I got to see Baltimorean progressive psych rockers Black Lung around this time last year, and as they announce a March 6 release for their impending fifth album, Forever Beyond (also their first on Magnetic Eye), and unveil a first single in the form of opening track “Traveler,” I continue to be struck by the sense of space they bring to their sound. Not just that there’s echo or whatever, that’s not what I mean.

Part of it is in the emotionality driving David Cavalier‘s vocal delivery here, or the video’s hints of mischief-in-the-public-domain ’60s psychery, but the thing is that Black Lung‘s sound can account for all of that and so much more. If they went full-on furious extreme tearing-at-the-sky black metal, or if they put a record that diverged 20 minutes into a dronescape, neither would be beyond the band’s reach. They’ve made a context for themselves that’s broad enough to let them do whatever they want in their songs and know that the foundation will be strong enough to hold.

The question as regards their next album is how they’ll revel in that, as they almost certainly will. They’ve been cognizant of pushing themselves, of growing, since their outset. For sure they showed that on a few different levels with 2023’s Dark Waves (review here), and the bigger surprise would be if Forever Beyond only did what was expected of it, whatever that might be.

There’s a lot of info here. I’m keeping it for posterity and for when I review. If you’re looking for the preorder link, it’s shortly after the headline, led into with bold text. I’m not in the business of selling records, but I do consider buying them a moral good in most cases. From the PR wire:

BLACK LUNG release first single ‘Traveler’ & details of forthcoming new album “Forever Beyond”!

BLACK LUNG drop the opening track ‘Traveler’ as the first single taken from the American heavy psych rockers’ forthcoming new full-length “Forever Beyond”. The fifth album from the Baltimore, Maryland outfit is scheduled for release on March 6, 2026, via Magnetic Eye Records.

Pre-order the album here: https://spkr.store/collections/black-lung

BLACK LUNG comment on ‘Traveler’: “This song is about relying on one’s anxiety and depression -almost like a super power”, vocalist and guitarist David Cavalier writes. “You think, its the things that are going to keep you safe and sharp. In reality, it’s the complete opposite. The song also touches on the idea of living in a blameless world. Radical acceptance of people and who they are. Musically, this is one of my favorite tracks. We made it as dynamic as possible and each section feels like its own moment.”

Tracklist:
1. Traveler
2. Death & Co.
3. Savior
4. Follow
5. Forever Beyond Me
6. Border Hoarder
7. Scum

When you find yourself adrift at zero gravity with a dreamy smile on your face, you’ve probably booked a flight into space on BLACK LUNG’s latest inter-dimensional transport “Forever Beyond”.

The veteran trio from Baltimore, Maryland have fine-tuned the recipe of their musical rocket fuel, distilled from stoner doom, psychedelic rock, and other fiery ingredients. BLACK LUNG’s unique concoction drives every track with captivating tunes, melodic riffing, pumping rhythms, and the inimitable vocal cords of Dave Cavalier taking it home. Every single song on “Forever Beyond” hits its mark perfectly.

On their fifth album “Forever Beyond”, BLACK LUNG complete the hyper jump initiated on their fourth album “Dark Waves”, which was already venturing into new sonic galaxies. Undertones of anger and defiance manifest as many of the songs are artistic reactions to the historic political upheaval in the USA, dealing lyrically with the lure of fascism, blind nationalism, and corporate oligarchy.

BLACK LUNG came into being when two founding members of Baltimore’s well-established psych rock band THE FLYING EYES, guitarist and organ player Adam Bufano and drummer Elias Schutzman, teamed up with multi-instrumentalist Dave Cavalier in early 2014. The three set themselves apart from the crowded field of psych doom and heavy blues with a sonic interchange of fuzzed-drenched guitars, deep driving drumbeats, and Cavalier’s raw, blues-tinged vocals.

Their self-titled debut “Black Lung” appeared in 2014 and was not just celebrated locally, with the title “Best New Band” awarded by the Baltimore City Paper, but BLACK LUNG also crossed the Atlantic to embark on their first European tour. This was capped with a performance at the prestigious Rockpalast Crossroads Festival, broadcast on German national television.

BLACK LUNG released their sophomore album “See the Enemy” in 2016, building on the strengths of their debut while at times pushing into garage psych territory. The album paved the way for a headlining European tour, notably appearing at Freak Valley Festival and DesertFest Belgium.

In 2019, BLACK LUNG returned with “Ancients”. The third full-length channeled years of experience, touring, and songwriting into a more adventurous course, venturing further from familiar doom and psych rock tropes. During the pandemic years, BLACK LUNG managed to push forward with new guitarist Dave Fullerton, which resulted in fourth album “Dark Waves”. It was a milestone in the band’s career, as they abandoned some of their pet ideas such as eschewing bass guitar live in favour of guitars through bass amps, along with the black and white aesthetics that had dominated their artwork of their first three full-lengths.

BLACK LUNG are openly anti-Trump and anti-fascist to the core and make no secret of it. They have no intention to become dogmatically boring but rather aim for live performances that are both cathartic and fun.

With “Forever Beyond”, BLACK LUNG prove that it is possible to rage against injustice with an utmost joyful defiance!

Line-up
David Cavalier – vocals, guitar
Dave Fullerton – guitar
Elias Schutzman – drums, keyboard, vocals
Mac Hewitt (live) – bass

Recording line-up
Dave Fullerton – guitar
Elias Schutzman – drums, percussion, mellotron, synth, bouzouki
Dave Cavalier – vocals, guitar
Charles Braese – bass

Guest musicians
Ms. Sara – vocals on ‘Traveler’
Robert Karpay – cello on ‘Follow’

Recording by Steve Wright at Wrightway Studios, Baltimore, MD (US)
Mixing by Steve Wright at Wrightway Studios, Baltimore, MD (US)
Mastering by Tony Eichler at Goldtone MasterWorks, LLC, Cape Coral, FL (US)

Cover image courtesy of the NASA/Ames Research Center
Cover image hand-coloured by Zarahlena
Layout by Łukasz Jaszak

https://blacklungband.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/blacklungband
https://www.facebook.com/blacklungbaltimore

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http://magneticeyerecords.com/
https://www.instagram.com/magneticeyerecords/
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Black Lung, “Traveler” official video

I can’t help but be glad to see London’s Elephant Tree getting out for a tour next Spring. They drop hints of ‘new music’ below, which is fine if not quite the same thing as ‘the album’s done.’ I’ll take that either way, too. Next year — 2026, stay with me — will be a decade since their 2016 self-titled debut (discussed here, review here), and six years since its prog-blossoming 2020 follow-up Habits (review here), and that seems as good a time as any for another LP, but they did have the anniversary compilation Handful of Ten (review here) in 2024, and last year’s split with Lowrider, The Long Forever (review here), though that probably did more to whet an appetite for more new sounds than sate it, given what its rawer and noisier take might portend for the band going forward as relates to the crisp clarity of Habits.

Well, you know, I’ve been hanging around outside Elephant Tree‘s practice space, like one does, waiting to hound them and ask about all this stuff, but they’re wily and they continue to elude my clumsy ass. Nonetheless, that they’re getting out for 10 shows in 10 days is a good sign for them to build on fest appearances throughout 2025 like Desertfest Belgium, Stoned From the Underground, Desertfest Oslo (review here) and Hoflärm. Here they’ll do StonerGrungeFest in the Netherlands and Sonic Ride in Cologne. Of course, one will be interested to find out their plans for the rest of 2026 — a self-titled reissue doesn’t seem out of line; that’s one of its decade’s best heavy rock records, let alone best debuts — and maybe that ‘new music’ threat below will turn some up. Fingers crossed.

Love the elephant. Does it have a name? From socials:

As the more eagle eyed among you may have seen, we’re off on our first headline jolly across the water next year! We cant wait to get back out there after this year’s fun and frolics and to see all those lovely faces again.

Full dates and ticket links can be found here https://elephanttree.band/live

Did someone say new music…

Elephant Tree – Pack Your Trunks:
02.04 La Bulle Cafe Lille FR
03.04 Merleyn Nijmegen NL
04.04 StonerGrungeFest 2026 at De Welling Utrecht NL
05.04 Knust Hamburg DE
06.04 Badehaus Berlin DE
07.04 B58 Braunschweig DE
08.04 Werkz Leipzig DE
09.04 Stereo Nurnberg DE
10/04 Franz. K, Reutlingen DE
11/04 Sonic Ride III Cologne DE

https://elephanttree.band
http://instagram.com/elephant_tree_band
https://www.facebook.com/elephanttreeband

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https://www.instagram.com/magneticeyerecords/
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Elephant Tree, “Long Forever” official video

Elephant Tree & Lowrider, The Long Forever (2024)

This Fall, Solace have been in the studio making their awaited fifth full-length. Earlier in the year, the band reissued their 2000 debut, Further (discussed here), for its 25th anniversary, toured the West Coast around a tear-your-face-off set at Planet Desert Rock Weekend V (review here) in Las Vegas, and were struck by the loss of founding vocalist Jason Limpatsis around the same time. It’s been a busy year for the long-running New Jersey-based stoner metallers, in other words.

In addition to that next record, to which I’m very much looking forward, coming out as their first release on Magnetic Eye, there’s this quick run of European shows alongside Hermano, with John Garcia, “Nice-Guy Dave” Angstrom, Dandy Brown, and so on. It’s not listed below, but they mention as well the prior confirmation for Desertfest London 2026 on or about May 15, and I can’t help but wonder if a Desertfest Berlin slot isn’t still to be revealed. We’ll see, I guess.

Of course, I’m wondering if the album will be out by then. Record in April, tour in May? Tour in May, record in June? Tour in May, record in my inbox early December? I do definitely feel a strong preference for the latter scenario, but whenever it comes, it’ll be welcome, and I’d rather have Solace take their time.

From social media:

SOLACE EURO-TOUR 2026!!!

We’re super stoked to announce that we’re FINALLY coming back to mainland Europe in 2026! And we’re kicking it all of in righteous fashion by supporting the mighty HERMANO! More dates to be announced in the coming weeks. And don’t forget we’ll be bringing the Dirt Metal to Desertfest London and can’t wait to see all our UK family 🤘🤘💥💪☠️🎸🎵

Thanks to Thomas at Broken Music for putting in the work to put this together.

7-5 Paris, France LA MAROQUINERIE
TICKETS: https://tix.to/Hermano-Paris-2026

8-5 Utrecht, Netherlands TIVOLI VREDENBURG
TICKETS: https://www.tivolivredenburg.nl/agenda/23766193/hermano-08-05-20

9-5 Cologne, Germany LUXOR
TICKETS: https://www.myticket.de/de/hermano-tickets

11-5 Vienna, Austria ARENA
TICKETS: https://tickets.arena.wien/at/Events/69442

12-5 Munich, Germany BACKSTAGE HALLE
TICKETS: https://www.myticket.de/de/hermano-tickets

Solace are:
Justin Daniels – guitar
Justin Goins – keyboard, vocals
Tim Schoenleber – drums
Mike Sica – bass
Tommy Southard – guitar

https://solace-merch.printify.me/products
https://diedrunk.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/SolaceBand/

http://store.merhq.com
http://magneticeyerecords.com/
https://www.instagram.com/magneticeyerecords/
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Solace, Further (2025 Remaster) (2000)

Solace, The Brink (2019)

Shocking news out of Nashville, Tennessee. No, not that Howling Giant are going on tour to support their new album, Crucible & Ruin (review here). I think we all saw that coming. I mean that bassist Sebastian “Seabass” Baltes has had his flowing locks surgically removed. One wonders if someone from Insomniac won’t put “Friends don’t let friends get haircuts” on a guitar at some point on this tour. In any case, a stunning revelation. I wasn’t ready.

I am ready to watch/hear Howling Giant play these songs on stage, however. It won’t happen this tour, which is mostly West Coast around slated appearances at SXSW in Austin, for Heavy Metal Parking Lot, and their previously announced slot at Mojave Experience in the Californian desert, but this won’t be the last one either. Then you get to Europe and the picture of Howling Giant‘s busy 2026 to come starts to get clearer. Spoiler: they’re going to have one.

Also, note: I’m probably going to put the Insomniac press release for this tour up as well. One, it’s an excuse to put the player stream again. Two, my own archival purposes. Three, I like writing about good tours. Just a heads up.

This is combined PR wire and social media:

HOWLING GIANT announce first North American headlining “Crucible & Ruin Tour” 2026

Nashville, Tennessee’s HOWLING GIANT announce their first headling tour in support of their acclaimed third full-length “Crucible & Ruin”. On the North American road trip this coming spring from March 11 until April 4, 2026, the cosmic stoner metal outfit will be joined by heavy psych rockers INSOMNIAC from Atlanta, Georgia.

Howling Giant comment: “We’re headed out west with our dudes in Insomniac next spring! We’ll play a bunch of new songs from Crucible & Ruin, we’ll have the new hot sauce and new shirt designs, and a brand new short-hair-Seabass. We appreciate everyone’s patience after the cancellation of our June/July run as we got things rebooked. See y’all soon!”

3/11 – Birmingham, AL – Saturn
3/12 – New Orleans, LA – Siberia
3/13 – Austin, TX – HEAVY METAL PARKING LOT
3/14 – Tulsa, OK – Whittier Bar
3/16 – Taos, NM – Goathead Collective
3/17 – Santa Fe, NM – Desert Dogs
3/18 – Tempe, AZ – Yucca Tap Room
3/19 – Las Vegas, NV – The Griffin
3/21 – Joshua Tree, CA – MOJAVE EXPERIENCE
3/22 – Bakersfield, CA – Jerry’s Pizza
3/24 – San Francisco, CA – Bottom Of The Hill
3/25 – Eureka, CA – Savage Henry
3/26 – Eugene, OR – John Henry’s
3/27 – Portland, OR – High Water Mark
3/28 – Seattle, WA – The Funhouse
3/29 – Vancouver, BC – Astoria
3/31 – Salt Lake City, UT – Aces High Saloon
4/1 – Denver, CO – HQ
4/2 – Kansas City, MO – Record Bar
4/3 – St Louis, MO – Platypus Bar
4/4 – Nashville, TN – TN Brew Worksac

Line-up
Tom Polzine – guitar, vocals
Zach Wheeler – drums, vocals
Sebastian Baltes – bass, vocals
Adrian Lee Zambrano – guitars, synthesizers

howlinggiant.bandcamp.com
https://www.instagram.com/howlinggiant/
www.facebook.com/howlinggiant/

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Howling Giant, “Beholder I: Downfall” official video

Howling Giant, “Canyons”

Howling Giant, Crucible & Ruin (2025)

So here we are, about 10 days out from High Desert Queen wrapping up their Fall European tour, and as they’ve already been announced for Desertfest Berlin and Desertfest London — if I’ve seen the dates for Desertfest Oslo, I’ve forgotten them, but I would hope it’d be on one of those TBA weekends and double-hope I’m fortunate enough to be back over to Norway for it so I could run into the band there — with apparently more to come in club shows and festivals, if you’re starting to see a pattern, I don’t think it’s accidental.

To wit, back in August, the Austin heavy rockers were just about 10 days out from finishing their summer Euro tour when they announced the one that, now, they’re about 10 days out from wrapping up. Clearly this is a band who wants to have something to look forward to, and honestly, if you can catch on in Europe as High Desert Queen seem to catch on pretty much anywhere they go, you can make yourself way more sustainable than you’d be without that, especially as the dollar tanks owing to, well, everything.

The tour is put on by Sound of Liberation, who posted the following on socials:

⚡HIGH DESERT QUEEN – TOUR ANNOUNCEMENT ⚡

Hej friends,

we’re happy to announce that your new favorite band is hitting the road again! 🤘

High Desert Queen are bringing their heavy desert grooves and southern-fried fuzz to Europe – loud, honest, and full of grit. Born in Texas and forged under the desert sun, the band blends massive riffs, soulful vocals, and psychedelic energy into pure rock ’n’ roll thunder.

Get ready for nights of fuzz, sweat, and volume.

See you out there – your SOL Crew!🌵🔥

HIGH DESERT QUEEN are:
Ryan Garney – vocals
Phil Hook – drums
Morgan Miller – bass
Rusty Miller – guitar

http://highdesertqueen.bandcamp.com/
http://www.instagram.com/highdesertqueen
https://www.facebook.com/highdesertqueen/

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High Desert Queen, “Time Waster” official video

High Desert Queen, Palm Reader (2024)

There is a lot going on here, but from any angle one might on want to examine it, Howling Giant‘s third album, Crucible and Ruin, is a bold step forward from a band who’ve worked hard to make their place at the forefront of the US heavy underground. One could not accuse them of making it easy on themselves in having to follow-up 2023’s excellent Glass Future (review here), on which each of the 10 inclusions felt like a lead single (yes, even the slow or instrumental stuff) for its airtight songwriting, crisp performance and sweeping energy, but instead of trying to outdo themselves, Crucible and Ruin — which is also 10 tracks, but six minutes longer than its predecessor at 47 minutes — pivots to a more expansive aural ideology.

In some ways, the live-sounding crunch of a piece like “Beholder I: Downfall” and the melodic, progressive outreach in “Archon” or the still-catchy opener “Canyons” feel like they’re in direct conversation with the band’s past, but it’s all part of a thread that’s been ongoing since before their full-length debut, 2019’s The Space Between Worlds (review here). Six years after that, and 10 after their first and recently-reissued self-titled EP, the Nashville-based now-four-piece (we’ll get there) stand triumphant in their maturity and craft, with a defined sound of their own that shows little interest in stopping growth. The expanse one hears in these songs is no less a part of their purpose than the loose story they’re telling in the lyrics, and it all ties together effectively to feel definitive for this incarnation of the band. That is to say, if you’ve been waiting to find out who Howling Giant are going to be, musically, you might have just found out.

The album was co-produced by Neil Tuuri, Kim Wheeler and James Sanderson, and engineered and mixed by Tuuri in Ohio. This in itself is a change from past recordings, which have been done with Wheeler, who still recorded additional vocals in Nashville and added synth to the penultimate otherwise-acoustic 68-second interlude “The Observatory,” and would seem to be a conscious choice on the part of the band to try a different approach. The results are that on “Beholder I: Downfall” (which has additional percussion by Adam Nohe of Horseburner) they’re able to recall heyday-Mastodon heft with no less precision or depth of character in the riffing, while “Melchior’s Bones” — a seeming sequel to “First Blood of Melchior,” from the last record, and no less laced with samples for not being instrumental — pushes into the anthemic just as it hits its emotional crescendo. Howling Giant are heavier than they’ve ever been and Crucible and Ruin holds up to whatever volume you might want to give it. The drums alone are mammoth.

Bassist/backing vocalist Sebastian Baltes was the new guy in the band last time around and here feels more present in the mix and in the songs generally in terms of playing off the conversation between Tom Polzine‘s guitar and Zach Wheeler‘s drums — you don’t have to go too far into “Hunter’s Mark” to hear it, let alone “Archivist” — but of course having another guitarist in the band is bound to beef up tones as well. Crucible and Ruin brings Adrian Lee Zambrano‘s studio debut on guitar and synth, and the progressive heavy style of playing he brought to his time in bands like Brujas del Sol and Lo-Pan resonates in this material from “Canyons” onward, in solos and the construction of the riffs. It’s a shift in dynamic from where Howling Giant were songwriting-wise two years ago, and it results in a piece like “Archon” taking its time to flesh out and develop its parts in a way that they wouldn’t or couldn’t have done last time around.

Does that make the songs that make up Crucible and Ruin less direct? On average, probably. “Canyons,” “Archon,” “Archivist” and “Beholder II: Labyrinth” all top six minutes, but as much as Howling Giant have a story to tell — I haven’t seen a lyric sheet, but the purported narrative is “the clash of a novice deity against the forces of primordial chaos” as something of a thematic framework; fair enough — they are cognizant of the need to tell it in more than one way. “Hunter’s Mark” has a dark, been-on-the-road catchiness that hits like a more complex take on what Glass Future offered, while the later “Scepter and Scythe” metals up some of the pop-punk hookiness that has become a part of the band’s persona even as they’ve grown more progressive — it makes sense because songwriting — while “Lesser Gods” is a mellow-rolling gray-day heavy prog instrumental running under three minutes, “Beholder I: Downfall” caps side A in under four, and “The Observatory,” as noted, is just over a minute long.

That’s a convenient way for me to demonstrate variety of purpose on the part of the band even as they unite the material under a storyline umbrella — a variety of songs with a variety of runtimes; derp — but it’s more evident in the actual listening experience, for example in the way the double-kick fades out of “Hunter’s Mark” only to have the drums pick up again from the silence before the burst-to-life melody hits in “Archon.” These little moments, the details, are where the band thrives. With vocals from Polzine, Wheeler and Baltes, Howling Giant are rife with voice-led payoffs, but even into the now-we’re-riding-this-riff-and-this-song-might-have-to-close-shows-forever-and-that’s-okay finish of “Melchior’s Bones,” they don’t push any further than the moment seems to require, and for being Zambrano‘s first outing as a part of the band, his playing informs the material in a number of ways and their range is that much greater for it.

Not that they were shy about layering as a three-piece, but their sound is fuller with Zambrano‘s tone added to it — of course the general largesse of the production is a factor there too — and there are moments like in tense early verses of “Beholder II: Labyrinth” where the proggy chug and overarching vocal melody seem to be competing, especially since the vocals also sound huge with their effects-laced hookmaking, but coming off Glass Future, it feels across Crucible and Ruin like part of what they were focused on in the recording process was getting heavier. In accordance with this, they’re also still growing and exploring where they can go as a four-piece, while continuing to engage their audience with generally uptempo, progressive-enough-to-be-interesting-to-nerds-and-already-in-your-head-catchy, well crafted and impeccably executed songs. Polzine has never sounded more confident as a lead vocalist conveying emotional as well as melodic range, and he and Wheeler instrumentally and vocally are a creative partnership that has continued to flourish over the last decade. This album is a well-earned victory, and to my mind at least, solidifies Howling Giant among the finest active heavy rockers in the US.

Howling Giant, “Beholder I: Downfall” official video

Howling Giant, “Canyons”

Howling Giant, Crucible & Ruin (2025)

Howling Giant on Bandcamp

Howling Giant on Instagram

Howling Giant on Facebook

Magnetic Eye Records store

Magnetic Eye Records website

Magnetic Eye Records on Instagram

Magnetic Eye Records on Facebook

It was Jack Harlon and the Dead Crows‘ 2023 covers release, Hail to the Underground (review here), that brought the Melbourne, Australia, atmospheric heavy rockers into what I’ll lovingly call the “Jaddverse,” which is to say the sphere of labels surrounding Blues Funeral Recordings founder, Magnetic Eye Records honcho, ex-MeteorCity magnate — throw Ripple in there somehow — and so on mover-and-shaker Jadd Shickler (also vocals in Blue Heron). That LP came out on Blues Funeral, and the next one will be Magnetic Eye. Fair enough. If you’re wondering what’s the difference, I think it has to do with distribution under the Spkr Media umbrella, but of course I don’t have those particulars, so that’s just me assuming a thing.

In any case, congrats to Jack Harlon and the Dead Crows — none of whom are even named Jack, let alone Harlon — on the new deal, and here’s looking forward to their next full-length, which is reportedly in the works for next year. When I see more on that, I’ll post it. In the meantime, the band have a few shows in Melbourne coming up throughout the Australian spring and into summertime, and you’ll find those below along with the signing announcement and background, all courtesy of the PR wire.

Behold:

JACK HARLON & THE DEAD CROWS ink deal with Magnetic Eye Records

Australian psychedelic stoner doom outfit JACK HARLON & THE DEAD CROWS have signed a multi-album deal with Magnetic Eye Records. The exceptional and unique four-piece from Melbourne, Victoria will release their upcoming fourth full-length via the label early next year.

JACK HARLON & THE DEAD CROWS comment: “We are beyond excited to be jumping on board with Magnetic Eye Records”, vocalist and guitarist Tim Coutts-Smith enthuses on behalf of the band. “I discovered the label after buying the ‘Electric Ladyland Redux’ over a decade ago. and was blown away by how well all the featured bands interpreted Hendrix’ sound. I began collecting more of their Redux albums, and never in a million years did I think that our band would ever be featured on one of those tribute compilations, let alone end up signing to the label that releases these beauties! Unreal!”

Jadd Shickler adds: “Jack Harlon’s first album ‘Hymns’ caught my attention immediately for its unique blend of fuzzed-out stoner rock and pummeling doom with this twanging Morricone-esque swerve into old western scores,” the Magnetic Eye director explains. “I cannot say, if their music really is the soundtrack of the Australian outback or if I’ve just made this up in my head because of where they’re from. But either way, there’s an exotic quality to how they approach massive riffs and dreamy psych, which to me sounds like a blend of Afghan Whigs and Monster Magnet with Church of Misery and Nick Cave. I’ve already had the pleasure to work with them on a couple of one-off projects, so welcoming them fully onto the Magnetic Eye roster alongside their regular tourmates Greenleaf is something I’ve been anxiously pursuing for some time. I can hardly wait to share and elevate their music to every nook and cranny of our beloved scene!”

Live
18 OCT 2025 Melbourne (AU) Stay Gold
15 NOV 2025 Melbourne (AU) The Evelyn
06 DEC 2025 Melbourne (AU) Cactus Room

—

Quite often, music is thought to be influenced by the terroir from which it originates, much like wine. According to this theory, Norwegian black metal has been shaped by deep dark fjords and frostbitten winters, while desert rock just had to be developed in the Mojave or another arid place. What to make, then, of a band hailing from Melbourne, Victoria at the south-eastern tip of Australia?

Ruling out Tasmania, Antarctica, and the Outback as too far away to constitute a direct influence, it is not easy to fit the unique sound of JACK HARLON & THE DEAD CROWS into this premise. Well, for the sake of a narrative, their eclectic style that explores a wide range of genres and incorporates elements of blues, stoner rock, lo-fi fuzz, spaghetti western scores, and doom metal could be interpreted as a reflection of the city’s high level of diversity with many of its inhabitants originating from elsewhere on the globe.

Leaving speculation aside, it is an established fact that JACK HARLON & THE DEAD CROWS started out as a side project by singer Tim Coutts-Smith around the year 2015. Over time, the band developed into a full-fledged performing act.

Since day one, Coutts-Smith centered his lyrics and themes around a fictional western outlaw named Jack Harlon. He would often begin writing about real people and events, before turning them into characters and stories in a science fiction themed western landscape.

JACK HARLON & THE DEAD CROWS are known for their ‘DIY’ approach as they have produced most of their albums and visual art internally. As a live act, the band has mostly toured and performed in Australia including sharing stages with international acts such as GREENLEAF, SASQUATCH, WO FAT, and WHORES.

So far, JACK HARLON & THE DEAD CROWS have released a self-titled debut EP in 2016, followed by three critically acclaimed albums and continuously growing recognition within the heavy underground: “Hymns” (2018), “The Magnetic Ridge” (2021), and “Hail to the Underground: Interpretations” (2023). The band also appeared on Magnetic Eye Records’ “Superunknown Redux” tribute to Soundgarden with their fuzzed-out, hallucinatory rendition of deep cut ‘Kickstand’.

JACK HARLON & THE DEAD CROWS are currently preparing to release their new fourth album via Magnetic Eye Records in early 2026.

Line-up
Tim Coutts-Smith – vocals, guitar
Jordan Richardson – guitar
Brayden Becher – drums
Liam Barry – bass

https://jackharlon-dawsonthedeadcrows.bandcamp.com/
https://instagram.com/jack.harlon.and.the.dead.crows
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Jack Harlon and the Dead Crows, Hail to the Underground (2023)

Today is Thursday, but it’s day five of the Fall 2025 Quarterly Review because I snuck in that first day last Friday. I cannot convey to you how much that has screwed me up. Turns out when you do one thing precisely one way for like 13 years and then all of a sudden flip it around another way it can be confusing. Stay tuned for more deep-impact life hacks and insights like this.

Or maybe riffs instead. It’s okay. That’s most of what keeps me coming back too.

Quarterly Review #41-50:

Paradise Lost, Ascension

More than 35 years on from their outset, Paradise Lost are an institution. I know they’ve had their stylistic divergences, but since recommitting themselves to their morose take on doom metal more than 15 years ago, they’ve hit a rare echelon of reliability one can only call Kreator-esque. That’s not a sonic comparison, but like the German thrash stalwarts, Paradise Lost have their sound — dark and more malleable in tempo than the thickened tones make it feel across these 10 songs — and within that sphere are able to do basically what they want musically and make it work. Side A’s “Salvation,” the longest inclusion at seven minutes, is a tour de force of the appeal of modern Paradise Lost, and a fitting summary of how encompassing they’ve become while still remaining recognizable as themselves. They even get hooky on “Deceivers,” so yes, still growing, still pushing, still Paradise Lost. A once-a-generation band, even as part of a cohort as they were, and not to be taken for granted.

Paradise Lost website

Nuclear Blast Records store

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The Vintage Caravan, Portals

The sixth full-length from still-younger-than-some-bands-who-haven’t-been-around-as-long Icelandic heavy rockers The Vintage Caravan plays out across 17 tracks and 59 minutes, with groups of songs presumably corresponding to double-vinyl side splits separated by interludes each of which is named “Portal.” So, Portals. The first of them follows “Philosopher,” the lead single which features Mikael Åkerfeldt, who turns out to be one of several guests across the record, but the real headliner is the songwriting. In the big choruses of “Here You Come Again,” “Give and Take,” and others, the band recall a heyday when rock could be heavy and accessible outside its own sphere, while “Electrified” later on builds into a tense boogie hook before “Portal V” transitions to the acoustic-based “My Aurora” and the closer “This Road,” one more uptempo, shred-inclusive, exceptionally well-crafted piece of The Vintage Caravan‘s classic-heavy-informed style, efficient in getting its point across despite allowing itself time to dwell as it does throughout.

The Vintage Caravan website

Napalm Records website

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Spirit Mother, Songs From the Basin

It’s not really a huge surprise that Los Angeles dark heavy psych rockers Spirit Mother would ‘go acoustic’ at some point, given the dynamic they’ve showcased to-date on their definitely-plugged studio albums. The most recent of those, 2024’s righteous, Heavy Psych Sounds-issued Trails (review here), is the source for “Wolves” and “Below,” which feature on this short, stripped-down offering. “Wolves,” which capped the record in memorable fashion, leads off here with its foreboding feeling all the more realized given the state of the world, while “Below” finds violinist SJ pushing into a soft crescendo taking off from Armand Lance‘s guitar and vocals. Recorded live, Songs From the Basin sounds duly organic, and whenever Spirit Mother in any form — that is, the full band or just the duo as they are here — wants to drop a full acoustic set, I’m here for it. Once again, the lesson is once you have well-written songs, you can make them do and be just about whatever you want.

Spirit Mother website

Spirit Mother on Bandcamp

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Nadja, Cut

I’m pretty sure the now-Berlin-based experimentalist duo of Aidan Baker and Leah Buckareff are north of 30 full-lengths released since their first one in 2002, and that doesn’t count blurring the lines between one project and another with collaborations or Baker‘s solo work. Prolific as they are, they remain expressive in the hard-drum-machined “It’s Cold When You Cut Me” (15:09), one of the four extended inclusions of Cut, where the sinister undercurrent comes to fruition in the song’s second half of manipulated, noisy drone. “Dark, No Knowledge” (13:26) lays out a distorted landscape and rolls through it, Godflesh in a hand-cranked meat grinder, becoming a swell of apocalyptic noise, while “She Ate His Dreams From the Inside and Spat Out the Frozen Fucking Bones” (15:14) dares to be pretty as it leaves spaces open and fills out later with psychedelic processionmaking, leaving the immediate ritual of “Omenformation” to resonate high before piling on low end frequencies while also freakjazzing and riffing out. The noise swallows all but it turns out there’s salvation in that monster’s stomach, so I’ll take it. One Nadja album may be an inevitable precursor to the next one, but that doesn’t mean they don’t make it a world of its own.

Nadja website

Cruel Nature Recordings on Bandcamp

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Vibravoid, Remove the Ties

Düsseldorf-bred psych rockers Vibravoid belong in a class of undervalued all their own. As they mark their 35th anniversary, they begin their new studio album Remove the Ties with a mischievous redirect of krautrock-style electronics before the garage-wavey “Neustart” and pop-shimmerier “Power of Dreams” dig further into the heart of the record, letting side A round out with the longer, deeper-reverbed “Follow Me Follow You” and its effects barrage play out atop the steady kick drum tasked with holding it together. But nobody who’s been in a band for 35 years is about to actually be sloppy, and there’s no actual danger of off-the-rails on Remove the TiesBaby Woodrose roamed the earth. Vibravoid were there then too. It’s easy to get around when you’re from a different dimension.

Vibravoid on Bandcamp

Tonzonen website

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For Fuck’s Sake, 7-Minute Abs/Lobotomy

Do you have six minutes for a good pummeling? Of course you do. Brooklynite four-piece For Fuck’s Sake offer two tracks like a digital punker 7″ with 7-Minute Abs/Lobotomy, and they make no attempt to hide the fact of their sights being set on destruction. Their sound, rooted in hardcore and sludge in like measure, counting in with the snare on “7-Minute Abs” and daring to cross the three-minutes-long threshold with the fervent chug and bone-on-bone impact of “Lobotomy,” reminds of nothing so much as earlier 16, but with an unmistakable edge of Northeastern confrontationalism. That is, they’ll fuck you up and they know it, so that’s what they’re setting out to do. Barking, gnashing intensity set a harsh backdrop for what’s an engaging groove so long as you’re pissed off enough to process it (which you should be; look around), and the rawness of their delivery, the unabashed assault of it, comes through as genuine. Also punishing.

For Fuck’s Sake on Bandcamp

For Fuck’s Sake on Instagram

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Paralyzed, Rumble & Roar

Classic heavy rock and roll forms the core of Paralyzed‘s approach, with guitarist Michael Binder‘s low, gravelly vocals reminiscent of Jim Morrison at his least hinged, suited to the blues behind second cut “Railroad” and the subsequent march of “Rosie’s Town” on the band’s third LP, Rumble & Roar. To say they — that is, Binder, organist/rhythm guitarist Caterina Böhner, bassist Philipp Engelbrecht and drummer Florian Thiele — make it a party across the nine-song/41-minute outing is perhaps understating the case, but if you’d accuse “Heavy Blues” of being too on the nose, you’re missing the fact that on the nose is the point. There’s no irony here, no sneer to the boogie of “White Paper” or the slow organ-laced fluidity of “The Witch,” just heavy vibes and reaffirmation of the band’s growth as songwriters. I’m not even sure where one would start complaining about such a thing.

Paralyzed on Bandcamp

Ripple Music website

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Friendship Commanders, Bear

Delivered as their label-debut for Magnetic Eye Records, the 10-song/40-minute Bear is the fourth full-length from Nashville two-piece Friendship Commanders, with guitarist/vocalist Buick Audra and drummer/bassist/synthesist Jerry Roe having recorded with Kurt Ballou in addition to doing some at home for an affect accordingly tight in craft and heavy in impact. “Melt” pushes toward a ’90s-style reimagining of heavy rock as both commercially viable and empowering, while “X” pairs its tonal crunch with the keyboardy reach of its midsection, poppish but still heavy even unto the snare hits. Pop becomes another tool in their arsenal, whether it’s the layered ascent and push of “New” or the weighted culmination presented with closer “Dead and Discarded Girls,” and the band don’t seem to shy away from being able to compose at the level they are. At the same time, “Dripping Silver” feels fully cognizant of the radness in the riff it’s riding, so there’s a balance to it as well. They sound like professionals.

Friendship Commanders website

Magnetic Eye Records store

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Dee Calhoun, Angry Old Man

Former Iron Man and, as of recently, former Spiral Grave vocalist “Screaming Mad” Dee Calhoun is pissed. The Maryland-based acoustic metal troubadour sounds resolute on Angry Old Man, and while his past solo work could hardly be said to pull punches, he hits a different level of laying it all out there on “Kill a Motherfucker” late in the procession here. As ever, hollow-bodied-resonance is the foundation throughout, but other elements like the harmonica in “Voodoo Queen” and the tolling bell at the outset of “VVitch (A Chant)” (not really a chant) fill out the reaches when Calhoun‘s powerhouse voice — still his primary instrument, though the guitar work has gotten more complex with time as well — recedes to a softer delivery. But when he belts it out — looking at you, “Rise Up to March” — he can shake the ground, and if you have any prior familiarity with his work, you already know he’s unmistakable in that regard. That remains the case here, even as he positions himself the titular Angry Old Man. Ain’t none of us getting any younger, dude.

Dee Calhoun Linktr.ee

Black Doomba Records Linktr.ee

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Automatism, Sörmland

The narrative of the band getting together after a few years, enjoying each other’s company as they wrote and recorded Sörmland — named for where in Sweden they were — becomes real with the mellowprog delve of “Honey Trap” more than the shorter leadoff “Video,” as pastoralia takes centerstage with organic melodies and a casual groove. Unsurprisingly if you know Twin Peaks, “Laura Palmer’s Theme” is darker, but the real reference it’s making seems to be to “Moonlight Sonata” as regards the keys, but “Neon Lights” answers back by being in no hurry whatsoever with sweet intertwining guitar lines and a subtle build to later movement. At 11 minutes, the title-track that caps is the longest inclusion, but fair enough since they have to make room for that tenor sax and all. I wouldn’t know from experience, but Sörmland is what I imagine it would sound like to be emotionally regulated, ever, and anytime Automatism want to get together out in the woods or by some fields or a lake or whathaveyou, I hope someone has the presence of mind to hit record.

Automatism on Bandcamp

Tonzonen website

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