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Funeral Horse, Psalms for the Mourning: Blues for the Daredevils

Posted in Reviews on June 20th, 2018 by JJ Koczan

funeral horse psalms for the mourning

Any given song, any given part, any given measure, Funeral Horse can and will go wherever they please. Somehow, that’s what makes them work. Where so many bands would claim themselves as experimentalists and drown themselves and their audience in self-indulgence, somehow, Funeral Horse instead manage a genre-spanning balance of songwriting that nonetheless retains a sense of the truly weird. Psalms for the Mourning is the underrated Texans’ fourth album on Artificial Head Records behind 2015’s Divinity for the Wicked (review here), 2014’s Sinister Rites of the Master (review here) and 2013’s Savage Audio Demon (review here), and in addition to marking the first appearance of bassist Clint Rater alongside guitarist/vocalist Paul Bearer and drummer Chris Bassett, it’s also by far the longest stretch they’ve had between outings.

Three years is a pretty standard stretch for bands on an 18-month touring cycle, but Funeral Horse have never hit the road to such a degree (though they did come east that one time to play The Obelisk All-Dayer in Brooklyn in 2016), but the truth is I think the material on the eight-track/39-minute LP benefits from that extra time. I don’t know how many songs Funeral Horse might’ve written over the course of that time, or how many they ultimately decided to put to tape — that is, whether this is everything produced since Divinity for the Wicked or not; I’d speculate not — but to listen to tracks like the punkier opener “Better Half of Nothing,” the woeful blues that follows in “No Greater Sorrow (Than My Love)” (video premiere here), and even the uptempo keyboard-laced pop bounce that shows up in the second half of “Divinity for the Wicked” that seems to cite its own precedent in later Ozzy-era Sabbath, Psalms for the Mourning would seem to be the band’s most cohesive outing yet.

Their style, as ever, is based in no small part on toying with sundry influences between doom, punk, heavy rock, blues, country and anything else that might come their way, but in the blown out “California here I come” hook line of the penultimate “Burial of the Sun,” and in the barroom-jam-into-cacophony of the eight-minute “Emperor of all Maladies,” there’s a greater sense of maturity and purpose underlying. That’s not to say that Funeral Horse — who thrash away on “Sacrifice of a Thousand Ships” only after the bit of finger and piano in the side A-closing interlude “1965” — have been at any point lacking purpose, but even in the production of Psalms for the Mourning, their adaptability is being steered by hands not only capable as they’ve always been, but more confident and assured of the moves they’re making.

funeral horse

It’s right there in the sound of the record itself as well as in the subtle way both “Better Half of Nothing” and “Sacrifice of a Thousand Ships” give their respective halves of the album a speedy opening, or how sub-three-minute closer “Evel Knievel Blues” takes a sudden turn into watery-vocal country like some long-lost Ween cut. What has made Funeral Horse‘s work so hard to pin down over the last five years is their seeming tendency to not have a core sound, instead just to jump from one vibe to another in willfully jarring shifts over the course of their outings. Fair enough, but the truth of the matter is that is their core sound, and Psalms for the Mourning proves that most plainly in ways Divinity for the Wicked seemed to hint at. It’s not about expanding from a root so much as leaping branch to branch with a genuine feeling of revelry in doing so.

Granted, much of Psalms for the Mourning is pretty downtrodden, regardless of tempo. “Better Half of Nothing” and “No Greater Sorrow (Than My Love)” paint a pretty dark thematic picture at the outset, and “Emperor of all Maladies” touches on raw doom rock before the already-noted jam brings it to its feedbacking finish, and after “1965,” the aggro thrust of “Sacrifice of a Thousand Ships” and nodding initial blues of “Divinity for the Wicked” before its odd and resonant finish sets a foundation for the speedy, shuffling escapism of “Burial Under the Sun,” a highlight for its channel-spanning solo late and in-spite-of-itself catchiness, capping with a minimalist piano line before the twang of “Evel Knievel Blues” provides an epilogue of fuckaroundery that reminds the listener everything in life is ridiculous anyway. That ending, given a lot of the bum-out before it, fast or slow, almost has a nihilist twinge to it, but in the context of Funeral Horse‘s work overall, it somehow makes sense.

Come to think of it, that might be what’s at their core. That somehow, all of it makes sense. Even when it doesn’t, that not making sense makes sense. I’m not sure I’d have said the same thing about their debut — in fact, looking back, I didn’t — but one of the aspects of Psalms for the Mourning that shows how far Funeral Horse have come as a band despite personnel changes is the sheer unwillingness to not be itself. While there are still verses and choruses throughout, and “No Greater Sorrow (Than My Love)” might be their greatest achievement in terms of craft to-date, what most works about the album is its ability to carry across an overarching flow while staying so outwardly disjointed. It’s simply not something a newer band could pull off, let alone to the degree Funeral Horse do here, but they’ve been a beast unto themselves since their start, and as they continue to grow and push themselves forward it should be little surprise to anyone who’s heard them that they’d stay that way.

Funeral Horse, Psalms for the Mourning (2018)

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Funeral Horse Premiere Video for “No Greater Sorrow (Than My Love)”

Posted in Bootleg Theater on May 29th, 2018 by JJ Koczan

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I’m hoping at some point to review it, so I won’t go that deep into Funeral Horse‘s fourth full-length, Psalms for the Mourning, except to note that it’s a considerable step forward from its predecessor, 2015’s Divinity for the Wicked (review here), which is odd if you think about it because that album’s title-track — that is, “Divinity for the Wicked” itself — actually appears on the new record. But then, “odd” is kind of what Funeral Horse does and has done all along, starting on 2013’s Savage Audio Demon (review here) and the next year’s follow-up, Sinister Rites of the Master (review here). They’ve only gotten better at it, however, and it seems that a three-year break between releases where they’d been on a one-per-year pace before has resulted in a more cohesive approach overall.

Make no mistake, they’ll still dig into grown-up-punker-style stoner riffing on songs like the rolling “Emperor of all Maladies” or the grunge-vibing opener “Better Half of Nothing,” but with “No Greater Sorrow (Than My Love)” dug into a woeful, been-done-wrong heavy blues, “Sacrifice of a Thousand Ships” bursting out with heads-down thrash immediately following the acoustic guitar funeral horse psalms for the mourninginterlude “1965” — because of course — “Burial Under the Sun” almost directly copping its central riff from Sabbath and closer “Evel Knievel Blues” warping handclap-laden countrified twang with vocal effects and a flash of fuzz near the end, Funeral Horse have never sounded freer to go where and do what they please than on Psalms for the Mourning. It’s a dangerous prospect, but sonic disconnect is clearly part of the intention, as demonstrated by the peaceful finish of “1965” leading to the manic fade-in of “Sacrifice of a Thousand Ships,” as well as by the jangling tambourine end of “No Greater Sorrow (Than My Love)” giving way to the cough at the start of “Emperor of all Maladies.” They’re making a point to upset their own flow. It’s part of the fun.

This is the part where I tell you that no single song on Psalms for the Mourning necessarily represents the whole album, and yeah, that’s pretty much true. Guitarist/vocalist Walter “Paul Bearer” Carlos, drummer Chris Bassett and newcomer bassist Clint Rater — who no doubt has received a full-on Jason Newsted-style hazing by now — are all over the place on this one, but there’s a current of urgency, of disaffection and of weighted tone running beneath so much of the material that it somehow works together anyway. Again, I don’t want to go too deep into it because, well, I want to go too deep into it later, but for those who enjoy a bit of the bizarre with their rock, Funeral Horse strike a balance between memorable songs and weirdo vibes that by my estimation has only made them underrated for the last half-decade.

You can watch the premiere of the band’s new video for “No Greater Sorrow (Than My Love)” below, followed by more info courtesy of the PR wire. Psalms for the Mourning is out June 15 via Artificial Head Records.

Dig it and enjoy:

Funeral Horse, “No Greater Sorrow (Than My Love)” official video

Made up of front man/guitarist Paul Bearer, drummer Chris Bassett and new addition, Clint Rater on bass, Funeral Horse return to the fold this June with a brand-new studio album; their third in the canon for the Houston-based record label, Artificial Head Records.

Catching up on almost three years in the wilderness since the release of their 2015’s stoned-opus, Divinity For The Wicked, Psalms For The Mourning finds the industrious Texan trio revamping the thunderous doom-pop and hard rock that secured their cult status amidst the current crop of underground US rock. As an aural monument for the maligned, Divinity… made several inroads into the media with positive reviews, but here on Psalms For The Mourning, Funeral Horse serve up a true rock ‘n’ roll sermon for the masses. It’s an album that’s positively waiting to be picked up and played by those that have chosen their whole lives to turn on, tune in and drop out in pursuit of volume.

“We took more time writing and recording this material, taking in the turmoil from touring and personal conflicts and the loss of some good friends along the way,” explains front man Paul Bearer. “We’ve kept to the roots of who we are but the band’s tours in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and Mexico last year was another big factor in the amount of care and time we took with the album. Those tours exposed us to some amazing bands and people who have helped to share in what the band is today.”

Psalms For The Mourning by Funeral Horse is released worldwide on 15th June via Artificial Head Records.

Live Dates:
16/6 – RECORD RELEASE SHOW: Spruce Goose Social Flyers Club – Houston, TX
17/6 – RECORD RELEASE SHOW: Antone’s Record Shop – Austin, TX
20/6 – 524 Studios – Baton Rouge, LA
21/6 – Hops and Habanas – Jackson, MS
22/6 – Old Nicks – Birmingham, AL
23/6 – Autograph Rehearsal Studio – Murfreesboro, TN
24/6 – Hot Springs Event Centre – Hot Springs, AR
7/7 – ARTIFICIAL HEAD RECORDS SHOWCASE: The Almighty Moontower Inn – Houston, TX

Line Up:
Paul Bearer – Vocals, Guitars
Chris Bassett – Drums
Clint Rater – Bass

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Psalms for the Mourning preorder on Bandcamp

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Funeral Horse to Release Psalms for the Mourning June 15; New Song Posted

Posted in Whathaveyou on May 14th, 2018 by JJ Koczan

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If you think you know what to expect from Funeral Horse, you’re probably thinking of another band. The Houston weirdos specialize in being ever-so-slightly-and-sometimes-way-way off-kilter, and even in their new single “Burial Under the Sun” you can hear a swath of influences from desert rock to classic metal to raw punk working their way into their songwriting. It’s been a minute since they released their last record, 2015’s Divinity for the Wicked (review here), but the intervening stretch seems to have done nothing do dull their delight in toying with various styles and substances throughout their process of craft. To wit, the piano end of the track at the bottom of this post.

Psalms for the Mourning — did I forget to mention there was a new album coming? well there is — is out June 15 via Artificial Head Records. The PR wire brings details and whatnots and the preorder link:

funeral horse psalms for the mourning

FUNERAL HORSE RETURN: Texan doom punks deliver new album, Psalms For The Mourning

Psalms For The Mourning by Funeral Horse is released worldwide on 15th June via Artificial Head Records

Stream and share new song ‘Burial Under The Sun’ now!

Made up of front man/guitarist Paul Bearer, drummer Chris Bassett and new addition, Clint Rater on bass, Funeral Horse return to the fold this June with a brand-new studio album; their third in the canon for the Houston-based record label, Artificial Head Records.

Catching up on almost three years in the wilderness since the release of their 2015’s stoned-opus, Divinity For The Wicked, Psalms For The Mourning finds the industrious Texan trio revamping the thunderous doom-pop and hard rock that secured their cult status amidst the current crop of underground US rock. As an aural monument for the maligned, Divinity… made several inroads into the media with positive reviews from the likes of Terrorizer and Decibel, but here on Psalms For The Mourning, Funeral Horse serve up a true rock ‘n’ roll sermon for the masses. It’s an album that’s positively waiting to be picked up and played by those that have chosen their whole lives to turn on, tune in and drop out in pursuit of volume.

Amid a mass brawl of fresh proto-metal riffs, warped vocals, neo-folk and red eyed ’80s post-hardcore punk, under the influence of bands such as The Melvins, Led Zeppelin, Kyuss and Harvey Milk, the sonic experimentation Funeral Horse found on previous albums remains, but is now deeply woven into their songs and not separated into stand-alone pieces. This is music to gouge minds to. From the seemingly/misleadingly upbeat opener ‘Better Half of Nothing’, to the brooding and bold ‘No Greater Sorrow (Than My Love)’ and outright brutality of ‘Sacrifice of A Thousand Ships’, the band opens its doors once more to an even wider world of distortions and digressions.

“We took more time writing and recording this material, taking in the turmoil from touring and personal conflicts and the loss of some good friends along the way,” explains front man Paul Bearer. “We’ve kept to the roots of who we are but the band’s tours in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and Mexico last year was another big factor in the amount of care and time we took with the album. Those tours exposed us to some amazing bands and people who have helped to share in what the band is today.”

Psalms For The Mourning by Funeral Horse is released worldwide on 15th June via Artificial Head Records.

Pre-order now at artificialheadrecords.bandcamp.com

FUNERAL HORSE:
Paul Bearer – Vocals, Guitars
Chris Bassett – Drums
Clint Rater – Bass

LIVE DATES:
16/6 – RECORD RELEASE SHOW: Spruce Goose Social Flyers Club – Houston, TX
17/6 – RECORD RELEASE SHOW: Antone’s Record Shop – Austin, TX
20/6 – 524 Studios – Baton Rouge, LA
21/6 – Hops and Habanas – Jackson, MS
22/6 – Old Nicks – Birmingham, AL
23/6 – Autograph Rehearsal Studio – Murfreesboro, TN
24/6 – Hot Springs Event Centre – Hot Springs, AR
7/7 – ARTIFICIAL HEAD RECORDS SHOWCASE: The Almighty Moontower Inn – Houston, TX

https://www.facebook.com/FuneralHorse
https://www.instagram.com/funeralhorse/
https://funeralhorse.bandcamp.com/
https://funeralhorse.com/

Funeral Horse, “Burial Under the Sun”

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