentions were so limited to a single city? That’s a story too. “Wasted Youth?” Come on. That’s a drinking song. Of course it’s a story.

You get the idea. The story is story. This is consistent in some ways with the last two, also stellar, Ruff Majik full-lengths, 2020’s The Devil’s Cattle (review here), where they learned genre was a tool to be manipulated, and more especially 2023’s Elektrik Ram (review here), with which much of Moth Eater is in conversation, sometimes directly, as in the voicemail from the CEO of Riffcom as played by Paul Gioia (All This for Nothing), who congratulates ‘Wilkinson’ on a job well done after the brainmelting percussive thrust of early cut “By the Hammer,” following up on a similarly charming gag from the last record, and sometimes indirectly, as in the way “What a Time to Be a Knife” middle-fingers-up rages in the spirit of Elektrik Ram‘s opener “Hillbilly Fight Song” or “All You Need is Speed” from The Devil’s Cattle, or even the fact that the last line of the closing title-track on Moth Eater is “I feel fine,” where Elektrik Ram wrapped with, “I wish I was dead.”

That that choice feels purposeful at all — and it does — is emblematic of Ruff Majik‘s attention to detail, but one doesn’t have to dig even so far to find that. It’s audible in the multi-layered vocal arrangements throughout, with Holiday‘s voice pushed low on “We’re Not Out of the Swamp Yet” and at its most Axl Rose-esque in “Wasted Youth,” or instrumentally, in the way Glass‘ bassline matches the vocal thoughtfully in the otherwise frenetic “By the Hammer” — which is so much of a story it’s mythology — for the lines, “Oh, and the blood it would stain her pretty white dress/Oh, if Odin wills, she’ll have their heads,” or the manner in which “Cult Eyes” finds itself in a mid-tempo bluesy swagger so suited to the Holiday/Hällagård duet that tops it, or how “Baby’s First Guillotine” moves from its perhaps ill-advised opening voicemail — a German-accented guy talking in a lisped voice about the band shaking their asses resolving in the punchline, “that’s what’s fappening”; I’m sure there’s a story there, too, but it could be taken as a little ha-ha-queerness-is-funny-because-it’s-different-from-me in a way that’s probably more sixth-grade than the band intended — into self-titled-era Alice in Chains-style pulls of guitar in its tension-releasing chorus.

Such persistent self-awareness and generally intelligent structured craft and lyrics are not anchors holding the band back. Instead, as much as it’s a party on the surface, depth abounds in a lyrical reference like “I’m killing snakes/Call me Patrick” in “What a Time to Be a Knife” — subtly namedropping the patron saint of Ireland — and the last lyrics, “Oh Mary, you should’ve seen me in my prime/I could’ve made it, I just didn’t have the time” from the maddeningly catchy “Battering Lamb,” which is a highlight examining the life of a band trying to exist in the current underground sphere, its own chorus, “And I’ve won some/But I’ve lost some too/I’ve been told it’s all part of the game/And I’ve burned through/A stack or two/I’ve been told money ain’t no thang,” encapsulating the experience from inside a nebulous idea of what ‘making it’ means in the first place when the rewards are often intangible at best. That the voicemail accompanying “Battering Lam” at the start and finish is a desperate fan who “needs the fuzz in my life” and “needs some Majik” as though addicted to it should not be taken as a coincidence. Clearly among the things Ruff Majik know about themselves is they know when they’re on fire.

Much of Moth Eater is spent in that very state. To wit, as “Dirt and Deer Blood” shifts from its opening sample of a longwinded tour manager/driver into its verse, Ruff Majik have by then amassed enough capital in attitude to sell the bridge lines, “Y’all don’t even know who the fuck I think I am,” and “Y’all keep playing preacher and I’ll keep getting lit,” without sounding ridiculous. No minor accomplishment, and the song itself is likewise a burner. Sound of Liberation‘s Matte Vandeven (also My Sleeping Karma and The Great Escape) offers some noncommittal compliments after “Baby’s First Guillotine,” and the joke is that the band are killing it. Broadly speaking, the songs don’t make efficiency the top priority in a way that Elektrik Ram often did, and that’s something you can hear even when “What a Time to Be a Knife” kicks back in after a stop that, on the record before, would’ve just been its cold ending. The tradeoff for that immediacy is the material here does more. In that song, for example, the final section rides a more open groove and turns well-timed repetitions of “Get fucked!” into a memorable impression that defines in part the point of view of everything that follows. It enhances the story Ruff Majik are telling, and story is the priority.

A singalong finish for “Wasted Youth” — “Now all I’ve got left is wasted youth/And all I have is half of the truth/I said I never felt lonely/Until I met you/Until I met you…” — gives over (without a sample between) to the title-track, which establishes acoustic guitar early and trades off into a fervent push echoing “By the Hammer” as much as the quieter parts and lyrics complement Elektrik Ram‘s previously-alluded-to “Chemically Humanized.” Decidedly, willfully more lighthearted, “Moth Eater” caps the LP that shares its name with the punchline for all the voicemails spread across its span with a simple deleting of messages. It’s a little awkward after the very-much-an-ending way “Moth Eater” rounds out, but if they were going to conclude that thread at all — and they were, because storytelling — that’s a fair enough way to do it, reinforcing the attitude underlying the songs front-to-back and underscoring the band’s intention to do their own thing in their own way, even if it means they’ll never get another show in this town again, whatever town this may be.

There is a particular element of glee as Ruff Majik dash from part to part, righteous in their us-against-reality cause and assured by a strength of songwriting that makes the song likewise casual-cool and roilingly infectious, and if Elektrik Ram was staring into the abyss, Moth Eater is perhaps throwing the abyss in the van and hitting the road alongside it in buddy-comedy fashion. It is undeniably Ruff Majik‘s own in persona and execution, and even if the trilogy that began in The Devil’s Cattle is done — which it may or may not be — the band thankfully show no signs of letting up anytime soon. May their next round of adventures also result in such a broad swath of stories recounted.

Ruff Majik, “Wasted Youth” lyric video

Ruff Majik, “Cult Eyes” official video

Ruff Majik website

Ruff Majik on Facebook

Ruff Majik on Instagram

Ruff Majik on TikTok

Sound of Liberation on Facebook

Sound of Liberation on Instagram

Sound of Liberation website

Sound of Liberation store

With the stated intention of bridging gaps between traditionalist folk and doom Massachusetts-based Christopher Thomas Elliott made his debut operating under the Buzzard moniker earlier this year with the aptly named full-length, Doom Folk (review here). If you missed it among the glut of 2024 offerings in various styles under the umbrella of ‘heavy’ microgenres, you might be forgiven. There’s been no great hype push, no social media content-providing to keep the songs in listeners’ algorithms. It’s almost like they just want to make and release music without having to hock wares in the open market of Reels. Imagine such a thing.

“Crushing Burden of Despair,” a new Buzzard single posted the other day, is outwardly heavier than was most of Doom Folk, though the album featured electric guitar along with acoustic as well. Here, it comes with dense bass and a swing of drums — programmed or not, I can’t tell — heralding more of a band-ish arrangement as a preface to a second long-player to come early next year, given the title Mean Bone. What’s held over is the groove and Elliott‘s plainspoken lyrics and singing style, and while based on Doom Folk, I wouldn’t expect Mean Bone to do just one thing the whole way through however many tracks it ultimately will boast, it’s plain to hear Buzzard laying claim to a broader scope of sound in “Crushing Burden of Despair” even as much of the personality of the album before is maintained in the track, which — you guessed it — is about living in America right now. So, yes, daring to be relevant amid an evolving sound. This tells me the record is something to look forward to.

In the interim, Doom Folk is getting a new, limited, bonus-track-inclusive CD pressing set to become available on Halloween — it’s October now, apparently — and the album itself has been remastered for the occasion. I’d be curious to hear that, and I would expect either way it’s still pretty raw, as that was part of the intent behind the recording in the first place. But if Mean Bone — as in the adage, “I don’t have a… in my body” — is going to delve into protest-doom as it evolves from out of the Americana bent of the first record, building on what I’d consider one of this year’s best and quirkiest debuts in new ways, count me in. I dig the hell out of this.

Lyric video follows here, and the Doom Folk stream is at the bottom of the post. Enjoy:

Buzzard, “Crushing Burden of Despair” lyric video

Greetings Doomcampers. I’m pleased to announce the Doom Folk Deluxe Expanded CD, due to lumber forth at the end of October:

* 12-track Doom Folk album freshly remastered
* 4-page booklet packed with Doom Folk lyrics
* 7 bonus tracks of pre-Buzzard dark Americana, including a grim rewrite of “O Death” with Lisa Austin on vocals.
* Limited to 100 copies
* Shipping 10/31/24

In the meantime, I just quietly slipped out a lyric video preview of the just-about-finished 2nd Buzzard LP, Mean Bone, due Spring of 2025: www.youtube.com/watch?v=68te6DhUM6c. Built around themes of human evil, social collapse, and environmental destruction, Mean Bone expands on morbid Americana to include brooding full-band Doom and Stoner metal.

Follow Buzzard on Bandcamp: https://buzzarddoomfolk.bandcamp.com

Stay sane and sick,
Chris

Buzzard, Doom Folk (2024)

Buzzard on Facebook

Buzzard on Instagram

Buzzard on Bandcamp

Sun Blood Stories will release their fifth album, Shadow Loud, on Oct. 4. It is their first studio long-player since 2019’s Haunt Yourself (review here), and follows a move from Boise, Idaho, to Portland, Oregon — also the plague, rising tide of fascism and whathaveyou; it’s been quite a half-decade — and I can’t help but have in my head the repeated line from “Secret Cathedral” as intoned by guitarist Ben Kirby and slide guitarist/noisemaker Amber Pollard, the ‘hook’ as much as it’s a hook, that anchors the song, “Now and then we need to be unmade,” as it seems to speak to the album and the band itself, and no, that’s not just about moving to Oregon, lineup changes, or reconciling with one’s identity through creative craft.

All of that is happening in the 36-minute 10-tracker engineered by Kirby and mixed/mastered by Z.V. House at Rabbit Brush Audio, but there are according shifts in style in the material itself, from mellow desert driftgaze to the industrial noise culminating “Brand New Ghost Town,” the heart poured into Pollard‘s vocals on opener “All You’ve Got is Time” — a resonant initial showcase that’s like a status-update for impulses through which the band has worked all along — to the screaming wash of intensity into which “No One’s Blessed” builds as a singular moment of emotional catharsis for the album as a whole, no less so for the mostly-minimalist minute and a half of “Tear You Apart” right before. “Fossil Family” references Buddy Holly, because of course it does, and “Blood Memory” becomes a consuming delve of low end with manipulated slide guitar and vocals cutting through. The band — Pollard, Kirby, bassist Nik Kososik, guitarist Aaron Clark, and drummer Sailor Sigritz — have never been short on experimentalism in any incarnation, and when they launch a freakout, they mean it.

Business as usual, then? Weird stays weird, move along people, nothing to see here? Not quite. This is where that idea of being unmade comes into play, because part of what Shadow Loud does is tear down preconceived notions of what Sun Blood Stories songs do. For sure, and as noted, there are elements that have been there from the start, of course, whether it’s the psychedelic lean of “Fossil Family” — it’s Pollard on the flute — or the Americana-tinged sway of the penultimate “Echoes All Lost,” which follows “No One’s Blessed” and stays more reserved in its payoff, or the finale “Lost in Red” seeming to answer back to “All You’ve Got is Time” with the lines, “All the time is all the time, they say/There is time and it’s too late.” I don’t know if there’s a conclusion in that sentiment, if there’s some actual answer to it, but I think part of the point might be that there isn’t. Shadow Loud, which lives up to the title in atmospheric flourish, isn’t about offering platitudes anymore than it’s about playing it safe stylistically. There’s soul-bearing and despair and joy and love and creativity and all these things, but there’s also no getting away from the troubled backdrop it’s set against. This willingness to not solve a thing, to be vulnerable as well as self-declarative, becomes an essential characteristic of the work.

An emotive stripping-down, maybe, is the unmaking. But not stripping-down in the sense of getting rid of a thing, casting it away, like how “Falling in Feelings” eschews arrangement complexity for a cinematic backing drone and a vocal showcase. This is more about the catharsis, a kind of pulling yourself apart through music and performance. Sun Blood Stories wouldn’t be the first band to try to break themselves with sound, and I’m not sure it’s anything so violent or melodramatic here, either. It feels more like personal growth accounting for its own cost as you make your way through the varied procession of tracks, and if they’ve collectively or individually been unmade, what’s followed is a remaking of self resulting in a bolder incarnation manifest through cathartic release. If you’re willing to open your mind to it, it’s a powerful and affecting listen, whether a given moment is sweetly crooned or abrasively shoved in your face. It’s all part of the same expression that unites the songs across Shadow Loud, and true to everything Sun Blood Stories have released up to this point in their tenure, risks are taken and rewards are vibrant.

The album streams in its entirety below, followed by more info from the PR wire.

Please enjoy:

SBS is still here after 12 years. We are fueled by paranoia & hope, wonder & rage, & we do what we do like it’s the last time we’ll do it because one day, it will be.

Over the years the band has taken on many forms. We are now in the sixth chapter of the Sun Blood story.

Tracklisting:
1. All You’ve Got Is Time
2. Fossil Family
3. Blood Memory
4. Secret Cathedral
5. Falling In Feelings
6. Brand New Ghost Town
7. Tear You Apart
8. No One’s Blessed
9. Echoes All Lost
10. Lost In Red

Releases October 4, 2024.

Sun Blood Stories live:
10/4 Portland at Twilight Cafe and Bar
10/5 Boise at Neurolux
10/10 Spokane at The Chameleon
10/12 Seattle at The Funhouse
10/13 Olympia at La Voyeur

Mixed and Mastered by Z.V. House at Rabbit Brush Audio
Engineered by Ben Kirby
Produced by Sun Blood Stories
Artwork by Kirsten Furlong

On this recording:
Vocals, Slide Guitar, Flute – Amber Pollard
Vocals, Guitar, Slide Guitar, Bass, Keys, Percussion – Ben Kirby
Bass, Guitar – Nik Kososik
Drums, Percussion – Wade Ronsse
Tape Effects – Matt Stone
Fossil Family Vocal Sample – Anna Wiley

Sun Blood Stories:
Amber Pollard (they/them) – vocals + slide guitar + noise
Nik Kososik (he/him) – bass
Aaron Clark (he/him) – guitar
Sailor Sigritz (they/them) – drums
Ben Kirby (he/him) – vocals + guitar + slide guitar

Sun Blood Stories, “Brand New Ghost Town” official video

Sun Blood Stories on Facebook

Sun Blood Stories on Instagram

Sun Blood Stories on Bandcamp

Sun Blood Stories website

A short time after I took the above photo at Bear Stone Festival this past July in Croatia, I stood by the side of the stage with an assemblage from among the media-types brought in to cover the fest. I had been singing Colour Haze‘s praises before the set, as one will, and as a few turned to me with now-knowing smiles, I said flat out they’re my favorite band in the world to watch on a stage.

What’s worse, I think I meant it.

Wildly influential yet singular in their character, the (mostly) German four-piece comprised of guitarist/vocalist Stefan Koglek, bassist Mario Oberpucher, drummer Manfred Merwald and keyboardist/synthesist Jan Faszbender will continue to tour celebrating the band’s 30th anniversary early next year, following up on 2024 dates heralding the same cause. Whatever the reason, get to a Colour Haze gig if you can. There were rumors around of North American touring next year too. I haven’t heard anything solid in that regard as yet, but, well, a boy can hope. Any year you get to see them play is a good one.

Note that El Padre El Don is a new father-son duo from Mario Lalli and Dino Von Lalli, who feature together otherwise in Fatso Jetson. They’ll have desert-mainstay Sean Wheeler (see also Mario Lalli and the Rubber Snake Charmers) with them for a few dates as well, while no less than UK expectation-destroyers Josiah will provide direct support for the bulk of the dates. You can’t go wrong here.

Dates were posted on socials as follows:

Tour in February 2025:

Colour Haze + Josiah + El Padre El Don (Mario & Dino Lalli):
14.02.25 (AT) Vienna, Arena
15.02.25 (PL) Kraków, Hype Park
16.02.25 (PL) Warszawa, Proxima
17.02.25 (DE) Leipzig, Werk 2
18.02.25 (DE) Hamburg, Knust
19.02.25 (DE) Hannover, Faust
20.02.25 (NL) Groningen, Vera
21.02.25 (NL) Nijmegen, Doornroosje
22.02.25 (LU) Esch-sur-Alzette, Kulturfabrik

Colour Haze + Josiah + El Padre El Don (Mario & Dino Lalli) featuring Sean Wheeler:
23.02.25 (FR) Paris, Petit Bain

Colour Haze + El Padre El Don (Mario & Dino Lalli) featuring Sean Wheeler:
24.02.25 (CH) Genf, L’Usine
25.02.25 (IT) Milano, Legend Club
26.02.25 (CH) Düdingen, Bad Bonn
27.02.25 (CH) Aarau, Kiff
28.02.25 (DE) Freiburg, Jazzhaus
01.03.25 (DE) Tübingen, Sudhaus

https://www.facebook.com/COLOURHAZE.official/
https://www.instagram.com/colourhazeband/
http://colourhaze.de/

https://www.facebook.com/elektrohasch
www.elektrohasch.de

Colour Haze, Live at Duna Jam 2024

It’s a good thing Slomosa keep announcing more tour dates, since I can’t get their fucking songs out of my head anyway and it gives me an excuse to put the album on again. The Norwegian four-piece just the other day wrapped their first US tour, engaging audiences as the opener for Alkaline Trio in support of their second LP and first for MNRK Heavy/Stickman Records, Tundra Rock (review here), released last month and in my mind a clear contender for album of the year — and the next night found them hitting another stage, this time in Germany as they set out on the next European stint for October, which includes festival stops at Into the Void Leeuwarden, Up in Smoke in Switzerland and Munich’s Keep it Low.

They’ll take about a month off (as of now) after this tour ends, then pick up in November and December for more shows in Western Europe, then Norway and Sweden, and in January/February, will make their way to the UK and Ireland, continuing to cover their bases as regards territory. Eastern Europe next? More North America? South America? Australia and New Zealand? Japan? I know nothing of their plans, but if any of the above were to be announced, it’d feel like fair game for a band clearly looking to make a career of it and putting in the work to make that happen.

The dates below are out of order — I’m starting with the newest-announced tour, then doubling back for what’s happening between a couple days ago (Sept. 30) and the end of the year — but you get the idea. If you haven’t dug into Tundra Rock as yet, you might consider giving it a shot on the player at the bottom of the post. If not this time, I expect there will be still more opportunities as Slomosa keep momentum on their side going into 2025.

From social media:

Tundra Rock Tour is going into 2025! Finally returning to Ireland and N. Ireland after 3 years. And looking forward to playing Nottingham and Norwich for the first time!

31.1 / Limerick / Dolan’s Kasbah
01.2 / Belfast / Voodoo
02.02 / Dublin / The Grand Social
03.02 / Manchester / Rebellion
04.02 / Glasgow / Garage Attic
05.02 / Nottingham / Rescue Rooms
06.02 / Brighton / Green Door Store
07.02 / London / Underworld
08.02 / Bristol / Thekla
09.02 / Norwich / Waterfront Studio

Tickets on our homepage: https://www.slomosamusic.com/

—

Order/save ‘Tundra Rock’ at this location: https://slomosa.ffm.to/tundrarock

SLOMOSA – Co-headlining w/ Greenleaf (Psychlona supports)
30 SEP 2024 Leipzig (DE) Werk2
01 OCT 2024 Berlin (DE) Lido
02 OCT 2024 Hamburg (DE) Gruenspan
03 OCT 2024 Köln (DE) Club Volta
04 OCT 2024 Bielefeld (DE) Forum
05 OCT 2024 Leeuwarden (NL) Into the Void
06 OCT 2024 Pratteln (CH) Up in Smoke
07 OCT 2024 Innsbruck (AT) PMK
09 OCT 2024 Wien (AT) Arena
10 OCT 2024 Zagreb (HR) Vintage Industrial Bar
11 OCT 2024 Graz (AT) PPC
12 OCT 2024 München (DE) Keep It Low

Holiday-trip to Norway anyone?

SLOMOSA Tundra Rock Tour:
01.11 Paris FR
02.11 Vallet FR
03.11 Toulouse FR
04.11 Marseille FR
05.11 Barcelona ES
06.11 Madrid ES
07.11 Portugalete ES
10.11 Kortrijk BE
15.11 Kopervik // Ovenpaa
16.11 Stavanger // Tou
21.11 Jönköping // Scenen Sofiehof Underjord
23.11 Stockholm // Debaser
28.11 Oslo // Parkteatret
29.11 Halden // Aladdin Scene Halden
30.11 Fredrikstad // Månen
05.12 Tromsø // Blårock Cafe
06.12 Trondheim // Verkstedhallen
07.12 Ålesund // T2 Bar og Scene
13.12 Bergen // USF Verftet

Slomosa are:
Benjamin Berdous – Vocals/guitar
Marie Moe – Vocals/bass
Tor Erik Bye – Guitar
Jard Hole – Drums

https://www.facebook.com/slomosaband
https://www.instagram.com/slomosa
https://slomosa1.bandcamp.com/
https://soundcloud.com/slomosa
https://sptfy.com/4Qaf

https://www.stickman-records.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Stickman-Records-1522369868033940

http://www.mnrkheavy.com
http://www.facebook.com/MNRKHeavy
http://www.instagram.com/MNRK_heavy

Slomosa, Tundra Rock (2024)