Please note: This post is not culled in any way from the Year-End Poll, which is ongoing. If you haven’t yet contributed your favorites of 2018 to that, please do.

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It just wouldn’t be a year if it wasn’t completely overwhelming, right?

2018 has certainly met that standard and then some. The swath of output, whether it’s a new generation adopting and adapting established methods or out and out reinventing the stylistic wheel and then pushing it uphill on a seemingly endless barrage of tours, has been staggering, and it’s still happening. There’s a little more than a week to go in the year. You think a band isn’t putting something out today? Of course they are. It’s every day. It’s all the time.

But this year wasn’t just about quantity either. I think one of my biggest struggles in writing about albums in 2018 — and with the last Quarterly Review and various premieres and video posts that were basically album reviews in disguise, let’s estimate we’re somewhere past 300 records reviewed one way or another — was in conveying just how killer so much of the stuff coming through was. How many times can you say the word “awesome?” Well, I’m sure we’ll see it a few more times before this list is over, so there you go.

I say something like this every time I do a list, but please keep in mind these are my picks and I’m one person. But I am a person. I know there’s the whole internet-anonymity thing, but I assure you, I’m a human being (more of a cave troll, really) typing these words. I’m all for everyone sharing their own picks in the comments, and all for passionate advocating, but please, let’s keep it civil and respectful. These things can spiral out of control quickly, but let’s remember that we’re all human beings and worth of basic courtesy, even if some of us are dead wrong about a good many things. You should definitely punch nazis, though.

Thanks in advance for reading. Here we go:

[UPDATE: You’ll notice the inclusion of an ’18a.’ I had Stoned Jesus in my notes as number 18 initially and they got dropped as I was adjusting things along the way. I’ve added them back in, but it didn’t seem fair to bump everyone else down after the post had already been published. That was the best I could come up with for a solution. If you’re pissed about one more killer record being added, please feel free to email me and tell me all about it.]

30. The Skull, The Endless Road Turns Dark

Released by Tee Pee Records. Reviewed Sept. 12.

Chicago’s The Skull had no small task before them in following up their 2014 debut, For Those Which are Asleep (review here) — let alone living up to their pedigree — but their second album demonstrated a creative growth that sacrificed nothing of memorability when it came to songs like “Breathing Underwater” and “All that Remains (Is True).” They got down to work and got the job done, which is what a working band does. 2018 was by any measure a fantastic year for doom, and The Skull were a big part of why.

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29. Foghound, Awaken to Destroy

Released by Ripple Music. Reviewed Nov. 21.

The Dec. 2017 murder of Rev. Jim Forrester was tragic. No other way to say it. Foghound, who were in the midst of making Awaken to Destroy at the time, put together an album that not only features Forrester‘s last recorded performance, but pays respect to his memory while the wound is still raw and manages to kick ass all the while. It’s a record that can’t ever be divorced from its circumstances — just can’t — and so it can be a heavy listen in more than just its tones, but it’s basically Foghound proving they’re unstoppable. And so they are.

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28. Orange Goblin, The Wolf Bites Back

Released by Spinefarm Records. Reviewed June 13.

Who among us here today is not a sucker for Orange Goblin? Come forward an be judged. I mean, really. Nine records deep, the London sceneforgers are nothing less than an institution, beloved by boozehounds, riffhounds, doomhounds, and really, a wide variety of hounds the world over. Also dudes. With its essential title-track hook and highlight cuts in “Ghosts of the Primitives” and “Burn the Ships” — or, you know, any of them — they added to one of heavy’s most unshakable legacies with an album as furious as it is welcoming to its generations-spanning fanbase.

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27. Fu Manchu, Clone of the Universe

Released by At the Dojo Records. Reviewed Feb. 15.

There are two kinds of people in this world, and they’re both Fu Manchu fans. Clone of the Universe turned heads with a guest appearance from Rush‘s Alex Lifeson on the 18-minute side-B-consuming “Il Mostro Atomico,” but really to focus on that instead of “Intelligent Worship,” “(I’ve Been) Hexed,” “Don’t Panic,” “Slower than Light,” etc., is only seeing half the point of the album in the first place. The long-running lords of fuzz hit a new stride with 2014’s Gigantoid (review here), and Clone of the Universe was in every way a worthy successor.

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26. Witch Mountain, Witch Mountain

Released by Svart Records. Reviewed May 16.

It was an unenviable task before Witch Mountain in replacing vocalist Uta Plotkin, but founding guitarist Rob Wrong and drummer Nathan Carson found the right voice in Kayla Dixon and solidified the lineup with her and bassist Justin Brown enough to make a declarative statement in Witch Mountain‘s self-titled LP. That’s the story of it. They pulled it off. Met with what was unquestionably a bummer circumstance, they pushed through and moved their sound forward through a new beginning — and not their first one. Watch out when their next record hits.

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25. Windhand, Eternal Return

Released by Relapse Records. Reviewed Oct. 3.

Richmond, Virginia, doomers Windhand‘s second collaboration with producer Jack Endino produced a marked and purposeful expansion of their sound, encompassing classic grunge influences and a heavy psychedelic swirl that added color their previously-greyscale sonic haze. Resonant in tone and emotionalism, Eternal Return readjusted Windhand‘s trajectory in such a manner that, where one might’ve thought they knew where the band were headed in terms of their progression, they’ve made themselves a less predictable outfit on the whole. For that alone, it’s a triumph. Then you have the songs.

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24. Sun Voyager, Seismic Vibes

Released by King Pizza Records. Reviewed April 18.

I don’t even want to admit how long I was waiting for Sun Voyager‘s first long-player to show up, but when it finally did, the New York trio did not disappoint. Catchy, energetic, fuzzed-out tunes with driving rhythms and a heavy psych flourish, they tapped into shoegaze and desert vibes without losing any sense of themselves in the process, and if the extra wait was so they could be so remarkably coherent in their expression on their full-length, then I wouldn’t want it to have shown up any sooner. An easy pick to stand among 2018’s best debut albums. Now to wait for the next one.

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23. Forming the Void, Rift

Released by Kozmik Artifactz. Reviewed July 27.

It should tell you something that after working quickly to produce three albums, Louisiana’s Forming the Void are still defined by their potential. If I had my druthers, I’d put the recent Ripple signees on tour for the bulk of 2019, across the US and in Europe for festivals and support-slot club shows, really give them an opportunity to hammer out who they are as a band and then hit the studio for LP four. I don’t know if that’ll happen, but they’d only be doing the universe a favor by kicking into that gear. As it stands, their progression is palpable in their material and they stand absolutely ready for whatever the next level might be for them.

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22. Spaceslug, Eye the Tide

Released by BSFD Records and Oak Island Records. Reviewed June 29.

Aside from the speed at which Spaceslug have turned around offerings — with Eye the Tide following 2017’s Mountains and Reminiscence EP (review here) and Time Travel Dilemma (review here) full-length and their 2016 debut, Lemanis (review here) — the Polish outfit have undertaken significant progression in their sound, moving from pure heavy psychedelic warmth to incorporating elements out of extreme metal as they did on Eye the Tide. Adding to the latest record’s accomplishment is the smoothness with which they brought seemingly opposing sides together, only adding depth to an approach already worthy of oceanic comparison.

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21. Conan, Existential Void Guardian

Released by Napalm Records. Reviewed Sept. 14.

Conan‘s reign of terror has been unfolding for more than a decade now, and each of their albums has become a kind of step along a path of incremental growth. Consider the melody creeping into the shouts of founding guitarist Jon Davis, or the emergence of bassist Chris Fielding as a vocal presence alongside, the two sharing a frontman role more than ever before while welcoming drummer Johnny King to the fold of destructive tonality and doomly extremism. Existential Void Guardian may end up just being another stomp-print on their way to the next thing, but it affirmed the fact that as much as Conan grow each time out, their central violence continues to hold sway.

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20. Pale Divine, Pale Divine

Released by Shadow Kingdom Records. Reviewed Nov. 21.

Look. A new Pale Divine record doesn’t come along every day, so yeah, their self-titled was probably going to be on my list one way or the other, but it definitely helps that not only was it their first outing in six years since 2012’s Painted Windows Black (review here), but it had the songs to live up to a half-decade-plus of anticipation. It marked the first studio appearance from bassist/backing vocalist Ron “Fezz” McGinnis alongside guitarist Greg Diener and drummer Darin McCloskey — now both of Beelzefuzz as well — and made a strong argument for how much Pale Divine deserve more than 20 years on from their initial demo to be considered classic American doom.

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19. Mos Generator, Shadowlands

Released by Listenable Records. Reviewed May 11.

The return and rise to prominence of Washington pure heavy rockers Mos Generator might be the underground’s feelgood story of the decade, but it hasn’t by any means been easily won. In addition to rebuilding the band however many albums ago, guitarist/vocalist Tony Reed has put in innumerable hours on tour and worked to actually develop the group creatively in addition to in terms of stage presence. This is shown throughout some of the classic prog elements making their way onto Shadowlands, and perhaps some of the collection’s moodier aspects are born of the aforementioned road time as well. Hard for that kind of thing not to be a slog after a while, but at least they have killer tunes to play.

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18a. Stoned Jesus, Pilgrims

Released by Napalm Records. Reviewed Sept. 5.

The only safe bet about Stoned Jesus‘ fourth long-player, Pilgrims, was that it was going to sound different than the third. That 2015 outing, The Harvest (review here), preceded the band touring to celebrate the fifth anniversary and after-the-fact success of 2012’s Seven Thunders Roar (review here), but Pilgrims defied narrative in that instead of incorporating elements from the second record in more of a heavy psych or jam sound, Stoned Jesus instead showcased a tighter, more sureheaded sense of craft than they’ve ever displayed before, and arrived on Napalm Records with a collection of songs that demonstrated the growth and sense of creative will that drives them. While one can take a look at their moniker and think immediately they know what’s coming, Stoned Jesus have made themselves one of the least predictable bands in heavy rock.

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18. Backwoods Payback, Future Slum

Self-released. Reviewed Aug. 15.

“Pirate Smile.” “Lines.” “Whatever.” “It Ain’t Right.” “Threes.” “Cinderella.” “Generals.” “Big Enough.” “Alone.” “Lucky. Mike Cummings, Jessica Baker, Erik Larson. Every player, every song, every minute. If you want to know what heart-on-sleeve sounds like, it fucking sounds like Backwoods Payback. In their line from hardcore punk to grunge to heavy rock, they encompass experiences and emotionalism that are both shown in raw form throughout Future Slum, and build all the while on the chemistry they set out in developing with 2016’s Fire Not Reason (review here), when they welcomed Larson to the lineup on drums and revitalized their mission. Also worth noting, they were the best live band I saw this year. Anywhere.

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17. Corrosion of Conformity, No Cross No Crown

Released by Nuclear Blast Records. Reviewed Jan. 3

No question the excitement of C.O.C. putting out their first record with frontman Pepper Keenan involved since 2005’s In the Arms of God was one of this year’s top stories in heavy. And No Cross No Crown tapped directly into the spirit of 1994’s Deliverance (discussed here) and 1996’s Wiseblood (discussed here) in terms of direction, while updating the band’s style with a four-part 2LP in mind. In some ways, it’ll be their next album that really gives listeners a sense of where they’re at and where they might be headed, but as welcome returns go, having Keenan alongside Mike Dean, Woody Weatherman and Reed Mullin is in no way to be understated, and neither is the quality of their output together, then and now.

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16. Naxatras, III

Self-released. Reviewed Feb. 14.

It is no simple feat to hypnotize an audience and convey serenity while at the same time holding attention with songcraft, so that the listener isn’t actually so much unconscious as malleable of mood and spirit in such a direction as the band suggests. Greek trio Naxatras have worked quickly to become experts at this, and their third full-length fosters tonal warmth and jammy progressions with an overarching naturalism that finds them so committed to analog recording that one can buy direct transfers of the tape master of III. Some acts take classic-style practices as an aesthetic choice. With Naxatras, it seems to be the stuff of life, yet their sound is only vibrant and human in a way that, at least one hopes, is even more representative of the future than the past.

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15. Clutch, Book of Bad Decisions

Released by Weathermaker Music. Reviewed Aug. 27.

It was time for Clutch to make a change in producers, and the Maryland overlords of groove seemed to know it. Known as a live band, they went with Vance Powell, who’s known a live band producer. The results on Book of Bad Decisions might not have been so earth-shatteringly different from 2015’s Psychic Warfare (review here), which was the too-soon follow-up to 2013’s Earth Rocker (review here) — both helmed by Machine — but the inimitable four-piece indeed succeeded in capturing the electricity of their stage performance and, as ever, treated fans to a collection of songs bearing Clutch‘s unmistakable hallmarks of quirky lyrics, funky rhythms and heavy roll. They may always be a live band, but Clutch‘s studio work is in no way to be discounted, ever, as this record reaffirmed. Plus, crab cakes.

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14. Ancestors, Suspended in Reflections

Released by Pelagic Records. Reviewed Aug. 3.

After 2012’s In Dreams and Time (review here), I wasn’t sure Ancestors were going to put out another record. They kicked around word of one for a while, but it wasn’t until the end of last year that it really seemed to congeal into a possibility. And by then, who the hell knew what they might get up to on a full-length? With Suspended in Reflections, in some says, they picked up where they left off in terms of finding a niche for themselves in progressive and melodic heavy, but I think the time showed in the poise of their execution and the control of the material. Suspended in Reflections can’t help but be six years more mature than its predecessor, and that suits its contemplative feel. In tracks like “Gone,” and “The Warm Glow,” they tempered their expansive sound with an efficiency that can only be had with time.

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13. High on Fire, Electric Messiah

Released by eOne Heavy. Reviewed Sept. 28.

The narrative here was hard to beat. Matt Pike spending an album cycle talking about Lemmy Kilmister and paying homage to his dirt-rock forebear and the gods of old? It doesn’t get much more perfect than that. Electric Messiah was the third collaboration between High on Fire and producer Kurt Ballou behind 2015’s Luminiferous (review here) and 2012’s De Vermiis Mysteriis (review here), and while it seemed after the last record that the formula might be getting stale, the band only sounded more and more lethal throughout the latest offering. Even putting aside their contributions to underground heavy, they’ve become one of the most essential metal bands of their generation. Metal, period. Doesn’t matter what subgenre you’re talking about it. If you’re listening to High on Fire, you know it. Usually because you’ve just been decapitated.

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12. Yawning Man, The Revolt Against Tired Noises

Released by Heavy Psych Sounds. Reviewed July 2.

You know, if you take the time to separate Yawning Man from their 30-plus-year history and their legacy as one of the foundational acts of what later became desert rock, and you listen to The Revolt Against Tired Noises, you’re still left with basically a dream of an album. Mostly instrumental, as is their wont, they nonetheless had bassist Mario Lalli (also Fatso Jetson) sing this time around on a version of the previously-unreleased “Catamaran,” which Kyuss covered once upon a whenever although Yawning Man had never officially put it to tape. But really, that and all other novelty aside, guitarist Gary Arce, Lalli and drummer Bill Stinson are a chemistry unto themselves. I don’t know if they’ll ever be as huge as they should be, but every bit of acclaim they get, they’ve earned, and if The Revolt Against Tired Noises helps them get it, all the more so.

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11. Greenleaf, Hear the Rivers

Released by Napalm Records. Reviewed Nov. 26.

Swedish heavy rock mavens Greenleaf have become an entirely different band than they once were. No longer a Dozer side-project from guitarist Tommi Holappa with a rotating cast of players, they’re a solidified, road-tested, powerhouse unit, and Hear the Rivers bleeds soul as a result. Holappa, frontman Arvid Hällagård, bassist Hans Fröhlich and drummer Sebastian Olsson sound like they’re absolutely on fire in the album’s tracks, and far from being staid or formulaic as one might expect a sixth long-player to be, Hear the Rivers built on what the band accomplished with 2016’s Rise Above the Meadow (review here) and came across as all the more vital and nearly frenetic in their energy. I won’t say Greenleaf has seen their last lineup change, because one never knows, but the band as they are today is the realization of potential I don’t think even Greenleaf knew was there.

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10. Gozu, Equilibrium

Released by Blacklight Media / Metal Blade Records. Reviewed April 4.

Five records deep into a career into its second decade, Gozu haven’t had a miss yet. Admittedly, some of their early work can seem formative considering where they are now, but still. And after the 2016 rager, Revival (review here), to have the band return to the same studio — Wild Arctic in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where strides producer Dean Baltulonis — for the follow-up allows for the four-piece to directly show how their sound has grown more encompassing in the last couple years. And it has. Equilibrium is a rich and varied listen that holds true to Gozu‘s well-established penchant for soulful vibes and crunching, hard-hitting riffs and groove, but while it shares the directness of approach with Revival, it makes moves that a band could only make moving from one record to the next. I expect nothing less their next time out as well, because a decade later, that’s Gozu‘s proven track record.

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9. Monster Magnet, Mindfucker

Released by Napalm Records. Reviewed Feb. 23.

The battle for the best album title of 2018 ended early when New Jersey everything-rockers Monster Magnet announced the release of Mindfucker. And what else to call a Monster Magnet LP at this point? They’ve stopped writing to genre. They’re driven by the creative mania of frontman/founder Dave Wyndorf, and they’ve seen psychedelic expanses and commercial success the likes of which would serve the tenure of four lesser bands. What’s left to do but whatever the hell you want? So that’s what Monster Magnet are doing. It just so happens that while they’re doing it, they’re still basically outclassing the entirety of the former planet earth as songwriters. As Monster Magnet fan in 2018, there was nothing more I could’ve asked than what Mindfucker delivered. And if you’re still trying to get your brain around it however many months later, you’re not alone. I think that’s the idea.

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8. Apostle of Solitude, From Gold to Ash

Released by Cruz del Sur Music. Reviewed Feb. 20.

Best doom album of 2018. The combination of craft and passion behind the delivery. The way the dark tones fed into the emotions so clearly on display and sheer presence of it in listening to songs like “Keeping the Lighthouse,” “Ruination by Thy Name” and “My Heart is Leaving Here.” Apostle of Solitude never seem to be the highest profile band out there, but their work seems never to be anything less than outstanding, and I refuse to accept them as anything less than among the most pivotal American acts out there making traditional doom. And not just making it, but making it their own, with a sense of new pursuits and individualism that extends to playing style as well as atmosphere. I know doom isn’t exactly in short supply these days — figuratively or literally — but if you miss out on what Apostle of Solitude are doing with it, you’ll only regret it later. I’ll say it one more time: Best doom album of 2018.

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7. Holy Grove, Holy Grove II

Released by Ripple Music. Reviewed Oct. 31.

Every now and again, anticipating the crap of an album really pays off, and such was the case with Holy Grove II, the Ripple Music debut from the Portland outfit whose 2016 self-titled (review here) seemed like such a herald of excellence to come while also, you know, being killer. Holy Grove II brought the four-piece of vocalist Andrea Vidal, guitarist Trent Jacobs, bassist Gregg Emley and drummer Eben Travis to entirely new levels of composition and execution. In songs like “Blade Born,” the shorter, sharper “Aurora,” the patiently rolling “Valley of the Mystics,” “Solaris” and closer “Cosmos,” which boasted a not-really-necessary-but-definitely-welcome guest vocal appearance from YOB‘s Mike Scheidt, — and oh wait, that’s all of the tracks — Holy Grove entered a different echelon. Anticipation will likewise be high for Holy Grove III, but it’ll be hard to complain with this record to keep company in the meantime.

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6. All Them Witches, ATW

Released by New West Records. Reviewed Sept. 18.

Over five All Them Witches albums, the Nashville four-piece have gone from a nascent heavy Americana jam band to one of the most distinct acts in the US underground. Their development in sound is chemistry-driven, so it was a risk when the founding trio of bassist/vocalist Charles Michael Parks, Jr., guitarist Ben McLeod (who also produced) and drummer Robby Staebler welcomed new keyboardist Jonathan Draper into the lineup to take the place of Allan van Cleave. Amid a more naturalist production than that of 2017’s Sleeping Through the War (review here), the revamped four-piece flourished in terms of songwriting and conveying their stage-born sonic personae. From the gleeful fuckery of opener “Fishbelly 86 Onions” to the memorable moodiness of “Diamond” and the back-end jam “Harvest Feast” en route to the stretched-out end of “Rob’s Dream,” All Them Witches essentially confirmed they could do whatever they wanted and make it work.

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5. YOB, Our Raw Heart

Released by Relapse Records. Reviewed June 7.

Actually, if you want a sample of YOB‘s raw heart, the place to go is probably 2014’s Clearing the Path to Ascend (review here), but whatever the Eugene, Oregon, shapers of cosmic doom might’ve lacked in titular accuracy on their eighth long-player, they made up for in a new, statesman-like posture. Their approach was mature, hammered out to a professionalism working completely on its own terms, and they never sounded so sure of who they are as a band or as confident of their direction. In extended cuts “Beauty in Falling Leaves” and “Our Raw Heart,” they explored new and progressive textures and melodies, and managed to reaffirm their core aspects while finding room for conveying emotion that came across as nothing but ultimately sincere. They have been and still are one of a kind, and as they continue to move forward, they remain a band that makes one feel lucky to be alive to witness their work. Our Raw Heart was perhaps more refined than it let on, but the heart was there for sure, as always.

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4. Brant Bjork, Mankind Woman

Released by Heavy Psych Sounds. Reviewed Sept. 13.

I’m not going to say I wasn’t a fan of the (relatively) harder-hitting approach Brant Bjork and his Low Desert Punk Band took on 2014’s Black Power Flower (review here) and 2016’s Tao of the Devil (review here), but Mankind Woman brought in some more of his soul influences, and whether it was the subtly subversive funk of “Chocolatize” and “Brand New Old Times” or the callout “1968” and laid back vibes of the title-track and “Swagger and Sway,” Bjork — working with guitarist Bubba DuPree on songwriting and production — offered a definitive look at what has made his 20-year solo career so special and demonstrates not only his longevity and his legacy, but his will to continue to progress as an artist honing his craft. His discography is well populated by now to be sure, but Mankind Woman represents a turn from the last couple records, and if it’s in any way portentous of things to come, it bodes well. Bjork is right at home nestled into classic-style grooves, and his legacy as one of the principal architects of desert rock is continually reaffirmed.

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3. Earthless, Black Heaven

Released by Nuclear Blast Records. Reviewed March 15.

They’ve been great, not just good, for a long time now, and as forerunners of the San Diego heavy scene, they’re godfathers to an up and coming generation of bands taking their influence — let alone acts from the rest of the world — but Black Heaven is a special moment for them because of its departure. No, it wasn’t not the first time guitarist Isaiah Mitchell sang on an Earthless recording, but it did represent a tip of the balance in that direction for the band on a studio full-length, and that resulted in a special moment. Album opener “Gifted by the Wind” was one of the best songs I heard this year, and while “End to End” and the all-thrust “Volt Rush” affirmed that more traditional songwriting was well within the grasp of Mitchell, bassist Mike Eginton and drummer Mario Rubalcaba, they still found space for a sprawling jam or two, keeping their claim on the instrumentalism that’s (largely) fueled their tenure to date. Earthless don’t want for acclaim, but every bit of it is earned, and while their primary impact has always been live, Black Heaven saw them construct a traditional-style LP that still bore the hallmarks of their collective personality. It was the best of all worlds.

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2. King Buffalo, Longing to Be the Mountain

Self-released/released by Stickman Records. Reviewed Sept. 27.

In the dark early hours of 2018, the Rochester, New York, trio of guitarist/vocalist Sean McVay, bassist Dan Reynolds and drummer Scott Donaldson issued the Repeater EP (review here) as a follow-up to their 2016 debut, Orion (review here), so Longing to Be the Mountain didn’t exactly come out of nowhere, but even with Repeater preceding its arrival, I don’t think anyone necessary expected King Buffalo‘s second album to have such a scope or to be so engrossing with it. In its melody, patience, atmosphere and heft, it was an absolute joy to behold. Its songs were memorable at the same time they were far-reaching, and while Orion was already my pick for the best debut of 2016, Longing to Be the Mountain realized even more potential than that record had hinted toward. It could be intimate or majestic at its whim, and its dynamic set an individual characterization of heavy psychedelia and blues-style sprawl that the band wholly owned. With production by Ben McLeod of All Them Witches behind them, they worked to serve notice of a progression undertaken the results of which are already staggering and still seem to be looking ahead to the next stage, literally and figuratively. One of the principal standards I use in constructing this list every year is what I listen to most. That’s this record.

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1. Sleep, The Sciences

Released by Third Man Records. Reviewed May 1.

Obviously, right? To some extent, when Sleep surprise-announced on April 19 they’d release their first album in 15 years the next day, and then did, they took ownership of 2018. Even with records still to come at that point from YOB and Sleep guitarist Matt Pike‘s own High on Fire, there was no way that when the end of the year came around, it wasn’t going to be defined by the advent of a new Sleep record. And even if it sucked, it would probably still be Album of the Year, but fortunately, as Pike, bassist/vocalist Al Cisneros (also Om) and drummer Jason Roeder (also Neurosis) took their long-running stage reunion to the studio, they brought material that highlighted the best elements from all players. Pike‘s wild soloing, Cisneros‘ meditative vocals and Roeder‘s intricate but smooth style of roll all came together in older pieces like “Antarcticans Thawed” and “Sonic Titan” and newer highlights “Giza Butler” and “Marijuanaut’s Theme,” and aside from the excitement at their existence, they showed the mastery of form that Sleep had been demonstrating live since 2009 and which they hinted toward in the 2014 single, The Clarity (review here). A new Sleep full-length was something long-discussed, long-rumored and long-considered, but when it finally happened, I think the results vaporized expectation in a way no one could’ve anticipated. There’s a reason Sleep are Sleep. Having The Sciences as a reminder of that brought about the defining moment of 2018.

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The Next 20

Indeed, it wouldn’t be much of a Top 30 at all if it didn’t go to 50. Don’t try to make sense of it, just look at the records.

31. Atavismo, Valdeinfierno
32. Grayceon, IV
33. Clamfight, III
34. Seedy Jeezus, Polaris Oblique
35. Megaton Leviathan, Mage
36. Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats, Wasteland
37. Arcadian Child, Superfonica
38. Freedom Hawk, Beast Remains
39. The Machine, Faceshift
40. Messa, Feast for Water
41. Black Rainbows, Pandaemonium
42. Church of the Cosmic Skull, Science Fiction
43. Domkraft, Flood
44. Träden, Träden
45. Mythic Sunship, Another Shape of Psychedelic Music
46. Samavayo, Vatan
47. Foehammer, Second Sight
48. Bongripper, Terminal
49. Mansion, First Death of the Lutheran
50. Sunnata, Outlands
51. Chubby Thunderous Bad Kush Masters, Come and Chutney

Believe me when I tell you, I sweated over this section more than I did the actual top 30. Mansion should be higher. So should Chubby Thunderous, though something in me thought they might like being #50 on a list of 30. Church of the Cosmic Skull, Clamfight, Black Rainbows, Foehammer, Seedy Jeezus, Messa, Domkraft. All of these were fucking awesome. And there are more (we’ll get there). Eventually numbers add up. I won’t say a bad word about any of these. That’s it.

Honorable Mention

This section always winds up expanded as other people point out things I missed and so on, but here’s what I’ve got in the immediate, alphabetically:

• Alms, Act One
• Ape Machine, Darker Seas
• Belzebong, Light the Dankness
• Black Moon Circle, Psychedelic Spacelord
• Blackwater Holylight, Blackwater Holylight
• Bong, Thought and Existence
• Carpet, About Rooms and Elephants
• Churchburn, None Shall Live… The Hymns of Misery
• Deadbird, III: The Forest Within the Tree
• Dead Meadow, The Nothing They Need
• Death Alley, Superbia
• Drug Cult, Drug Cult
• Dunbarrow, II
• Electric Citizen, Helltown
• Eagle Twin, The Thundering Heard: Songs of Hoof and Horn
• Evoken, Hypnagogia
• Funeral Horse, Psalms for the Mourning
• Fuzz Evil, High on You
• Graven, Heirs of Discord
• Graveyard, Peace
• Green Dragon, Green Dragon
• Green Druid, Ashen Blood
• Here Lies Man, You Will Know Nothing
• High Priestess, High Priestess
• Horehound, Holocene
• IAH, II
• JIRM, Surge ex Monumentis
• Killer Boogie, Acid Cream
• Lonely Kamel, Death’s Head Hawkmoth
• MaidaVale, Madness is Too Pure
• Moab, Trough
• Mountain Dust, Seven Storms
• Mouth, Floating
• Mr. Plow, Maintain Radio Silence
• T.G. Olson, Earthen Pyramid
• Onségen Ensemble, Duel
• Orango, Evergreen
• Owl, Nights in Distortion
• Pushy, Hard Wish
• Rifflord, 7 Cremation Ground/Meditation
• River Cult, Halcyon Daze
• Rotor, Sechs
• Somali Yacht Club, The Sea
• Sumac, Love in Shadow
• Sundrifter, Visitations
• Svvamp, Svvamp II
• Thou, Magus
• Thunder Horse, Thunder Horse
• Weedpecker, III

Special Note

Somehow it didn’t seem appropriate to include these in the list proper because they’re not really underground releases, but there were two more records I especially wanted to highlight for their quality:

• Alice in Chains, Rainier Fog
• Judas Priest, Firepower

Best Short Release of the Year

Normally I’d do this as a separate post, but as a result of being robbed earlier this year, I feel like my list is woefully incomplete. If you have any demos, EPs, splits, singles, etc., to add to it, please feel free to do so in the comments below. Still, the top pick was clear:

• Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard & Slomatics, Totems Split

Rarely do two bands work in such coherent tandem to their mutual benefit. Here are a few other essential short releases for 2018, alphabetically:

• All Them Witches, Lost and Found
• Alunah, Amber & Gold
• Canyon, Mk II
• Demon Head, The Resistence
• Destroyer of Light, Hopeless
• Ecstatic Vision, Under the Influence
• Godmaker & Somnuri, Split
• Holy Mushroom, Blood and Soul
• King Buffalo, Repeater
• Minsk & Zatokrev, Split
• Sleep, Leagues Beneath
• Stonus, Lunar Eclipse
• Sundecay, Gale

Looking Forward

A good many albums have already been announced or hinted at for 2019. I in no way claim this to be a complete roundup of what’s coming, but here’s what I have in my notes so far, in absolutely no order:

Kings Destroy, Lo-Pan, Cities of Mars, Heavy Temple, Mr. Peter Hayden, Curse the Son, High Fighter, Destroyer of Light, Year of the Cobra, Buffalo Fuzz, Zaum, The Sonic Dawn, Alunah, Candlemass, Elepharmers, Grandier, Dorre, Abrahma, Mars Red Sky, Eternal Black, Elephant Tree, Atala, No Man’s Valley, Sun Blood Stories, Crypt Sermon, The Riven, Hibrido, Snail, Red Beard Wall, 11Paranoias, Dead Witches, Monte Luna, Captain Caravan (LP), Swallow the Sun, Oreyeon, Motorpsycho, Vokonis, Hexvessel, Saint Vitus, Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard, Kind, Mastiff, Shadow Witch, Om.

Okay, That’s It

Yeah, no, I’m serious. List is done. Everybody go back to your lives. Your families miss you.

Really though, while this is by no means my last post of 2018, I can’t let it pass without saying thank you so much to everyone for checking out the site this year, or for just digging into this, or for sending me music, or hitting me up on social media, sharing a link, anything. Thank you. Thank you. I could never have imagined when it started out where it would be now. Or that I’d still be doing it. Your support means more to me than I can say, and I thank you so much for being a part of this with me.

So thanks.

If you have something to add to the list, please do so by leaving a comment below, but keep in mind as well the above note requesting civility. Please don’t make me feel stupid because I forgot your favorite record. I forgot a lot of people’s favorite records. I’m one dude. I’m doing my best.

And please keep in mind if you’ve got a list together that the Year-End Poll is open and results will be out Jan. 1.

Everybody have a great and safe 2019.

A quick search through the album announcement and tour press releases thus far for Windhand‘s Eternal Return shows that, from either the label or the Richmond, Virginia, natives themselves, the word “doom” appears zero times. Listening to the nine-song/62-minute offering, that hardly feels like a coincidence. Instead, Eternal Return — which stands as Windhand‘s fourth album behind 2015’s Grief’s Infernal Flower (review here), their 2013 Relapse Records debut, Soma (review here), and their 2012 self-titled debut (streamed here) — has been positioned amid heavy psychedelia and seen highlighted an influence from ’90s alternative and grunge rock. Fair. There are definitely some of those elements at work tonally and in the songwriting, but as the group renews its collaboration with producer Jack Endino, who also recorded Grief’s Infernal Flower, and sees further continuity in Eternal Return‘s Arik Roper cover art, there’s still plenty of doom to the proceedings in songs like “First to Die,” “Eyeshine,” in which vocalist Dorthia Cottrell delivers the album’s title line, and “Red Cloud,” which nonetheless stands among the faster pieces here.

The tones of Garrett Morris and Parker Chandler are still molasses thick, and drummer Ryan Wolfe still pushes the atmospheric murk forward with consistent and creative rhythm. But there is a change as well. Between Grief’s Infernal Flower and Eternal Return, Windhand have gone from a five- to a four-piece, losing guitarist Asechiah Bogdan. I don’t know how much Bogdan (also formerly of Alabama Thunderpussy) was involved in the songwriting for Windhand, but even if he wasn’t really at all, a change in dynamic is to be expected with any shift in lineup on the part of a given group, and that might be what’s happening with Windhand as different influences come to the surface. Certainly if the band were “bored” of doom, that would be well enough earned — it’s ground they’ve well covered across their three prior full-lengths and other releases like their earlier 2018 split with tourmates Satan’s Satyrs (discussed here) — and Eternal Return does on the whole play to the psychedelic aspects of their sound, but it’s not as if those aspects are appearing out of nowhere. Windhand‘s otherworldly sensibility has been there all along. It’s part of what’s stood them out from their early influences and helped define them stylistically.

Okay. But to listen to “Grey Garden” (video posted here), or even the eight-minute opener “Halcyon” that directly precedes it, there’s definitely something different happening. And the positioning is correct: it’s derived from grunge. Generationally speaking, the genre feels like fair enough game, and in “Red Cloud,” the mellow acoustic-led “Pilgrim’s Rest” and especially in closer “Feather,” in Cottrell‘s vocals and in the rhythmic lurch, there’s a reinterpretation of early ’90s aesthetics happening, but the key there is it’s reinterpretation. Windhand aren’t simply donning a flannel and tucking their jeans into their Doc Martens — they’re taking the influence of grunge and working it into their own sonic context, just as they’ve always done with their influences. The penultimate “Diablerie” (video posted here) shows this integration well and offers a fair summary of all sides that Eternal Return has on offer. Its leads are clean and shine through the low-end murk surrounding with a particularly spacious shimmer, Cottrell‘s voice leads the way through a resonant, said-as-plainly-as-possible hook with some subtly layered-in harmonies, and the overarching groove is fluid en route to a jangly finish that leads the way into “Feather.”

And though it’s relatively buried with 50 minutes of densely-weighted material before it and positioned way down at the end of side D, “Feather” is the truly standout moment on Eternal Return in terms of stylistic progression. It seems to follow directly the lead-in that “Diablerie” gives it, with a hard-strummed guitar line tapping into that particular downerism before a Cantrell-esque lead line enters the mix. Nirvana have been a strong presence throughout, but as “Feather” dips into minimalist atmospherics about four and a half minutes through its total 13, ahead of the full-tonal kick to come, it sets up a middle section of the track that seems especially geared toward Alice in Chains, with Cottrell playing both the Staley and Cantrell roles vocally, self-harmonizing over a lumbering riff. Though the track grows more mournful as it proceeds toward a long-fading noisy washout, I’d gladly argue that midpoint as the culmination of Windhand‘s expansion of style on Eternal Return, and it shows not only how far they’ve come — spoiler: they’ve come pretty far — but how far they can still go should they desire to do so.

And really, that’s the main question as regards Eternal Return: Cool, you can do this? How far are you going to take it? Invariably that’s not something that can be answered at this point or within the next album cycle or even two should they get there, but while the band got their start a decade ago, one of the steadiest aspects of their work has been the fact that it has always seemed to lead one to look ahead to what’s coming next, and in that regard, Eternal Return feels all the more transitional. With the change in lineup behind them and a thus-far busy tour schedule ahead, what will come of Windhand‘s foray into grunge and their retipping the balance toward psychedelia? Will their next album still have the same kind of bottom end one hears in the plodding “First to Die,” or is the swirling centerpiece interlude “Light into Dark” a tell for a continuing shift underway that will make them less immediately recognizable to their fanbase?

Because, if nothing else, Windhand are that, and it’s to their credit how much they’ve taken their early influences from the likes of Black Sabbath, Electric Wizard, etc., and internalized and reshaped them into an identity of their own. That’s never been more the case than it is on Eternal Return, but Windhand don’t sound like they’re finished coming into their own, and ultimately, this record may prove over the longer term to be as much departure as it is an arrival. If that’s the case, so be it. For the moment, these songs legitimately push Windhand onto new ground and move them into a niche all the more their own. There’s still doom in the heart of their sound, but increasingly, they’re defining for themselves just what that means and how it manifests.

Windhand, “Diablerie”

Windhand, “Grey Garden” official video

Windhand on Thee Facebooks

Windhand on Instagram

Windhand on Bandcamp

Relapse Records website

This week marks the release of Windhand‘s new album, Eternal Return. It is the Richmond, Virginia, unit’s second full-length with Jack Endino at the board as producer — why go anywhere else? — and it marks something of a shift in their sound toward a more grunge-derived feel to their riffing, melded with a psychedelia born of their always murky approach to doom. They are already slated to supporting the living crap out of the record, with previously announced runs through the US (beginning a week from today) and Europe (beginning March 7), and now they’ve decided to do another short run through the Southeast, hitting D.C., North Carolina, Florida and Georgia on an eight-date stint that I guess amounts to a get-out-of-the-house warmup tour for Windhand but is still longer than many of the tours I post about here. It’s like their version of a weekender and it’s eight dates. Hilarious.

The PR wire has the details of their daunting schedule:

WINDHAND: Announce US Headlining Winter Tour Dates w/ GENOCIDE PACT

Eternal Return is due out October 5th on Relapse Records

Virginia’s WINDHAND announce US headlining tour dates throughout January 2019 with label-mates GENOCIDE PACT. The brief tour begins on January 24 in Washington D.C. and ends January 31 in Charlotte, NC. A full list of tour dates are available below. Tickets are on sale Friday, September 28th at 10am EST.

Stream WINDHAND’s recently released track “Diablerie” now on all streaming services. Embodying the album’s more reflective side, “Diablerie” fully captures the band’s artistic growth and the juxtaposition of genre-bending, heavy psychedelia that’s apparent throughout Eternal Return.

Additionally, watch WINDHAND’s previously released “Grey Garden” video, the lead single off their forthcoming album Eternal Return, AT THIS LOCATION.

WINDHAND’s 4th studio album Eternal Return is due out October 5th on CD/2xLP/CS/Digital on Relapse Records. Physical packages are available for pre-order HERE and Digital Downloads/Streaming AT THIS LOCATION.f

WINDHAND LIVE DATES:

— All Dates Jan 24-31 w/ Genocide Pact —
Jan 24 Washington, DC @ U Street Music Hall
Jan 25 Durham, NC @ Pinhook
Jan 26 Jacksonville, FL @ 1904 Music Hall
Jan 27 Miami, FL @ Las Rosas
Jan 28 Tampa, FL @ The Crowbar
Jan 29 Orlando, FL @ Will’s Pub
Jan 30 Savannah, GA @ The Jinx
Jan 31 Charlotte, NC @ Neighborhood Theatre

— 2018 US Tour Dates w/ Satan’s Satyrs —
Oct 08 Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
Oct 09 New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa
Oct 10 Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
Oct 11 Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
Oct 12 Austin, TX @ Barracuda
Oct 14 Albuquerque, NM @ Sister
Oct 15 Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar
Oct 16 Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theatre
Oct 17 Oakland, CA @ Starline Social Club
Oct 19 Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theatre
Oct 20 Vancouver, BC @ Venue
Oct 21 Seattle, WA @ Neumos
Oct 23 Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge
Oct 24 Kansas City, MO @ The Riot Room
Nov 01 Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts
Nov 02 Brooklyn, NY @ Elsewhere
Nov 03 Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
Nov 04 Montreal, QC @ Le Belmont
Nov 05 Toronto, ON @ The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern
Nov 07 Chicago, IL @ Subterranean
Nov 08 Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Music Cafe
Nov 09 Milwaukee, WI @ Cactus Club
Nov 10 Indianapolis, IN @ The Hi-Fi
Nov 11 Nashville, TN @ The Basement East
Nov 12 Louisville, KY @ Zanzabar
Nov 13 Columbus, OH @ Ace of Cups
Nov 15 Richmond, VA @ The Broadberry

— All Dates March 07-24 w/ Grime —
Mar 07 Vienna, AT @ Arena
Mar 08 Munich, DE @ Feierwerk
Mar 09 Lausanne, CH @ Le Romandie
Mar 10 Paris, FR @ Boule Noire
Mar 12 Bristol, UK @ Exchange
Mar 13 Manchester, UK @ Deaf Institute
Mar 14 Glasgow, UK @ Audio
Mar 15 Nottingham, UK @ Bodega
Mar 16 London, UK @ Underworld
Mar 17 Brussels, BE @ AB
Mar 19 Haarlem, NL @ Patronaat
Mar 20 Eindhoven, NL @ Effenaar
Mar 21 Cologne, DE @ MTC
Mar 22 Hamburg, DE @ Molotow
Mar 23 Berlin, DE @ Musik & Frieden
Mar 24 Leipzig, DE @ Werk 2

https://www.facebook.com/WindhandVA/
https://www.instagram.com/windhand/
http://windhandva.bandcamp.com/
http://store.relapse.com/

Windhand, “Diablerie”

Windhand, “Grey Garden” official video

I usually try to keep myself distant from the din of new-album hype out there. The promo-speak and hyperbole is as endless as the string of new releases itself, and while I don’t always succeed — hey, we all get excited; that’s part of the fun — I do my best to keep my head on waiting for records to show up. I gotta say though, when it comes to the new Windhand, I’m feeling it. Sure, I’ve dug them all along and been continually intrigued as they’ve become one of the foremost acts in US doom, but with the sonic turn that seems to be heralded in their new one, Eternal Return — out Oct. 5 on Relapse as their second collaboration with producer Jack Endino — I’m really excited to hear where they take their sound.

The video that you can watch below for “Grey Garden” is a big part of the reason why. It’s the first real sampling they’ve given from Eternal Return and its ethereal doom grunge unfolds with a trippy spaciousness that adds even further depth and character to their by-now-trademark miasma. The Richmond outfit previously announced a US run for this Fall and they’ll be in Europe in March — interesting that they’d go before the Spring fest season begins; one wonders if they’ll be back that way in Autumn 2019 — touring with the gleefully filth-caked sludge extremists Grime.

Dates came down the PR wire like so:

WINDHAND: Announce 2019 European March Headlining Tour Dates

Eternal Return is due out October 5th on Relapse Records

Richmond, Virginia’s psychedelic heavyweights WINDHAND announce 2019 European headlining tour dates with Italy’s Grime. The tour begins March 7th in Austria and ends March 24th in Germany. All confirmed tour dates are available below.

WINDHAND’s 4th studio album Eternal Return is due out October 5th on CD/2xLP/CS/Digital on Relapse Records. Physical packages are available for pre-order HERE and Digital Downloads/Streaming AT THIS LOCATION.

Artwork By Arik Roper

WINDHAND LIVE DATES:
— All Dates March 07-24 w/ Grime —

Mar 07 Vienna, AT @ Arena
Mar 08 Munich, DE @ FeierwerkM
Mar 09 Lausanne, CH @ Le Romandie
Mar 10 Paris, FR @ Boule Noire
Mar 12 Bristol, UK @ Exchange
Mar 13 Manchester, UK @ Deaf Institute
Mar 14 Glasgow, UK @ Audio
Mar 15 Nottingham, UK @ Bodega
Mar 16 London, UK @ Underworld
Mar 17 Brussels, BE @ AB
Mar 19 Haarlem, NL @ Patronaat
Mar 20 Eindhoven, NL @ Effenaar
Mar 21 Cologne, DE @ MTC
Mar 22 Hamburg, DE @ Molotow
Mar 23 Berlin, DE @ Musik & Frieden
Mar 24 Leipzig, DE @ Werk 2

— 2018 US Tour Dates w/ Satan’s Satyrs —

Oct 08 Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
Oct 09 New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa
Oct 10 Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
Oct 11 Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
Oct 12 Austin, TX @ Barracuda
Oct 14 Albuquerque, NM @ Sister
Oct 15 Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar
Oct 16 Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theatre
Oct 17 Oakland, CA @ Starline Social Club
Oct 19 Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theatre
Oct 20 Vancouver, BC @ Venue
Oct 21 Seattle, WA @ Neumos
Oct 23 Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge
Oct 24 Kansas City, MO @ The Riot Room
Nov 01 Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts
Nov 02 Brooklyn, NY @ Elsewhere
Nov 03 Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
Nov 04 Montreal, QC @ Le Belmont
Nov 05 Toronto, ON @ The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern
Nov 07 Chicago, IL @ Subterranean
Nov 08 Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Music Cafe
Nov 09 Milwaukee, WI @ Cactus Club
Nov 10 Indianapolis, IN @ The Hi-Fi
Nov 11 Nashville, TN @ The Basement East
Nov 12 Louisville, KY @ Zanzabar
Nov 13 Columbus, OH @ Ace of Cups
Nov 15 Richmond, VA @ The Broadberry

https://www.facebook.com/WindhandVA/
https://www.instagram.com/windhand/
http://windhandva.bandcamp.com/
http://store.relapse.com/

Windhand, “Grey Garden” official video

It seemed doubtful that Virginia’s Windhand would’ve been lying when they said their upcoming album, Eternal Return, was taking them in a different direction, mostly because, why would they? Still, it’s awfully nice to have an example to go from as we head closer to the record’s Oct. 5 release through Relapse Records. And so, with the creepy-image-barrage of the “Grey Garden” video that some site way cooler than this one premiered last week, we get that example. Immediately, it’s the best vocal performance I’ve heard from Dorthia Cottrell. Hands down. She sounds amazing. And behind her, guitarist Garrett Morris, bassist Parker Chandler and drummer Ryan Wolfe unfurl a vision of psychedelic grunge-doom, putting new meaning to the words “produced by Jack Endino” even than those that applied to their last full-length, 2015’s Grief’s Infernal Flower (review here), which the venerable producer also helmed.

The doom-via-grungegaze suits the Richmond four-piece. And “Grey Garden” seems to hold onto the thick low end tonality that’s been crucial to Windhand‘s approach since their first record. But this doesn’t sound like Electric Wizard. Really at all. And that’s a big difference, since even though Windhand had come into their own, they still had that nod at their foundation, and while I wouldn’t necessarily expect “Grey Garden” to represent the entirety of Eternal Return given past variety in their songwriting, it’s telling that it’s the first track they’re breaking out from the album and letting the public hear. They very obviously are trying something new here, and they very obviously want their audience to be prepared for it. Listening to the drift in the midsection and the reemergence of the more weighted tone that follows beneath the scorching, swirling lead, the potential seems to be there for the band to really make a stylistic mark on the greater sphere of doom itself.

I’d recommend you listen twice to really let the hook sink in, to hear the depth in Wolfe‘s snare, to get a handle on the arrival in murk, the departure from it, and the return. I was looking forward to Eternal Return already. My expectations are even higher now.

PR wire info and tour dates follow the video below.

Please enjoy:

Windhand, “Grey Garden” official video

Eternal Return is a complete life-to-death journey. As unplanned things go, it’s an observation of as well as a reflection on life’s ups and downs, joys and sorrows, beginnings and ends. Between the band’s 2015, highly acclaimed Grief’s Infernal Flower, and 2018’s Eternal Return, WINDHAND welcomed new life, survived lineup changes, and mourned unexpected death. The songs and song ordering are the direct result of those experiences. Where “Halcyon” is assured in its opening, the closing track “Feather” is its funeral march.

WINDHAND wrote Eternal Return all throughout the winter. Out of the sessions, “Halcyon,” “Grey Garden,” “Red Cloud,” and the monstrous “Eyeshine” emerged as the heaviest tracks, while “Pilgrim’s Rest,” “Diablerie,” and “Feather” embodied the more reflective side of WINDHAND. The juxtaposition of heavy, psychedelic and pensive is less like Black Sabbath or Sleep and more like Soundgarden or Veruca Salt. But the name-drops aren’t absolute so much as signals of WINDHAND’s ability to stretch beyond genre confines.

Eternal Return represents a new era for the group, a chrysalis moment that takes them to new and unforeseen heights. Boosted by Garrett Morris’ consistently cool riffs-forged at the crossroads of Iommi’s otherworldly import and Kurt Cobain’s spontaneous precocity-powered by Ryan Wolfe and Parker Chandler’s groove-laden rhythms, and propelled by Dorthia Cottrell’s smoky yet wistful vocals, WINDHAND’s new album is a two-step jump for Richmond’s finest purveyors of the psycho-actively heavy. Adorned by Arik Roper’s (Sleep, High on Fire) impressive cover art, Eternal Return not only looks the part of WINDHAND’s artistic growth but sounds the part.

WINDHAND brought Jack Endino back into the fold. Together, they spent two weeks recording at Soundhouse Recording in Seattle. Described as “smooth” and “intense,” the sessions with the famed producer were just what WINDHAND wanted. Endino also understood the group’s artistic progression, chiefly the admiration of and blending in late ’80s/early ’90s grunge. Out of it all, WINDHAND continued to refactor and refine their vision of heavy. A new era of psychedelic heaviness is upon us with WINDHAND’s genre-blurring Eternal Return. Sweet, fuzzed-out oblivion has never been closer…

WINDHAND LIVE DATES:
10/08: Atlanta, GA – The Earl #
10/09: New Orleans, LA – Gasa Gasa #
10/10: Houston TX – White Oak Music Hall #
10/11: Dallas, TX – Club Dada #
10/12: Austin, TX – Barracuda #
10/14: Albuquerque, NM – Sister #
10/15: Phoenix, AZ – Valley Bar #
10/16: Los Angeles, CA – El Rey Theatre #
10/17: Oakland, CA – Starline Social Club #
10/19: Portland, OR – Aladdin Theatre #
10/20: Vancouver, BC – Venue #
10/21: Seattle, WA – Neumos #
10/23: Denver, CO – Larimer Lounge #
10/24: Kansas City, MO – The Riot Room #
11/01: Philadelphia, PA – Underground Arts #
11/02: Brooklyn, NY – Elsewhere #
11/03: Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall #
11/04: Montreal, QC – Le Belmont #
11/05: Toronto, ON – The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern #
11/07: Chicago, IL – Subterranean #
11/08: Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line Music Cafe #
11/09: Milwaukee, WI – Cactus Club #
11/10: Indianapolis, IN – The Hi-Fi #
11/11: Nashville, TN – The Basement East #
11/12: Louisville, KY – Zanzabar #
11/13: Columbus, OH – Ace of Cups #
11/15: Richmond, VA – The Broadberry #
# – w/ Satan’s Satyrs

Windhand on Thee Facebooks

Windhand on Instagram

Windhand on Bandcamp

Relapse Records website

October 5 is the set release date for Windhand‘s new album, Eternal Return. Everyone got their calendars marked? Good. I mean, you probably won’t actually need to mark your calendar unless you’re old as dirt like me and haven’t come around to the notion of preordering things rather than simply being frustrated at yourself later for not having bought them yet — you know I just picked up the Sleep record like two days ago? ridiculous — but even figuratively speaking, it’s a date you’ll want to note. Three days later, the Richmond, Virginia, doom forerunners will hit the road for a month-plus of touring covering bigger markets on both coasts and between as well as a couple stops in Canada, playing alongside their splitmates/past-tourmates and apparent best buds Satan’s Satyrs all the while. That’s pretty much what you’d expect from Windhand around an album release, and it seems likely a European tour won’t be too far off either. Maybe during the Spring 2019 festival season? Or maybe they’ll go to Australia. Not like I know anything. Because I don’t. Actually. Nothing. Really about anything.

Okay. Kind self-talk.

Given the return to Jack Endino for recording, the title, and the on-stylistic-theme art from Arik Roper, I can’t help but wonder how much Eternal Return is intended as a sequel or at least direct follow-up to 2015’s Grief’s Infernal Flower (review here), but even if it is, that would hardly be a strike against it, particularly with a band whose track record for sonic progression is as well established as Windhand‘s. That is, even if they’re responding to the 2015 record, it seems likely they’ll bring something new to the proceedings anyhow.

I look forward to finding out. Calendar is marked.

Note how quick the PR wire is below to designate them a “heavy psychedelic” band. Fascinating. There’s a reason I include these things word-for-word. Check it out. Teaser clip is at the bottom:

WINDHAND: Announce North American Fall Tour; Unveil Artwork & Teaser For New Album Eternal Return

Eternal Return is due out October 5th on Relapse Records

Virginia’s heavy psychedelic quartet WINDHAND have announced a full fall North American tour with Satan’s Satyrs and give us a glimpse of what’s to come on their forthcoming album, Eternal Return, coming October 5th on Relapse.

Eternal Return represents a new era for the group, a chrysalis moment that takes them to new and unforeseen heights. Once again the band have joined forces with producer Jack Endino (Nirvana, Soundgarden) with vivid artwork by Arik Roper (Sleep, High on Fire). Equally informed by heavy, fuzzed-out psych along with the iconic grunge / alternative groups of the 90s, WINDHAND have crafted a record brilliant in scope, powerful in execution, and perfect for an era of increasingly blurry yet still heavy borders.

Check below for a full list of dates, tour poster and stay tuned for more. Listen to WINDHAND’s full discography via Bandcamp.

WINDHAND LIVE DATES:
07/29: Chicago, IL – Wicker Park Fest
10/08: Atlanta, GA – The Earl #
10/09: New Orleans, LA – Gasa Gasa #
10/10: Houston TX – White Oak Music Hall #
10/11: Dallas, TX – Club Dada #
10/12: Austin, TX – Barracuda #
10/14: Albuquerque, NM – Sister #
10/15: Phoenix, AZ – Valley Bar #
10/16: Los Angeles, CA – El Rey Theatre #
10/17: Oakland, CA – Starline Social Club #
10/19: Portland, OR – Aladdin Theatre #
10/20: Vancouver, BC – Venue #
10/21: Seattle, WA – Neumos #
10/23: Denver, CO – Larimer Lounge #
10/24: Kansas City, MO – The Riot Room #
11/01: Philadelphia, PA – Underground Arts #
11/02: Brooklyn, NY – Elsewhere #
11/03: Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall #
11/04: Montreal, QC – Le Belmont #
11/05: Toronto, ON – The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern #
11/07: Chicago, IL – Subterranean #
11/08: Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line Music Cafe #
11/09: Milwaukee, WI – Cactus Club #
11/10: Indianapolis, IN – The Hi-Fi #
11/11: Nashville, TN – The Basement East #
11/12: Louisville, KY – Zanzabar #
11/13: Columbus, OH – Ace of Cups #
# – w/ Satan’s Satyrs

https://www.facebook.com/WindhandVA/
https://www.instagram.com/windhand/
http://windhandva.bandcamp.com/
http://store.relapse.com/

Windhand, Eternal Return album teaser

Richmond, Virginia, doomers Windhand have announced they’ve begun work on their next full-length, Eternal Return, returning to the studio with producer Jack Endino, who helmed their 2015 album, Grief’s Infernal Flower (review here). The band also released a split with steady tourmates Satan’s Satyrs this past Spring and have spent the last couple years going around the world in support of the last record. Between recording again with Endino and getting Arik Roper, it seems like the five-piece-turned-four-piece aren’t trying to fix what wasn’t broken from Grief’s Infernal Flower, which is fair since, you know, that shit was way not broken.

One expects they’ll start announcing a massive round of tour dates for Eternal Return before the record even comes out, so I’ll go ahead and keep an eye open for that. In the meantime, here’s the latest fresh from the PR wire:

Windhand Enter Studio To Record New Full-Length Album, ‘Eternal Return’ Coming Fall 2018 on Relapse Records

Spring West Coast Tour Approaches

Virginia’s WINDHAND have entered the studio to record their 4th studio album. The album, entitled Eternal Return, is being recorded and engineered at Soundhouse Studios in Seattle, WA with legendary producer Jack Endino (Nirvana, Soundgarden, High on Fire). Album artwork will once again be handled by Arik Roper (Sleep, High on Fire). The album is expected to be released Fall 2018 via Relapse Records. Stay tuned for more information in the near future.

Additionally, WINDHAND kick off a short West Coast tour with Ruby The Hatchet on April 19th which includes appearances at Stumpfest and Levitation Fest. WINDHAND is also confirmed for Maryland Doom Fest on June 23 in Frederick, MD. A complete list of dates is available below.

WINDHAND LIVE DATES:
Apr 19: Neumos – Seattle, WA #
Apr 20: Stumpfest – Portland, OR
Apr 22: Great American Music Hall – San Francisco, CA #
Apr 23: Roxy Theatre – Los Angeles, CA #
Apr 26: Levitation at Barracuda – Austin, TX
Jun 23: Maryland Doom Fest 2018 – Frederick, MD
# w/ Ruby The Hatchet

https://www.facebook.com/WindhandVA/
https://www.instagram.com/windhand/
http://windhandva.bandcamp.com/
http://store.relapse.com/

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