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Beelzefuzz, The Righteous Bloom: Nebulous Parfait

Posted in Reviews on August 2nd, 2016 by JJ Koczan

beelzefuzz ii the righteous bloom-700

Three years after offering up their self-titled debut (review here), Maryland-area progressive doomers Beelzefuzz return with a second album. But what a three years it’s been. First, the former trio added guitarist Greg Diener (Pale Divine) as a fourth member, then they broke up, partially reformed under the name Righteous Bloom, and then finally decided to re-adopt the name Beelzefuzz as they headed into making the sophomore outing that would eventually become The Righteous Bloom, out this month on Restricted Release in the US and The Church Within in Europe. Founding members Dana Ortt (guitar/vocals; also Dark Music Theory) and Darin McCloskey (drums; also Pale Divine) are once again joined by Diener on lead guitar/backing vocals, and while it’s his first record with the band, these 11 tracks/47 minutes also mark the introduction of bassist Bert Hall, perhaps best known for his work in Revelation and Against Nature, but a perennial figure in Maryland doom, now also a member of Mangog.

Hall makes an impression early in opener “Nazzriff,” as does Diener, and helps the band build on the rather considerable accomplishments of the first offering while finding a tonality truer to their live presentation than their prior studio work had been and maintaining the subtle classic rock nuance and progressive doom that have become Beelzefuzz‘s hallmark, be it in “Nazzriff” — named after the band Nazareth — or the more shuffling “The Soulless,” which follows. After all the tumult the last few years have brought, The Righteous Bloom‘s level of cohesion is even more impressive, and their second LP establishes Beelzefuzz as one of the most immediately recognizable sounds in doom.

Greatly bolstering their distinction, as has been the case all along, is Ortt‘s guitar tone. Easily mistaken for flourish of organ, his guitar is as much of a sonic signature as Beelzefuzz have, and that’s plenty, but as a later cut like rolling album highlight “Nebulous” or the earlier “Rat Poison Parfait” showcase, his vocal presence has also become more confident and his range has increased from where it was in 2013. I won’t take away anything from Beelzefuzz‘s Beelzefuzz — I loved that record and still do — but The Righteous Bloom steps forward in bold-but-subtle ways and makes its progression felt in service to the songs.

beelzefuzz (Photo by Kathy Reeves)

Whether it’s a chorus-driven bouncer like “Hardluck Melody” — an older song if I’m right — or the yes-it’s-actually-a-waltz “Eternal Waltz,” or the atmospheric “Sanctum and Solace” that arrives after the title-track, the band’s execution of this material makes plain the fact that their priority is in the songs, and all four members of Beelzefuzz work toward the same goals throughout, be it the boogie-doom of centerpiece “Within Trance,” on which Hall particularly shines from under the guitar line, or the penultimate “Dying on the Vine.” I’ll admit to some skepticism when I heard Beelzefuzz added a second guitarist. Diener has long since proven he’s a fantastic player in Pale Divine, so that wasn’t really in question, but establishing a dual-guitar dynamic seemed like it might take away from what Ortt‘s tone did by standing alone. Rather, it adds to it, literally and figuratively. Diener brings tonal depth in a more natural way and his lead work throughout is stellar, perhaps nowhere more so than on the epilogue closer “Peace Mind” where he classes up Skynyrdisms to round out a quick three-minute track that sounds like it could’ve gone on for another 11.

As one would hope, the title-cut proves to be something special. Beelzefuzz hit the seven-minute mark once on the debut, and “The Righteous Bloom” comes close at 6:57, but moreover, it offers one of the record’s most memorable shuffles alongside quick rhythmic changes that play up both the bizarro ambience of the guitar and wizardly conjuring of Ortt‘s vocals, and highlights how far the band has come in the last couple years, pushing into unpretentious prog that’s as intricate as it is heavy, lush in its melody but still commanding in vibe. It emphasizes the balance that Beelzefuzz seem to perpetually strike so well. You’d call them laid back as quickly as you’d call them downtrodden, classic and forward-thinking in kind, yet not at all incongruous.

They were already a standout from the Maryland doom set, which very often prides itself on riffy originalism, but The Righteous Bloom brings their stylistic achievement to a new level entirely, and it does so without sacrificing the songwriting that, like McCloskey‘s drumming, has been the reliable foundation on which the band is built. In the speedier chug of “The Soulless,” or the nod of “Within Trance,” or the creeper insistence of “Dying on the Vine,” and in each of the inclusions here, Beelzefuzz always seem to be showing a look just slightly different, but The Righteous Bloom ties together via tone, groove and overall high quality of performance and satisfies so as to completely justify the anticipation leading to its release. We’d be lucky if it was taken up as an influence by other acts, and going forward, it seems only fair to consider Beelzefuzz among the most essential outfits going in East Coast doom. There’s no one else quite like them.

Beelzefuzz, “Nazzriff” official video

Beelzefuzz on Thee Facebooks

The Righteous Bloom preorder at Restricted Release

The Righteous Bloom preorder at Abstract Distribution

The Church Within Records

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