Posted in Whathaveyou on June 28th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Progressive heavy rock forerunners Elder have announced the second leg of US touring to take place this September, following on from the stint with Ruby the Hatchet and Howling Giant that wrapped up on June 3 in Connecticut. The new round of tour dates covers the East Coast and some of the Midwest, hitting basically where the last tour didn’t go — there are some states they’re not hitting this time either; these things happen; I hear social media is a really good and super-helpful place to complain about that? — while putting the mostly-Berlin-based four-piece in the company of Chicagoans REZN and Austin, Texas, heavy moodmakers Lord Buffalo. Elder’s latest full-length, Innate Passage (review here), came out last year through Stickman Records and Armageddon Shop. It was my pick for the best album of 2022; a selection I happily stand by.
It should be noted that this tour is snuck in ahead of a previously announced UK and European tour set for October and November. The band will get home from this run, have a couple weeks off and then head back out for the Euro Fall fest season, wrapping in Berlin on Nov. 18. They’re also booked for at least Krach am Bach in Germany and SonicBlast Fest in Portugal this August, so fair to say it’s a busy year. That also doesn’t count Nick DiSalvo and Mike Risberg‘s participation in the side-project Weite, whose debut LP, Assemblage, is out July 14, also on Stickman.
Booked by Heavy Talent, the dates were posted by the band as seen below:
ELDER – US TOUR with REZN and Lord Buffalo
We’re headed back out on tour in the States this September and extremely happy to be joined by the excellent REZN and Lord Buffalo!
Our last tour Stateside was excellent and we’re so excited to come back to all these cities we didn’t manage to hit last time. See you in a few months!
— 9/05 – Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts 9/06 – Brooklyn, NY @ Monarch 9/07 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Thunderbird Music Hall 9/08 – Columbus, OH @ Ace of Cups 9/09 – Chicago, IL @ Avondale Music Hall 9/10 – Nashville, TN @ The Basement East 9/12 – Fort Worth, TX @ Tulips 9/13 – Austin, TX @ Empire Control Room 9/14 – Houston, TX @ Warehouse 9/15 – New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa 9/16 – Atlanta, GA @ The Earl 9/17 – Orlando, FL @ The Conduit 9/19 – Raleigh, NC @ The Pour House 9/20 – Baltimore, MD @ The Ottobar 9/21 – Syracuse, NY @ The Song & Dance 9/22 – Portland, ME @ Portland House Of Music 9/23 – Cambridge, MA @ Middle East / Downstairs
Elder is: Nick DiSalvo – Guitars, Vocals Mike Risberg – Guitars, Keys Jack Donovan – Bass Georg Edert – Drums
Posted in Questionnaire on June 19th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.
Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.
Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.
The Obelisk Questionnaire: Tom Corino of Kind
—
How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?
I’ve spent the majority of my life playing bass in bands. Before I even owned an instrument I had agreed to be in a band so my skills on the bass took some time to catch up with my first skill which was being a bandmate. I’ve been lucky enough to develop my own style of playing over the years and I’ve also been to be surrounded by musicians who gave me the platform do my own thing in one form or another.
Describe your first musical memory.
The first time I heard music and it really clicked for me was being exposed to Black Sabbath in high school. A friend of mine got the Reunion live album as a gift and lent it to me for a trip to Shea Stadium to watch the Mets lose. I popped it in my walkman and it’s been all downhill from there.
Describe your best musical memory to date.
Honestly it’s pretty hard to choose. I’ve been really fortunate that music has afforded me so many opportunities over the years. I’ve gotten to see most of the US and met some of my absolute heroes thanks to playing music (Opening for Slayer with Rozamov comes to mind).
That said, playing Desertfest London with Kind was a total trip. The reaction we got from that audience was just unreal. I also got to share the experience with my wife and explore the city for a bit which is not something that happens very often as anyone who has done any touring will tell you.
When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?
Having a child completely dismantled most of my firmly held beliefs. It changed everything and it’s hard to explain to people who haven’t experienced it themselves. Certain things I used to take so seriously are now completely trivial and things I once took for granted are now of utmost importance. Frankly, I look back at my former self in pity at how ignorant and self involved I was.
Where do you feel artistic progression leads?
I think everyone’s progression is different, and the journey is way more important than wherever it “leads” to. I’m not really sure it leads anywhere, artistic progression should never end if you’re doing it right.
How do you define success?
Success is enjoying the process.
What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?
Watching loved ones deal with serious mental health hurdles is the most debilitating thing ever and I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.
Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.
I’ve always wanted to run a studio or venue of some kind. I have exactly none of the expertise needed for either venture but hey… maybe someday we’ll do it.
What do you believe is the most essential function of art?
To allow the artist and audience to lose themselves collectively and have a respite from the outside world for some stretch of time, however brief.
Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?
Boston’s Kind will release their third album, Close Encounters, this August through Ripple Music. The band — comprised of guitarist Darryl Shepard (ex-Milligram, The Long Wait, Blackwolfgoat, Hackman, etc.), bassist Tom Corino (Rozamov), drummer Matt Couto (ex-Elder) and vocalist Craig Riggs (Roadsaw, also drums for Sasquatch, etc.) — are about as heavy on riffs as they are on pedigree, and having been fortunate enough to have heard the full album at this point I’ll tell you two things about it. First, it’s their best work to-date. Second, if you’re the end-of-year-best-of-list type, you’re going to want to save room. I’ll review the record down the line, but just a heads up. It’s one to keep an ear out for.
Lucky enough, you don’t have to keep that ear out for it for very long since the first single is premiering below. “Burn Scar” doesn’t account for every move the band make on the Alec Rodriguez-recorded offering, which hits hard and stretches out over some pretty vast distances as well, but it’s enough to give you a basic idea of where they’re at in terms of tone and melody, though if you caught 2020’s Mental Nudge (review here) you know they’re not shy about changing things up as they make their way through a collection. I’ll reiterate, Close Encounters is their best record yet, and please know that I wouldn’t say that if I didn’t genuinely believe it. The rest we can handle later.
One note and I’ll let you go. This is the first single from Close Encounters, but it’s not the first track to be released. “Favorite One,” track two of nine, was featured on the Nebula Ripples benefit compilation to support Nebula bassist Tom Davies in his struggle against cancer (on Bandcamp here). Put the two together and you’ve got almost a third of the record to go on already. Not too shabby. That track is also streaming at the bottom of the post, along with a full live set (same show from which the picture above seems to have been taken) from New Hampshire this past December that also has some new material. Because MAXIMALISM.
For now, enjoy “Burn Scar.” Preorder links and PR wire info follow below:
Close Encounters is the third KIND full length, following their debut Rocket Science (2015) and sophomore album Mental Nudge (2020), all released on venerable underground heavy rock label Ripple Music. Once again, KIND recorded with engineer Alec Rodriguez at Mad Oak Studios, and the eye-catching cover art was created by renowned artist Alexander Von Wieding in his lair in Germany. Close Encounters contains nine songs of heavy stoner/doom/psych rock with some additional elements, furthering the scope of KIND’s musical vision. Prog-rock leaning opener “Burn Scar”, the almost-but-not-quite pop of “Snag” and the Krautrock inspired closer “Pacino” bring some variety to the proceedings, with additional percussion, Mellotron and synth blended into the mix.
The locked-in rhythm section of drummer Matt Couto and bassist Tom Corino and the heavy-as-bricks riffing of guitarist Darryl Shepard are topped off with the powerful and melodic vocals of Craig Riggs throughout, creating a cohesive sound regardless of where the band ventures musically. KIND never stray from their mission, which is to write and perform top-shelf heavy rock. Mental Nudge ended up on several year-end best-of lists and topped the Doom Charts in September of 2020. Close Encounters ups the ante in several ways, showing the versatility of these four seasoned musicians who have performed with KIND and previous bands at festivals such as Roadburn, Hellfest, Desertfest and many more. But as the saying goes, “writing about music is like dancing about architecture”. The best thing to do is to throw on a copy of Close Encounters and turn the volume way up.
About the album, guitarist Darryl Shepard says: “When we started recording Close Encounters the pandemic was still going on, and then Russia started bombing Ukraine the week before, so the war was just starting and nobody knew what the hell was going to happen with that. Was it going to turn into World War III or something? Nobody knew at that time. And I remember just feeling that everything going on was very heavy and we were in the studio recording while Russia was invading another country and nuclear facilities in Ukraine were burning. All of that definitely seeped into my playing on this album. It was absolutely on my mind, and Alec and I were talking about it while setting up to record. It was definitely a heavy period and I think some of that is in this record.
Album credits: All songs written & arranged by KIND, copyright 2023 (BMI) All lyrics by Craig Riggs Synths – Craig and Darryl Additional percussion – Craig Piano – Darryl
Produced by KIND & Alec Rodriguez Recorded & mixed by Alec Rodriguez Recorded at Mad Oak Studios, Allston, MA between March and July of 2022 Mixed thereafter by Alec Rodriguez Mastered by Magnus Lindberg at Redmount Studios
Artwork, layout & logo by Alexander von Wieding, zeichentier.com
KIND lineup: Tom Corino – Bass Matt Couto – Drums Craig Riggs – Vocals Darryl Shepard – Guitars
Posted in Whathaveyou on June 6th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
As tempting as it might be to liken Blood Lightning to fellow Bostonian unit Kind in terms of being a band comprised of dudes from other bands — in Blood Lightning‘s case, that’s Gozu, Black Thai, We’re all Gonna Die, Sam Black Church and Worshipper — but that and having standalone frontmen able to belt out hooks with the best of ’em is about where the similarities end. Blood Lightning signed to Ripple Music early last month and the intention toward a self-titled debut full-length was announced with that, and with their new video for “Blankets,” they offer the first audio to come from the album. Unsurprisingly, it’s a banger.
The band cast themselves as metal, and maybe they are, but “Blankets” isn’t hyper-aggressive in its groove or melody, but you can hear everyone pushing. Not struggling to keep up with the song, because it’s not like they’re trying to thrash or anything, but pushing themselves to hit harder, play and sing with impact in mind, and while they’re still led by riffs and they’re still produced by Benny Grotto at Mad Oak — the only one of their other bands I’m not sure he’s recorded before is Sam Black Church, and maybe Worshipper now that I think of it? — there’s a twist in the intention that comes through in “Blankets,” which was also released audio-only as a single last summer.
Now it comes accompanied by a video recorded this past Spring in Cambridge that you can see at the bottom of this post. I haven’t seen a solid release date for Blood Lightning‘s Blood Lightning yet, but Ripple‘s Todd Severin had some comment on the video from social media, and if he’s stoked on it, that’s usually a good sign, even if he is the guy running the label:
The video for Blood Lightning’s “Blankets” was shot live at ZuZu in Cambridge MA on April 19th, 2023 by Frank Pino and Shawn Reilly of Doghouse East.
The song is the first release from our debut record on Ripple Music.
We are excited to share this tune and video and can’t wait for you to hear the rest of the album! (Due in October 2023)
Come catch Blood Lightning live at the Middle East Upstairs in Cambridge MA on Friday June 23, 2023 with Catching Hell and Scissorfight.
We are incredibly excited to be part of the Ripple Music family and are stoked to share this video with you!
Says Ripple Music’s Todd Severin: Damn, am I excited about this project. Blood Lightning, a Boston supergroup featuring members of Gozu, Worshipper, Sam Black Church, Black Thai, and others. They’ve already been nominated for several Boston Music awards, and here’s why. Proud to present to you the new video for Blankets, a song off their forthcoming Ripple Music debut.
BLOOD LIGHTNING are: Jim Healey – Vocals Doug Sherman – Guitars Bob Maloney – Bass J.R. Roach – Drums
The first 10 seconds of “Tom Cruise Control” are pretty telling in that they remind the listener just how little Gozu actually need to make a hook. It’s just the guitar, then the bass and drums pick up and are swept along with the immediate momentum garnered. This has been Gozu‘s method for seven years now, to take the tones, grooves and, particularly in the vocals of guitarist Marc “Gaff” Gaffney, the soul of heavy rock and recontextualize them with a force of impact born of heavy metal. As the Boston four-piece offer the nine songs and 48 minutes of Remedy as their first studio LP since 2018’s Equilibrium (review here), they not only welcome drummer Seth Botos to the lineup alongside Gaffney, lead guitarist Doug Sherman and bassist Joe Grotto, but they reaffirm and refine the aesthetic stance they initially took on Equilibrium‘s predecessor, 2016’s Revival (review here).
That record, issued in a stopover through Ripple Music before they were picked up by Metal Blade imprint Blacklight Media, first united Gozu with producer Dean Baltulonis at Wild Arctic Studios in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. None of their work before that — 2013’s The Fury of a Patient Man (review here), 2010’s Locust Season (discussed here; review here), or their 2008 self-titled demo — had the same purposeful, directed punch. Make no mistake, Gozu always hit hard, but rounded edges turned into sharp corners right around the middle of the last decade and they’ve been riding those crisp orange lines ever since. Their collaboration with Baltulonis — who has produced records for Primitive Weapons, Sick of it All, Hatebreed, and it’s safe to say is no stranger to the aurally aggro — is part of what lets them so quickly establish themselves on Remedy. They are as sure in their method of delivery as they are in their songwriting, and they’re not wrong about either one.
But of course, there’s more to any Gozu record than just the shove, though it’s somewhat comforting to know that five years and two drummers after their last record the shove is still ready to go. Second cut “CLDZ” takes its name from a cannabis-infused beverage company part-owned by Baltulonis, so one imagines the recording was a good time, but it’s also the longest inclusion save for nine-minute closer “The Handler,” its two halves split by a solo united by a richly layered melodic chorus from Gaffney, a casually shredded solo from Sherman providing the transition as Grotto — who would be a secret weapon were it not for the consuming thickness of the bass running alongside the guitars; not a new aspect of Gozu‘s sound but universally effective — blends intricacy and fluidity to complement the riffy core of the material, there and in the dare-you-rockers-to-mosh procession of the subsequent “Rambo 2” and side B’s penultimate “Ash,” the latter a declarative stomp that can’t help but feel like Boston hardcore.
Between those two songs, a forward sprint like the three-minute “Joe Don Baker” or even the verses of “Tom Cruise Control,” the spirit of Remedy is charged and metallic, but that isn’t all it is. In doubling as the first single, “Tom Cruise Control” and its standout chorus did more than hint at a career performance vocally from Gaffney, and the rest of the album bears that out in striking fashion. A scream sneaks into the end of the verse in “Rambo 2.” The effects-laced layers backing “The Magnificent Muraco” add to the confident and soulful presence of the can-sing-lead-singerism happening at the forefront — that Gaffney holds it down live while playing rhythm guitar is not a minor achievement, either — which gives over to falsetto soon enough. And amid the open strumming of “The Handler,” which crushes with repetition in a way that reminds of The Fury of a Patient Man capper “The Ceaseless Thunder of Surf,” Gaffney goes there again as the lumbering nod moves through its middle.
Even in the dual-personality of “Ben Gazzara Loves No One,” with a penetrating build of feedback at its start, a thud of kickdrum and a dust-covered tone of riff that reminds of Author & Punisher more than Fu Manchu that turns very much toward boogie after three minutes into its total five and a half, Gaffney is there to emphasize the dance after Sherman‘s solo reorients the song to its second movement. One could just as easily cite the way “Ash” opens up from its crunch in the verse and sweeps through its own chorus, or any number of other examples in the material to make the point. The overarching message there applies to the band as a whole as well. Some 15 years past their first release, Gozu sound comfortable in their skin as a group, like they know who they are and what they want their sound to be, but have not given up pushing themselves creatively, or — as comes across in the brash start of “CLDZ,” the intensity of “Joe Don Baker” imagining what would happen if ‘thrash rock’ existed, or the largesse in the rollout of “Ben Gazzara Loves No One” — physically.
Part of that might be due to the shift in dynamic that comes from bringing in Botos on drums, but Gozu have been delving further into kinetic surge for the last decade or more. And while Remedy can be read as the deepest they’ve gone in that regard, it might just as easily be noted for the hypnotic melody and nod at the end of “CLDZ” or the dreamy fade in “Rambo 2,” “The Magnificent Muraco,” or even the ‘ooh-aah’ stretch in “Ben Gazzara Loves No One,” or the consuming atmospherics of the last stretch in “The Handler.” The truth is that Gozu are a more complex group than can be summarized through one person, performance, or song, and Remedy is a reminder of the greater strength that arises as the sum of its parts.
It is not a revolution in sound for them, but it is theirs entirely — one does not hear it and mistake it for somebody else — and if they’re offering it as a cure either for modern ills, a statement that the band itself is the cure for the members, or something else related to either the pandemic years or whathaveyou, their catharsis is easy (and fun!) to internalize as a listener. That roll at the end of “The Handler” sure feels like a big exhale, and that’s suitable after some of the clenched-teeth surges that Remedy has presented. If one wants to extrapolate from that to the rest of what surrounds, then the album title makes sense. The song titles, well, that’s always been a thing for Gozu and if you can’t Google the references or don’t care or think the songs are a joke because they’re named that way, maybe you’re the one with the problem. Sorry. If you want to talk about it, I’m available and have been where you are.
For the rest, Gozu‘s steady growth along their charted path should serve as comfort enough, let alone the character of these songs, which can be propulsive or meditative without losing either their expressive intent or underlying structures and are drawn together as a group through tone without leaning on that same tone as a stylistic crutch. They are, in concept and execution, all in. On Remedy, Gozu come across like they’re holding nothing back, like each song, each part, each contribution is there for a reason in service to the LP as a whole and the individual pieces, and like they’re putting everything they have into these tracks and recordings. That’s not really anything new for them either, but five records deep, the dedication to the cause feels all the more noteworthy for the lack of stagnation that accompanies.
Arriving as veterans, they use their fifth album to reaffirm the progression they’ve taken on over their time and to demonstrate clearly their commitment to it as an ongoing factor in their makeup. That Remedy is an utter triumph for them in this should be no surprise to those who’ve heard them before, and for new listeners, these songs should serve as prime immersion. All these guys do, have ever done, is kick ass. Kudos to them on the consistency here.
Posted in Whathaveyou on May 16th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Probably fair to call the debut full-length from Benthic Realm ‘awaited.’ To wit, their second and most recent EP was 2018’s We Will Not Bow (review here), and as I feel like I’ve reminded mostly myself in the last week multiple times, that was five years ago. Staggering. In any case, if you believe in ‘due,’ they’re due for a debut album. For the Worcester, Massachusetts, trio with guitarist/vocalist Krista Van Guilder and bassist/keyboardist Maureen Murphy — both ex-Second Grave, among others — sharing drummer Dan Blomquist with Conclave, it’s time.
They have two release shows booked for a few days subsequent to the July 1 release — that’s a Saturday and the shows are the next Thursday and Friday; I’ve never been to Starlite, but Ralph’s Rock Diner was rad last time I was fortunate enough to check (probably also five years) — and no doubt more to come after that, but the thing to look forward to for most of those reading this and me as well is Vessel itself, for which you can see a teaser below. It’s a self-release and an hour long, so a 2LP would be a lot to ask for of a band DIY’ing it on their first long-player, but I suppose nothing’s impossible. They’ve got CDs for folks like me who enjoy tunes on smaller plastic discs in the meantime. I know I’m not the only one out there. And if I am, give me your collection. Ha.
Info follows:
Benthic Realm has set July 1, 2023 as the official release date for their first full length album. Clocking in at just over 1 hour, the release will be available digitally though all of the usual channels. Physical CDs packaged in an 8-panel digipack will be available to order online and at all shows.
Formed in July of 2016 in Worcester, MA, USA, Benthic Realm conjures melodies and crushing rhythms from the dark abyss. The trio consists of former Second Grave members Krista Van Guilder (WarHorse, Lucubro) on vocals/guitar and Maureen Murphy on bass, and Dan Blomquist (Conclave) on drums. Brian Banfield (The Scimitar, Blood Stone Sacrifice) was a founding member but handed over drum duties to Dan in September 2017 and continued to perform locally in the New England area.
The band was actively writing for their third release and had been scheduled to return to the studio July 2020, until the Covid pandemic changed their plans. The group resumed regular rehearsals in the summer of 2021 and spent the next year writing and rehearsing. October of 2022 the band headed back into the recording studio to record their first full-length album, to be released in early summer 2023. The band is actively booking shows in support of the new album.
Posted in Whathaveyou on May 3rd, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Cheers to Blood Lightning and Ripple Music on joining forces for the greater good of heavy rock and roll. The Boston-based pretty-gosh-darn-super-group came about in 2020 and thus far have posted two singles in “The Dying Starts” (posted here) and “Blankets” (posted here), and they’ll release their helmed-by-Benny–Grotto (who’s also pretty super) self-titled debut this October.
So who’s in the band? Check out Jim Healey and Doug Sherman, respectively known for their work in We’re All Gonna Die (also Black Thai, Set Fire, Shatner, solo, etc.) and Gozu (whose new record stands among 2023’s best and is out this month) collaborating. That’s a marquee match up from Boston in itself, but neither drummer J.R. Roach (Sam Black Church) nor bassist Bob Maloney (Worshipper) have anything to prove in my mind. It’s a band of dudes from other bands. You’ve been down this road before. But, in addition to the aggro vibes they’ve shown this far, there’s not a doubt in my mind they’ve got some tricks up their collective sleeve for the LP, and I’ll be completely honest and tell you that any album Healey is belting it out on is one I want to hear. Seriously. Dude could be singing over a 40-minute sample of the T running late and make it sound good. Throw Sherman‘s shred on there, Maloney‘s bass, Roach‘s drums, and, well, you get the idea.
More to come, is what I’m saying.
Ripple posted the following on socials:
Ripple is extremely proud to welcome to our family, the Boston supergroup, Blood Lightning!
Formed in December 2020, Blood Lightning brings together the talents of Jim Healey (We’re All Gonna Die), vocals; Doug Sherman (GOZU), guitar; Bob Maloney (Worshipper), bass; and J.R. Roach (Sam Black Church).
During Covid lockdown. The guys decided to riff around remotely, eventually coming together to flesh out their ideas into songs.
Blood Lightning was formed with one thing in mind: Get back to the real essence of heavy metal. That’s it. Nothing fancy. No pretense. No subgenres to fit into. Just badass, straightforward, hard-hitting heavy metal with a nod to old school NWOBHM, with a bunch of contemporary firepower.
Award-winning producer/engineer, Benny Grotto (Rolling Stones, Aerosmith) and mastering legend, Alan Douches (Motörhead, Mastodon, High On Fire), recorded/mixed and mastered their self-titled debut.
Album release, vinyl, CD, and digital hitting you worldwide this October
Please give them a big waverider welcome!
BLOOD LIGHTNING are: Jim Healey – Vocals Doug Sherman – Guitars Bob Maloney – Bass J.R. Roach – Drums
Posted in Reviews on April 11th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
If you missed yesterday, be advised, it’s not too late. If you miss today, be advised as well that tomorrow’s not too late. One of the things I enjoy most about the Quarterly Review is that it puts the lie to the idea that everything on the internet has to be so fucking immediate. Like if you didn’t hear some release two days before it actually came out, somehow a week, a month, a year later, you’ve irreparably missed it.
That isn’t true in the slightest, and if you want proof, I’m behind on shit ALL. THE. TIME. and nine times out of 10, it just doesn’t matter. I’ll grant that plenty of music is urgent and being in that moment when something really cool is released can be super-exciting — not taking away from that — but hell’s bells, you can sit for the rest of your life and still find cool shit you’ve never heard that was released half a century ago, let alone in January. My advice is calm down and enjoy the tunes; and yes, I’m absolutely speaking to myself as much as to you.
Quarterly Review #11-20:
Siena Root, Revelation
What might be their eighth LP, depending on what counts as what, Revelation is the second from Siena Root to feature vocalist/organist Zubaida Solid up front alongside seemingly-now-lone guitarist Johan Borgström (also vocals) and the consistent foundation provided by the rhythm section of bassist Sam Riffer (also some vocals) and drummer Love “Billy” Forsberg. Speaking a bit to their own history, the long-running Swedish classic heavy rockers inject a bit of sitar (by Stian Grimstad) and hand-percussion into “Leaving the City,” but the 11-song/46-minute offering is defined in no small part by a bluesy feel, and Solid‘s vocal performance brings that aspect to “Leaving the City” as well, even if the sonic focus for Siena Root is more about classic prog and blues rock of hooky inclusions like the organ-and-guitar grooving opener “Coincidence and Fate” and the gently funky “Fighting Gravity,” or even the touch of folkish jazz in “Winter Solstice,” though the sitar does return on side B’s “Madukhauns” ahead of the organ/vocal showcase closer “Keeper of the Flame,” which calls back to the earlier “Dalecarlia Stroll” with a melancholy Deep Purple could never quite master and a swinging payoff that serves as just one final way in which Siena Root once more demonstrate they are pure class in terms of execution.
The latest and (again) maybe-eighth full-length to arrive within the last 10 years from Monterrey, Mexico’s Los Mundos, Eco del Universo is an immersive dreamboat of mellow psychedelia, with just enough rock to not be pure drift on a song like “Hanna,” but still an element of shoegaze to bring the cool kids on board. Effects gracefully channel-swap alongside languid vocals (in Spanish, duh) with a melodicism that feels casual but is not unconsidered either in that song or the later “Rocas,” which meets Western-tinged fuzz with a combination of voices from bassist/keyboardist Luis Ángel Martínez, guitarist/synthesist/sitarist Alejandro Elizondo and/or drummer Ricardo Antúnez as the band is completed by guitarist/keyboardist/sitarist Raúl González. Yes, they have two sitarists; they need both, as well as all the keyboards, and the modular synth, and the rest of it. All of it. Because no matter what arrangement elements are put to use in the material, the songs on Eco del Universo just seem to absorb it all into one fluid approach, and if by the time the hum-drone and maybe-gong in the first minute of opener “Las Venas del Cielo” unfolds into the gently moody and gorgeous ’60s-psych pop that follows you don’t agree, go back and try again. Space temples, music engines in the quirky pop bounce of “Gente del Espacio,” the shape of air defined amid semi-krautrock experimentalism in “La Forma del Aire”; esta es la música para los lugares más allá. Vamos todos.
Well, you see, sometimes there’s a global pandemic and even the most thoroughly-banded of artists starts thinking about a solo record. Not to make light of either the plague or the decision or the result experience from “Minnesota” Pete Campbell (drummer of Pentagram, Place of Skulls, In~Graved, Vulgarri, Gygax, Sixty Watt Shaman for a hot minute, guitarist of The Mighty Nimbus, etc.), but he kind of left himself open to it with putting “Lockdown Blues” and the generally personal nature of the songs on, Me, Myself and I, his first solo album in a career of more than two decades. The nine-song/46-minute riffy splurge is filled with love songs seemingly directed at family in pieces like “Lightbringer,” “You’re My Angel,” the eight-minute “Swimming in Layla’s Hair,” the two-minute “Uryah vs. Elmo,” so humanity and humility are part of the general vibe along with the semi-Southern grooves, easy-rolling heavy blues swing, acoustic/electric blend in the four-minute purposeful sans-singing meander of “Midnight Dreamin’,” and so on. Five of the nine inclusions feature Campbell on vocals, and are mixed for atmosphere in such a way as to make me believe he doesn’t think much of himself as a singer — there’s some yarl, but he’s better than he gives himself credit for on both the more uptempo and brash “Starlight” and the mellow-Dimebag-style “Whispers of Autumn,” which closes — but there’s a feeling-it-out sensibility to the tracks that only makes the gratitude being expressed (either lyrically or not) come through as more sincere. Heck man, do another.
Based in the Netherlands, North Sea Noise Collective — sometimes also written as Northsea Noise Collective — includes vocals for the first time amid the experimental ambient drones of the four pieces on the self-released Roudons, which are reinterpretations of Frisian rockers Reboelje, weirdo-everythingist Arnold de Boer and doom legends Saint Vitus. The latter, a take on the signature piece “Born Too Late” re-titled “Dit Doarp” (‘this village’ in English), is loosely recognizable in its progression, but North Sea Noise Collective deep-dives into the elasticity of music, stretching limits of where a song begins and ends conceptually. Modular synth hums, ebbs and flows throughout “Wat moatte wy dwaan as wy gjin jild hawwe,” which follows opener “Skepper fan de skepper” and immerses further in open spaces crafted through minimalist sonic architecture, the vocals chanting like paeans to the songs themselves. It should probably go without saying that Roudons isn’t going to resonate with all listeners in the same way, but universal accessibility is pretty clearly low on the album’s priority list, and for as dug-in as Roudons is, that’s right where it should be.
Philly merchants Sins of Magnus offer their fourth album in the 12 songs/48 minutes of Secrets of the Cosmos, and while said secrets may or may not actually be included in the record’s not-insignificant span, I’ll say that I’ve yet to find the level of volume that’s too loud for the record to take. And maybe that’s the big secret after all. In any case, the three-piece of bassist/vocalist Eric Early, guitarist/vocalist Rich Sutcliffe and drummer Sean Young tap classic heavy rock vibes and aim them on a straight-line road to riffy push. There’s room for some atmosphere and guest vocal spots on the punkier closing pair “Mother Knows Best” and “Is Anybody There?” but the grooves up front are more laid back and chunkier-style, where “Not as Advertised,” “Workhorse,” “Let’s Play a Game” and “No Sanctuary” likewise get punkier, contrasting that metal stretch in “Stoking the Flames” earlier on In any case, they’re more unpretentious than they are anything else, and that suits just fine since there’s more than enough ‘changing it up’ happening around the core heavy riffs and mean-muggin’ vibes. It’s not the most elaborate production ever put to tape, but the punker back half of the record is more effective for that, and they get their point across anyhow.
Steeped in the arcane traditions of classic doom metal, Nine Altars emerge from the UK with their three-song/33-minute debut full-length, The Eternal Penance, leading with the title-track’s 13-minute metal-of-eld rollout as drummer/vocalist Kat Gillham (also Thronehammer, Lucifer’s Chalice, Enshroudment, etc.), guitarists Charlie Wesley (also also Enshroudment, Lucifer’s Chalice) and Nicolete Burbach and bassist Jamie Thomas roll with distinction into “The Fragility of Existence” (11:58), which starts reasonably slow and then makes that seem fast by comparison before picking up the pace again in the final third ahead of the more trad-NWOBHM idolatry of “Salvation Lost” (8:27). Any way they go, they’re speaking to metal born no later than 1984, and somehow for a band on their first record with two songs north of 11 minutes, they don’t come across as overly indulgent, instead borrowing what elements they want from what came before them and applying them to their longform works with fluidity of purpose and confident melodicism, Gillham‘s vocal command vital to the execution despite largely following the guitar, which of course is also straight out of the classic metal playbook. Horns, fists, whatever. Raise ’em high in the name of howling all-doom.
Fuzzblasting their way out of Salem, Massachusetts, with an initial public offering of six cuts that one might legitimately call “high octane” and not feel like a complete tool, The Freqs are a relatively new presence in the Boston/adjacent heavy underground, but they keep kicking ass like this and someone’s gonna notice. Hell, I’m sure someone has. They’re in and out in 27 minutes, so Poachers is an EP, but if it was a debut album, it’d be one of the best I’ve heard in this busy first half of 2023. Fine. So it goes on a different list. The get-off-your-ass-and-move effect of “Powetrippin'” remains the same, and even in the quiet outset of the subsequent “Asphalt Rivers,” it’s plain the breakout is coming, which, satisfyingly, it does. “Sludge Rats” decelerates some, certainly compared to opener “Poacher Gets the Tusk,” but is proportionately huge-sounding in making that tradeoff, especially near the end, and “Chase Fire, Caught Smoke” rips itself open ahead of the more aggressive punches thrown in the finale “Witch,” all swagger and impact and frenetic energy as it is. Fucking a. They end noisy and crowd-chanting, leaving one wanting both a first-LP and to see this band live, which as far as debut EPs go is most likely mission accomplished. It’s a burner. Don’t skip out on it because they didn’t name the band something more generic-stoner.
Doomer nod, proto-metallic duggery and post-NWOBHM flourish come together with heavy rock tonality and groove throughout Lord Mountain‘s bullshit-free recorded-in-2020/2021 debut album, issued through King Volume as the follow-up to a likewise-righteous-but-there-was-less-of-it 2016 self-titled EP (review here) and other odds and ends. Like a West Coast Magic Circle, they’ve got their pagan altars built and their generals out witchfinding, but the production is bright in Pat Moore‘s snare cutting through the guitars of Jesse Swanson (also vocals and primary songwriting) and Sean Serrano, and Andy Chism‘s bass, working against trad-metal cliché, is very much in the mix figuratively, literally, and thankfully. The chugs and winding of “The Last Crossing” flow smoothly into the mourning solo in the song’s second half, and the doom they proffer in “Serpent Temple” and the ultra-Dio Sabbath concluding title-track just might make you a believer if you weren’t one. It’s a record you probably didn’t know you were waiting for, and all the more so when you realize “The Oath” is “Four Horsemen”/”Mechanix” played slower. Awesome.
Opener “The Air at Night Smells Different” digs into HEX-era Earth‘s melancholic Americana instrumentalism and threat-underscored grayscale, but “Fog Works,” which follows, turns that around as guitarist Florian Karg moves to keys and dares to add both progressivism and melody to coincide with that existential downtrodding. Fellow guitarist Philipp Seiler, standup-bassist Stephan Leeb and drummer Marian Waibl complete the four-piece, and Impending Bloom is their first long-player as Black Air. They ultimately keep that post-Earth spirit in the seven-minute title-track, but sneak in a more active stretch after four minutes in, not so much paying off a build — that’s still to come in “A New-Found Calm” — = as reminding there’s life in the wide spaces being conjured. The penultimate “The Language of Rocks and Roots” emphasizes soul in the guitar’s swelling and receding volume, while closer “Array of Lights,” even in its heaviest part, seems to rest more comfortably on its bassline. In establishing a style, the Vienna-based outfit come through as familiar at least on a superficial listen, but there’s budding individuality in these songs, and so their debut might just be a herald of blossoming to come.
Oh yeah, you over it? You tired of the bongslaught of six or seven dozen megasludge bands out there with ‘bong’ in their name trying to outdo each other in cannabinoid content on Bandcamp every week? Fine. I don’t care. You go be too cool. I’ll pop on “Ganjalf” and follow the smoke to oh wait what was I saying again? Fuck it. With some Dune worked in for good measure, Adelaide, Australia’s Bong Coffin build a sludge for the blacklands on “Worthy of Mordor” and shy away not a bit from the more caustic end their genre to slash through their largesse of riff like the raw blade of an uruk-hai shredding some unsuspecting villager who doesn’t even realize the evil overtaking the land. They move a bit on “Messiah” and “Shaitan” and threaten a similar shove in “Nightmare,” but it’s the gonna-read-Lovecraft-when-done-with-Tolkien screams and crow-call rasp of “Träskkungen” that gets the prize on Bong Coffin‘s debut for me, so radly wretched and sunless as it is. Extreme stoner? Caustic sludge? The doom of mellows harshed? You call it whatever fucking genre you want — or better, don’t, with your too-cool ass — and I’ll march to the obsidian temple (that riff is about my pace these days) to break my skull open and bleed out the remnants of my brain on that ancient stone.
