Dozer‘s fifth and final (to-date) long-player, 2008’s Beyond Colossal (discussed here), has been reissued on Heavy Psych Sounds along with its predecessor, 2005’s Through the Eyes of Heathens (discussed here; also discussed here) and the collection of demos for that album, Vultures (review here; discussed here), first released in 2013 by the band itself. With Beyond Colossal — originally on Small Stone — out again, Heavy Psych Sounds has completed the Dozer catalog, having also overseen new editions of 2002’s Call it Conspiracy (discussed here; also discussed here), 2001’s Madre de Dios (discussed here) and their debut LP, 2000’s In the Tail of a Comet (discussed here).

One does not in the least envy the task that was before the four-piece of guitarist/vocalist Fredrik Nordin, guitarist Tommi Holappa, bassist Johan Rockner and then-new-recruit drummer Olle Mårthans. They were coming off their most realized vision yet in Through the Eyes of Heathens and had a desire to push it further, yet the songs still had to feel right to them as players. They still had to be Dozer, and headed toward album five, you can bet there were feelings about what that meant.

As a swansong, Beyond Colossal is almost tragically good. It is nothing less than exactly the album Dozer should’ve made and needed to make, building on the more aggressive stance of its predecessor, holding strong to the basic underlying craft that results in hooks like charging opener “The Flood,” “Exoskeleton (Part II),” as well as “Empire’s End” and “Two Coins for Eyes,” both of which feature Clutch‘s Neil Fallon sitting in on vocals, but also the subdued finish “Bound for Greatness” and the rush between “Message Through the Horses” and the cascading “The Throne,” so much of the record flowing in a way suited to the vinyl treatment it’s been given, but carrying a seemingly unstoppable momentum from front-to-back.

Don’t go calling Beyond Colossal the last Dozer album just yet, apparently. The band posted studio pictures on social media last month and who knows what that might mean. Rockner, in wrapping up this interview series, gives hints of more to come as well. Here’s hoping.

Enjoy, and thanks for reading:

Beyond Colossal Q&A with Johan Rockner

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On some levels, Beyond Colossal is the most aggressive album Dozer wrote. What was driving the band at this time?

I think we just wanted to move forward. But at the same time, I don’t recall us saying “let’s make a different album”, it just happened.

For me, when you listen to those two last albums, you can hear the development, those two albums kind of work well together. They are not far away from each other, like Madre de Dios and Call it Conspiracy.

I know we really liked the sound of “Big Sky Theory” and “Until Man Exists No More” from THEOH, those songs are dropped in tune. I guess we liked the idea of taking that to the next level.

Tell me about following up Through the Eyes of Heathens. You had Troy Sanders from Mastodon on that record and Neil Fallon from Clutch on this one. How important were their voices to those songs?

Their vocals work really good on those songs, the extra boost, like the perfect spice. The songs are great, but they needed some more beard. :)

The album is a real journey from “The Flood” to “Bound for Greatness,” but “Message Through the Horses” still stands out for its intensity. What do you remember about what you were feeling as these songs came together?

I guess I’d liked the anger, aggressiveness, the intensity and the power of the songs on the album. That we didn’t set a limit or what we could or not. Just put together riffs of darkness and anger into really good, mean songs that are Beyond Colossal.

How do you feel about this being the last Dozer album, your final statement as a band?

Who said that?! But if it is, it’s a hell of a statement.

Anything in particular you’d like to add about Beyond Colossal? Any other standout memories to share about this time in the band?

Good times, great shows and good fun.

Dozer, Beyond Colossal

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The reissue of Swedish heavy rockers Dozer‘s 2013 offering, Vultures (review here), is out now on Heavy Psych Sounds. With new artwork by Peder Bergstrand (also Lowrider) and an extra track that finds Dozer taking on Sunride‘s “Vinegar Fly,” it is the closest the band has come to issuing new material since their fifth and final full-length, 2008’s Beyond Colossal (discussed here). Issued as an EP, its six original tracks — plus the cover makes seven — were culled from demos for the band’s 2005 album, Through the Eyes of Heathens (discussed here), recorded by close ally Bengt Bäcke, whose history with the band helming their first sessions has meant they’ve always sounded way better than “demo” might imply.

Vultures was never a live-to-tape-in-the-rehearsal-space kind of affair, and eight years after its original release by the band, tracks like “The Blood is Cold” and “To the Fallen” have no trouble holding up. Bassist Johan Rockner talks below about the band having a glut of material and wanting to get it out in some form, with Vultures enabling them to do that. Then newly signed to Small Stone Records, the four-piece already had three records to their credit in 2002’s Call it Conspiracy (discussed here; also discussed here), 2001’s Madre de Dios (discussed here) and 2000’s In the Tail of a Comet (discussed here), as well as sundry tracks from earlier splits that continue to beg for an early-works compilation. When it arrived, their fourth album would continue a progression toward more aggressive, harder-hitting grooves, and Vultures represents the moment between Call it Conspiracy and Through the Eyes of Heathens as Dozer sought out the places they wanted their sound to go.

It is entirely to the band’s credit that Vultures is anything more than a fan-piece or curio for the converted. Guitarist Tommi Holappa, guitarist/vocalist Fredrik Nordin, Rockner on bass and Karl Daniel Lidén on drums bring a full sound to these tracks and in its substance it’s less a demo than a series of alternate takes. Dozer posted a short while that they were in the studio for a yet-unnamed reason. The fact that Vultures holds up as well as it does even for being material that didn’t get released when it was recorded, only serves as another example of why the possibility of their doing something new is so exciting.

Interviews with Rockner about Through the Eyes of Heathens and Beyond Colossal will follow this week.

In the meantime, enjoy and thanks for reading:

Vultures Q&A with Johan Rockner

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Tell me about the demo process for what became Vultures. Even when the songs were first released in 2013, they seemed remarkably finished. Did Dozer always do this kind of preproduction?

At this time we’re really creative. We had a lot of songs, and these demo songs were a part of the demos for Through the Eyes of Heathens. We had 16 songs to choose from for the Through the Eyes of Heathens. And we made demos of all of them.

We had a studio in the building where we used to rehearse. Same studio where In the Tail of a Comet and Madre de Dios were recorded. So, when we had three-four, good and ready songs, we recorded them as a pre-production/demos for ourselves.

What did you learn from these demos that you took into the recording/writing for Through the Eyes of Heathens?

I think we’ve always felt that it’s good to make demos, to be able to listen to the song over and over and see if it works or needs more love. It’s a good working progress.

Is there more material from this session or where these songs it? Obviously you and Daniel Lidén already went back a long time. What were these sessions like?

No, this is it! :) That’s why we released Vultures in the first place. These songs are too good to be laying around. We also think that our music should be out there for people to hear. That’s why we also release “Vinegar Fly” (the Sunride cover) for this vinyl/digipack release.

The sessions were great, Daniel is such a great guy with a good music ear. He brought in some new fresh energy into the band which I guess reflects the creativity at this time.

Dozer was appearing at Desertfest around 2013 when these songs were released. What did it feel like to see the response to these tracks when they came out?

It’s always nice to see and hear people’s reaction to something the band does. Good or bad, it’s a matter of commitment and interest in the band, and that’s why we do this. To make music we love and hope others do as well.

Anything in particular you’d like to add about Vultures? Any other standout memories to share about this time in the band?

Great artwork by Peder!

Dozer, Vultures (2021)

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There isn’t really a wrong answer to the question of what’s your favorite era of Dozer, but golly, their later work? I love that shit. 2005’s Through the Eyes of Heathens (discussed here), and 2008’s Beyond Colossal (discussed here)? I won’t say a bad word about their first three records unless you count cursing when I say “holy shit this is good” but the Small Stone era is what I most often reach for when I need that Dozer fix. The more aggressive punch of their songwriting, the ferocity of their forward drive that’s so much their own. Sign me up for that every time.

And the Vultures EP (review here) that came out digitally in 2013 and was taken from pre-production work for Through the Eyes of Heathens was like the icing on that particular cake. An unexpected bit of “hey you know that thig you love well here’s some more of it” that no one knew was coming. Or I didn’t, at least.

Heavy Psych Sounds, which already oversaw reissues of the first three Dozer LPs, will now stand behind the first physical pressing of Vultures — with revamped art by Lowrider‘s Peder Bergstrand — and reissues of Through the Eyes of Heathens and Beyond Colossal in February. Preorders are up now. I think my position on whether or not you should place one would be obvious.

From the PR wire:

Heavy Psych Sounds Records & Booking is really proud to start the presale of HPS147 – DOZER – Vultures

– first time printed on vinyl and digipak with bonus track –

Today we are extremely proud to start the presale of the DOZER album VULTURES – printed for the first time on vinyl and digipak !!!

We are also repressing two DOZER albums: Through The Eyes Of Heathens + Beyond Colossal

ALBUM PRESALE:
https://www.heavypsychsounds.com/shop.htm#HPS147

USA PRESALE:
https://www.heavypsychsounds.com/shop-usa.htm

RELEASE DATE: FEBRUARY 12th

RELEASED IN :
10 ULTRA LTD TEST PRESS VINYL
200 ULTRA LTD CORNETTO white background/purple stripes VINYL
400 LTD GOLD VINYL
BLACK VINYL
DIGIPAK

TRACKLIST
The Blood Is Cold – 5:12
The Impostor – 4:11
Last Prediction – 3:21
Vultures – 3:42
Head Ghosts – 4:45
To The Fallen – 5:07
+ unreleased bonus track
Vinegar Fly (Sunride cover) – 4:35

ALBUM DESCRIPTION

Vultures is a first time pressed EP of the swedish stoner band Dozer. Recorded in 2004-2005 at Rockhouse Studios in Borlänge, these six tracks were used as pre-production demos for what would later become the fourth Dozer album, 2005’s Through the Eyes of Heathens.

The album is now released for the first time on vinyl and digipak with a very special unreleased bonus track, a cover of the Sunride song Vinegar Fly. Vultures is a real heavy-stoner explosion, something that only Dozer can provide..

The amazing artwork is made by Lowrider leader Peder Bergstrand.

HPS148 *** DOZER – Through The Eyes Of Heathens***
– REPRESSED in brand new coloured versions –

ALBUM PRESALE:
https://www.heavypsychsounds.com/shop.htm#HPS148

USA PRESALE:
https://www.heavypsychsounds.com/shop-usa.htm

RELEASE DATE: FEBRUARY 19th

RELEASED IN :
10 ULTRA LTD TEST PRESS VINYL
100 ULTRA LTD QUAD orange/blue VINYL
200 LTD BLOODY RED VINYL
200 BLACK VINYL

TRACKLIST
SIDE A
Drawing Dead – 4:38
Born A Legend – 3:24
From Fire Fell – 2:39
Until Man Exists No More – 5:08
Days Of Future Past – 3:45

SIDE B
Omega Glory – 5:00
Blood Undone – 4:44
The Roof, The River, The Revolver – 3:07
Man Of Fire – 3:16
Big Sky Theory – 8:28

HPS149 *** DOZER – Beyond Colossal***
– REPRESSED in brand new coloured versions –

ALBUM PRESALE:
https://www.heavypsychsounds.com/shop.htm#HPS149

USA PRESALE:
https://www.heavypsychsounds.com/shop-usa.htm

RELEASE DATE: FEBRUARY 19th

RELEASED IN:
10 ULTRA LTD TEST PRESS VINYL
100 ULTRA LTD HALF-HALF yellow/black VINYL
200 LTD TRANSPARENT GREEN VINYL
200 BLACK VINYL

TRACKLIST
SIDE A
The Flood – 3:50
Exoskeleton (Part II) – 6:33
Empire’s End – 3:54
The Ventriloquist – 4:56
Grand Inquisitor – 4:12

SIDE B
Message Through The Horses – 3:00
The Throne – 3:25
Fire For Crows – 3:57
Two Coins For Eyes – 6:55
Bound For Greatness – 3:29

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Dozer, “The Blood is Cold”