The story of Black Moon Cult‘s debut album, Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig), is one of forward potential. There’s no getting away from it. Then the trio of guitarist/vocalist/synthesist Kaleb M. Riser, bassist/vocalist/keyboardist Kevin Lewis and drummer/vocalist Jeff Vandebussche — since expanded to a four-piece with synthesist/thereminist/vocalist Logan Mais — the band built buzz over the last year-plus with eeked-out singles and teaser-of-things-to-come touring, introducing themselves to listeners in-person as well as in the more ethereal digital sphere.

Self-produced with recording by S. Daley at The Mohawk Studio and a mix and master by Tony Reed (Mos Generator, etc.) at HeavyHead, the six-track/38-minute offering canonizes “Supernova” and “Stoned Ape” while bringing their audience into a broader narrative world; with respect, I’ll just cut and paste the quote from Riser on their Bandcamp: “Ophidian Future is thematically influenced by Lovecraftian cosmic horror, ancient Chinese mythology, and the biblical story of the Garden of Eden, where God takes away the serpent’s limbs and casts him out of paradise. All of this comes together to create the story of a serpent/reptilian race/their desire to ‘take back the garden’.” Fair enough. But the story of the album is still the band’s potential.

Part of it is that the songs are so gosh darn encompassing. Each of the two intended sides ends with an eight-plus-minute capper — “Ophidian Future” (8:06) and “Stoned Ape” (8:42), respectively — and even after “Moonchild Ritual” and “Supernova” at the outset, the scope of “Ophidian Future” puts decades of influences together in a span that accounts for Om and Death in vocal cadence alone with riffs that mine High on Fire-y intensity from groove wrought in the spirit of The Sword and Fu Manchu, yes in just that one song. “Stoned Ape” calls out to early ’90s Sleep on the way to drawing a line between Hawkwind and trad-thrash, resolving in a swirling Iron Maiden-style solo making way for the last hook, but is in no way out of place with “Ophidian Future” or the penultimate “At the Mountains of Madness” which brings a sludgy crunch to a chorus somewhere between melodic and shouting, metal at its root but bigger in tone and nod.

It’s one of several moments which, on its own and out of the context of Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig) as a whole, might seem representative of the course of Black Moon Cult, but again, that’s where the potential of the band is the real story of the record, because you could say the same thing about the keyboardy meditative prog and doomgaze tonal wash of “Sunfish,” with a screamo build in its midsection because why not, or the forward shove and crash, twist, boogie and bombast that start the record in “Moonchild Ritual.” ‘Black Moon Cult‘s style’ becomes a more complex notion as each successive track adds to the reach of the entirety.

Psychedelic progressive stoner metal? Maybe. Cosmic prog and heavy rock? Yeah, that’s part of it, too, I guess. Being tough to pin down suits the songwriting of Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig), which is both genre-aware and more concerned with telling its story than residing in one section of the umbrella or another at any given point, and no doubt the malleability that lets them shift from the push of “Supernova” into the more stately psychedelic flow in the initial buildup of “Ophidian Future,” will continue to serve them well as they move on from here. Likewise the nastier bite of the shouts/screams on “Moonchild Ritual,” offsetting the space-rock shuffle before (and after) the break-to-keyboard.

At their most fervent and fuzzed, as on the lead track, Black Moon Cult might remind of Nebula‘s semi-controlled chaos in terms of tone and production, but the leads of “Supernova” are plotted in such a way as to lock step with the keys later on, and are plotted in their movement rather than solo lines thrown overtop. This sense of balance is rare for a debut, but speaks to the self-awareness in Black Moon Cult‘s take. They don’t sound like a band of indie rockers who just happened to click on their fuzz pedals and ‘oops what’s stoner rock.’ They know of what they riff, and part of what Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig) does well is speak to genre and specifically the more open-minded end of a heavy underground listenership that’s hungry for fresh ideas building on familiar elements.

That that’s so much of what happens across Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig), well, it sure speaks to the potential of the band, huh? Coherence of sound, style and form are rare enough for a young act the first time out, but there is still a sense of Black Moon Cult feeling their way through a process of discovering who they are. Part of that is evident in the skate-rock-meets-Chuck–Schuldiner-style-prog of “Ophidian Future,” but the album is more multifaceted than a phrase like “modern stoner melting pot” would want to convey, never mind the significant personality aspect in the material with Riser and Lewis sharing vocals, and double-never-mind the doomed atmosphere of “Sunfish” amid all that ’90s chug.

That their aesthetic isn’t a settled issue — that they came into this LP with a strong idea of what they wanted these songs to be but fewer expectations of who they are in terms of approach — becomes a strength of this material, and while it’s true that the patterns they’re setting forth across “Ophidian Future” and “At the Mountains of Madness” could and otherwise might be maintained and developed across the years to come, it’s also possible that everything they do from now on will be a response to how much they hated this album’s sound. You never really know until you get there. Which — wait for it — is how the story of Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig) becomes about how much potential there is in Black Moon Cult, and how clearly one can hear the ambition driving their work already coming to fruition in it. A sure bet for inclusion among 2025’s best debut albums.

Black Moon Cult, Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig) (2025)

Black Moon Cult, “Stoned Ape” official video

Black Moon Cult website

Black Moon Cult on Bandcamp

Black Moon Cult on Instagram

Black Moon Cult on Facebook

Black Doomba Records website

Black Doomba Records Linktr.ee

Black Doomba Records on Bandcamp

Black Doomba Records on Facebook

Certainly I didn’t realize at the time just how formative an experience it would be for me as regards attending music festivals, but I was at Emissions From the Monolith 8 in 2006. I remember being too intimidated to give Greg Barratt, who’ll bring the event back in 2026 after a 19-year absence, a CD-R demo from my band at the time. The Nyabinghi is gone, but Westside Bowl will host the reincarnation, set for Oct. 8-11 in Youngstown, Ohio. I wanna go. I don’t even know who’s playing, but I wanna go. I hope Rebreather open.

The initial announcement for Emissions From the Monolith 10 follows here, as per the PR wire. There are no bands listed yet, which is fair enough with it being a year away. In any case, did I mention I wanna go? Road trip style. You should come too.

Here’s what they had to say about it:

Emissions from the Monolith Returns: Emissions 10 Comes Home to Youngstown

October 8-11, 2026 • Westside Bowl, Youngstown, Ohio

Youngstown, OH — After a long silence, Emissions from the Monolith is rising again. October 8-11, 2026, Emissions from the Monolith 10 will reclaim its roots at Westside Bowl in Youngstown, Ohio, reviving a festival legacy that first took form in 1999 and ran through 2007, spotlighting metal, doom, sludge, stoner, and heavy underground music.

Emissions 10 is more than a concert weekend; it’s a homecoming. Expect a mix of legendary favorites from the original era alongside new faces pushing the boundaries, all sharing the same stage. Over four nights, we’ll gather the community we started building 25 years ago, reconnecting fans, bands, and friends as one family under heavy riffs.

HIGHLIGHTS & FEATURES

• Performances by multiple fan-favorite legacy acts
• Newer bands carrying forward the spirit of underground heaviness
• A tightly curated, fan-first atmosphere with limited ticket sales to eliminate festival burnout

WHY NOW?

We believe the time is right to bring Emissions back. The force that made the festival legendary, built on raw passion, deep connection, and fearless heaviness, still resonates in this community. Emissions 10 aims to bridge the old and the new, honoring the roots while embracing where underground music stands today.

TICKETS & INFO

Festival passes will go on sale soon via the official site: emissionsfromthemonolith.com.

More lineup and scheduling announcements will roll out in the coming months.

ABOUT EMISSIONS FROM THE MONOLITH

First launched around 1999 and active through 2007, Emissions from the Monolith held a vital place in the U.S. underground heavy music scene. Its influence continues to be felt in how bands connect with audiences, underground festival culture, and heavy-riffed community building.

https://emissionsfromthemonolith.com/
https://www.instagram.com/emissionsfromthemonolith
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556435942498

Colour Haze, Live at Emissions From the Monolith 8, May 27, 2006

Sneaking it in on a Friday? What is this madness? Fair question. The wretched truth is that in slating this Quarterly Review — welcome, by the way — I ran into a scheduling conflict with a stream I booked for Oct. 14. I wasn’t sure how to resolve the logistics there, and 10 reviews plus a full-album stream is more than I have brainpower to write in a day, even if I do nothing else, so think of this as like the soft-launch grand opening of the Fall 2025 Quarterly Review. I’ll go all through next week and then wrap up on Monday the 15th. 70 total releases covered, 10 per day, during that time.

It’s gonna be a lot, and I’m sure as always happens there will be other things I’ll fall behind on, but to be perfectly honest with you, I could really, really stand to force myself to sit down and engage the hardcore escapism of getting lost in 70 records one after the next, so I think I might actually enjoy this this time through. Famous last words, but last time was one of my favorite QRs ever, so I’ve got momentum on my side. I’ll keep you posted as we go, and while I’m here, have a great weekend. We’ll pick up with more on Monday.

Quarterly Review #1-10:

Faetooth, Labyrinthine

While being terrible for most everything else, 2025 is a good year to go dark. Faetooth do so — darker, anyhow — with their sophomore album, Labyrinthine, and find a place where doomgaze and sludgier, scream-topped distortion can meet without seeming any more incongruous than the Los Angeles trio want it them to be. The record runs a substantial 10 songs/55 minutes, and songs like “Iron Gate,” “Hole,” “White Noise,” and “Eviscerate” derive as much of their atmosphere from the band scorching the ground beneath them as from the more subdued, murky and melodic stretches. With these elements put together in a cohesive whole sound, Labyrinthine is less an aesthetic revolution than a (welcome) generational refresh to doom and sludge, with the band set on a path of progression toward an increasingly individualized stylistic take. Idiot dudes will talk shit because they’re women. Don’t listen to idiot dudes. Listen to riffs. Faetooth have plenty to get you started.

Faetooth Linktr.ee

The Flenser website

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Earthbong, Bring Your Lungs

The mighty Kiel, Germany, trio — oops, they just became a four-piece; heads up — recorded Bring Your Lungs this past April while on their first-ever tour of Australia. It’s a three-song, about-35-minute live-in-studio collection, and they’ll reportedly press it to vinyl in no small part so they have copies to take with them when they return down under in 2027. I guess it went well. Bring Your Lungs leaves little question as to why as the band put themselves in line among the heaviest sons of Sleep in the suitably-half-formed oeuvre of bong metal. Even the shortest of the three, the middle cut “Wax” (7:38) lays tonal waste(d), while “Fathead” (11:17) and “Goddamn High” (15:59) bark and crush and caveman plod, hitting into a slowdown and a speedup, respectively, that convey both the plan underlying the mire and the willfully, gleefully insurmountable nature of that mire itself. They’d like to teach the world to stone. Can’t help but think it’d be better for it.

Earthbong on Bandcamp

Black Farm Records store

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Nuclear Dudes, Truth Paste

We may not have circa-2005 Genghis Tron to manifest the in-brain chaos of modern overwhelm, but Jon Weisnewski (Sandrider, Akimbo) stands ready with the extremist shenanigans industrial grind of Nuclear Dudes to pick up the slack. Following the punishing radness of 2023’s Boss Blades (review here), Weisnewski, his keyboards, a buttload of samples and guitar here collaborate with vocalist Brandon Nakamura to manifest a cacophonous stew that almost gets away with tapping into “Welcome to the Jungle” on album opener “Napalm Life” (get it?) by making it almost completely unrecognizable. Further punishment is dealt with semiautomatic fervor on “Concussion Protocol” and “Juggalos for Congress,” but the 11-track/23-minute entirety of Nuclear Dudes‘ second full-length comes across like an intentional brainema, so approach with caution and know that, if it feels right, you’re not alone.

Nuclear Dudes on Bandcamp

Nuclear Dudes on Instagram

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Void Sinker, Echoes From the Deep

A quick glance at the social media for Italian stoner-droner heretofore solo-project Void Sinker, and one finds that sole denizen Guglielmo Allegro is currently searching for a bassist and a drummer to fill out the lineup. Unquestionably this would be a significant change to the proceedings on the five-song/69-minute Echoes From the Deep, which plunges frontal-lobe-first into undulating waveforms and its own distorted expanse. A clear progression of notes can be heard later in closer “Andromeda” (16:21) and “Hollow” is minimalist to the point of being barely there for most of its nine minutes, but obviously a certain kind of meditative monolith is constructed from lead cut “Cetus” onward. There are no shallow dives here, and one can’t help but wonder what Allegro might have in mind for filling out these arrangements with a rhythm section. Will Void Sinker adopt more straightforward stoner-doom riffing, or is the intention to try to make this kind of drone actually convey a sense of movement? Your guess is as good as mine, but for now, the trance induced is noteworthy.

Void Sinker Linktr.ee

Void Sinker on Instagram

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Hebi Katana, Imperfection

Raw oldschool doom with a punker edge permeates Hebi Katana‘s first album for Ripple Music and fourth overall, Imperfection. And the title becomes somewhat ironic, because while the implication is they’re talking about a warts-‘n’-all sound perhaps in reference to the production rawness of the seven-track/35-minute outing highlighted by cuts like “Dead Horse Requiem” and “Blood Spirit Rising,” which shuffle-pushes into and out of a pastoral midsection, as well as the finale “Yume wa Kareno,” it just about perfectly suits the material itself, and the band bring vigor to the deceptively catchy “Praise the Shadows” that, while dark in atmosphere, speaks to a dynamic that’s developed in their sound over time. That is to say, they might be a ‘new band’ to listeners outside the band’s native Japan, but Imperfection conveys their experience in craft and in its chemistry. If it wasn’t recorded live, close enough. They’re not reshaping genre, but there is perspective at work, to be sure.

Hebi Katana website

Ripple Music website

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Khan, That Fair and Warlike Form/Return to Dust

That Fair and Warlike Form/Return to Dust, a two-songer full-length with each consuming about 23 minutes of a vinyl side, sure feels like a landmark, but that seems to happen when Melbourne trio Khan are involved. Here they set a sprawl matched by few in heavy progressive psychedelia as the three-piece of Josh Bills (vocals, guitar, keyboard, recording, mixing, mastering), Will Homan (bass) and Beau Heffernan (drums) enact a linear build across the massive soundscape of “That Fair and Warlike Form,” as sure in their purpose as they are defiant of the expectation that these extended pieces might just be jams. Rather, that opener and “Return to Dust” are structured pieces, and resonate emotionally as well as immerse the listener in their clear-eyed breadth. “Return to Dust” is a level of triumph not every act achieves, and “That Fair and Warlike Form” is no less impactful throughout its procession. One of the best of 2025, but less about the fleeting moment than providing a place to dwell long-term. That is to say, it’s a record that has the potential for its own cult, never mind the wider following amassed by the band.

Khan Linktr.ee

Khan website

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Sarkh, Heretical Bastard

The first Sarkh LP, Helios (review here), arrived through Worst Bassist Records in 2023 and was a purposeful adventure across genre lines, taking elements of post-rock, heavy riffing, and even aspects of black metal and more extreme ideas into a context that became its own. The shimmer at the outset of “Helios” that starts their second full-length, Heretical Bastard, speaks immediately of communion, and as the German instrumentalists have set about refining and coalescing their sound, ambience remains central to what they do regardless of how outwardly heavy a given part gets, which, in tracks like “Kanagawa” and “Glazial,” is pretty gosh darn heavy, never mind the chug that pays off “Zyklon” or the wash that culminates 11-minute capper “Cape Wrath,” though admittedly, the latter is more about push that heft. It’s movement either way, and Heretical Bastard‘s greatest heresy might just be how convincingly invisible it makes the (yes, imaginary) lines that divide one style from another. A band on their own path, forging their own sound. If you can’t respect that, it’s your loss.

Sarkh on Bandcamp

Worst Bassist Records website

Echodelick Records on Bandcamp

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Professor Emeritus, A Land Long Gone

Eight years on from their well-received 2017 debut, Take Me to the Gallows, Chicagoan classic doom metallers Professor Emeritus reach pointedly into the epic with A Land Long Gone, their second record. The band’s traditionalism of form means there’s something inherently familiar about the proceedings, and certainly they’re not the only ones with an affinity for ’80s metal of various stripes these days, but in addition to being distinguished by the forward-mixed vocals of Esteban Julian Pena, the sheer weight of “Pragmatic Occlusion” and “Defeater” and the crescendo of “Kalopsia Caves” sets well alongside the graceful flow of “Zosimos” or the later, partly-acoustic “Hubris,” portraying the dynamic and sense of character brought into the material. Like Philly’s Crypt Sermon, they’re not pretending the intervening decades didn’t happen — you wouldn’t call A Land Long Gone retro, I mean — but their collective heart clearly bleeds for the classics just the same; Trouble, Candlemass, Iron Maiden. If that’s your speed, their blend of chug and soar should hit just right.

Professor Emeritus website

No Remorse Records website

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Florist, Adrift

Florist know what they’re here for, and as they push through the let’s-start-with-the-universe’s-frequency “432Hz” into the modern, cavernous, riffage and nod of “Another Moon,” my brain sings a hearty fuck yes. They pack 29 minutes of rad into Adrift, their sophomore, six-songer LP, and while they’re not shy about lumber in “Grow” and the closer “Adrift (Part B),” that’s only one end of a style that’s able to move with marked fluidity across a range of tempos that, with a vibrant production, fullness of tone and hard-hit drums shoving it all, make for a refreshing take on what are unrepentantly familiar ideas. That is to say, there’s no pretense in Florist. Volume worship, riff worship, whatever you want to call it, it matters so little when the band are bashing away at “Out of Space” and hell’s bells it’s actually fun. Like, real life fun. The kind you might have with friends in a crowded room with the band on stage killing it through a set likewise heavy and intense but unashamed of the good time it’s having. Also giving, as one might a gift.

Florist website

Threat Collection Records website

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Church of Hed, Under Blue Ridge Skies

Ohio’s Paul Williams has released three ‘audio travelogues’ of the Blue Ridge Highway, with the Moog-only Under Blue Ridge Skies preceded directly by A Blue Ridge Spaceway and Our Grandfather the Mountain earlier this year. Maybe you have, and if so, that’s awesome, but to my knowledge I’ve never been on the Blue Ridge Highway, so I can’t necessarily speak to how the droney “Ghost Over a Pointed Top” or the kraut-style blips and bloops of “See Mount Mitchell” correlate to the experience of driving it. I’ll soak my ignorance in the keyboardy melancholia of “A Carolina Elegy,” which closes with evocations of past storms and forebodes of those still to come. Likewise, I’m not sure what the title “Abbott’s Fantasia” is a reference to, if anything at all, but you don’t get much more dug in than entire compositions played out on various layered, hyper-specific, probably-vintage-and-expensive-to-repair synthesizers, and it’s a kind of nerdery for which I’m very much on board.

Church of Hed website

Church of Hed on Facebook

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First, and (probably not) most crucially, kudos to Laura Dolan on being able to ride a horse. Ohio heavy rock and rollers Electric Citizen are between tours supporting their 2025 album, EC4 (review here), and the new video for “Static Vision” comes as they’ve also added three December dates in the Pacific Northwest to the proceedings, including a spot at Rain City Doom Fest in Seattle on Dec. 12. It’s been that kind of year for the Cincinnati five-piece. One thing into the next into the next. Certainly since the album release.

Because I’m a lucky boy, I got to see Electric Citizen in my hometown this summer (review here), and I’ll tell you outright that my gratitude at their having included the likes of Morris Plains, New Jersey, on their routing has not dulled with in the two months since. Probably not a career-highlight for the band, just to be honest, but holy crap, I was happy to see them.

They’ll be in many more-populated burgs come next month. Tour resumes Oct. 10 and runs through Oct. 25, then the three shows in December. The PR wire brought the “Static Vision” clip (I’m not sure what’s going on story-wise, but it suits the atmosphere of the song) and the tour dates. To wit:

70s hard rock specialists ELECTRIC CITIZEN share “Static Vision” video off new album on Heavy Psych Sounds; US fall tour announced!

Ohio-based 70s heavy and psych rock purveyors ELECTRIC CITIZEN have released a new video taken from their fourth studio album “EC4”, released this summer on Heavy Psych Sounds. The band recently announced a full US tour in support of the album, including shows alongside High On Fire, Kadabra and Earth Tongue.

“Static Vision” is a descent into screen-fueled catatonia and bucolic escapism. Director Jane Elizabeth Slater channels the early ’90s with plenty of VHS grit, postmodern decor, and visuals inspired by Neil Krug’s cover art for the band’s newest album. Edited and shot using a mix of vintage camcorder and DSLR by Slater herself, “Static Vision” is a wistful homage to an era before digital dependence.

Electric Citizen US fall shows:
Oct 10: The Ship – Kansas City, MO
Oct 11: HQ – Denver, CO
Oct 12: The DLC – Salt Lake City, UT
Oct 13: Shrine Social Club – Boise, ID
Oct 14: Cafe Colonial – Sacramento, CA
Oct 15: The Ritz – San Jose, CA
Oct 16: Kilowatt Bar – San Fran, CA *
Oct 17: Permanent Records Roadhouse – Los Angeles, CA
Oct 18: Jacumba Breakdown, Jacumba Hot Springs, CA + *
Oct 19: Yucca Tap Room – Tempe, AZ
Oct 20: Sister – Albuquerque, NM
Oct 22: Resonant Head – Oklahoma City, OK
Oct 23: Reverb Lounge – Omaha, NE
Oct 24: Reggies – Chicago, IL
Oct 25: The Pyramid Scheme – Grand Rapids, MI
Dec 12: Rain City Doom Fest – Seattle, WA °
Dec 13: Kingsway – Vancouver, BC °
Dec 14: Mississippi Studios – Portland, OR °
+With High on Fire
°With Kadabra
*No Earth Tongue

Seven years after their last release “Helltown”, Electric Citizen returns with their fourth album “EC4” — a powerful statement of renewal and raw energy. Written by Ross Dolan with contributions from the full band, the album was meticulously crafted over several years and recorded with Mike Montgomery and John Hoffman at Candyland Studio in Dayton, KY. It was mixed by Collin Dupuis (Lana Del Rey, The Black Keys) in Detroit and mastered by JJ Golden (Ty Segall, Calexico) at Golden Mastering in California. The album art was created by Neil Krug (Lana Del Rey, Tame Impala, Weyes Blood), who the band worked with for their first album “Sateen”.

ELECTRIC CITIZEN is
Ross Dolan – Guitar
Laura Dolan – Vocals
Nick Vogelpohl – Bass
Nate Wagner – Drums
Owen Lee – Keyboards

www.electriccitizenband.com
www.instagram.com/electriccitizenband
www.facebook.com/electriccitizen

heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com
www.heavypsychsounds.com
https://www.facebook.com/HEAVYPSYCHSOUNDS/
https://www.instagram.com/heavypsychsounds_records/

Electric Citizen, “Static Vision”

Electric Citizen, EC4 (2025)

Psychedelic sludge rockers Black Moon Cult have a video up for “Stoned Ape,” the first single taken from their upcoming debut album, Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig), which is out Sept. 4 on Black Doomba Records. The song, the West Coast tour dates, the release date — none of that is new information if you’ve been keeping up, but the clip is, and it’s a fun one, so here we are.

I haven’t heard this record yet, but the Toledo, Ohio-based outfit continue to intrigue as they move closer to the release. Aesthetically, you wouldn’t call “Stoned Ape” a revolution in concept or execution, but the communion with genre is brought to bear with perspective and an individual lean. Spliced in among performance footage is a narrative of a Bigfoot trying to get to the show, and there’s a disco mushroom, and good times ensue. Right now, looking for anything more than that seems like overkill.

Obviously, charm is part of the appeal here, but that’s a classic element as well. The band have already done the East Coast for shows, so the West Coast tour could possibly be it for the year, though they wouldn’t be out of line to do a string of specifically Midwestern dates either, considering that’s where they’re located. I guess the bottom line for me is it feels good to look forward to a first album from a new band, and whether the thing turns out to be a landmark or not, in wretched and horrifying times, seeing positivity in anything in the near or far future is not something to take for granted. It ain’t stopping genocide abroad or enacting regime change at home, but a nine-minute escape from 2025 is welcome, as is the reminder that not everything is terrible. Don’t fret, reality will still be there when it’s over.

In a spirit of optimism, then, please enjoy:

Black Moon Cult, “Stoned Ape” official video

Black Moon Cult Drops Official Music Video for “Stoned Ape”

Psychedelic doom metal conjurers Black Moon Cult , signed to Black Doomba Records , have just released the official music video for their sprawling new single “Stoned Ape” , offering fans a hypnotic visual journey ahead of their debut full-length album, Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig) — out September 4th, 2025 .

Now, the newly unveiled video brings the song’s evolutionary themes to life, blending retro-futuristic visuals, cosmic dread, and slow-burning performance shots that immerse viewers in the band’s doom-laden dimension.

Tour Dates:
9/10 – The Crypt – Denver, CO
9/11 – The Echoes – Albuquerque, NM
9/12 – The Blooze Bar – Phoenix, AZ
9/13 – The Bancroft – San Diego, CA
9/14 – The Tiki Bar – Costa Mesa, CA
9/15 – The Redwood – Los Angeles, CA
9/16 – Thee Parkside – San Francisco, CA

BLACK MOON CULT IS:
Kaleb Riser: Guitar/ Vocals
Kevin Lewis: Bass/ Vocals
Logan Mais: Synth/Theremin/Vocals
Jeff Vandebussche: Drums/Vocals

Black Moon Cult website

Black Moon Cult on Bandcamp

Black Moon Cult on Instagram

Black Moon Cult on Facebook

Black Doomba Records website

Black Doomba Records Linktr.ee

Black Doomba Records on Bandcamp

Black Doomba Records on Facebook

With eight-plus sprawling, dug in minutes of heavy psychedelic rocking, “Stoned Ape” bodes remarkably well for Black Moon Cult‘s impending debut album, Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig), which is out Sept. 4 through Black Doomba Records. Preorders aren’t open yet, I assume because scheduling, but the anticipation around this first Black Moon Cult offering is high, and the band have already set out on tour to herald its arrival and, by extension, their own on the US heavy underground circuit.

“Stoned Ape” makes a convincing argument for why you should be looking forward to the record to come, and it’s on Bandcamp, so you’ll find the embed at the bottom of this post. You may recall, previously, the only way to listen was on Spotify, which remains awful as a practical listening option in addition to supporting the insane right wing fascist military industrial complex. This announcement follows up on the album announce last week, and keep an eye for more as I’ll hope to have a review up for this one before it’s out.

Until then, then:

BLACK MOON CULT UNLEASH NEW SINGLE “STONED APE” — A MIND-MELTING HEAVY PSYCH DESCENT INTO COSMIC CHAOS

🔥 New Album Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig) Out September 4, 2025 via Black Doomba Records | Bandcamp Pre-Sale Begins August 15th 🔥

Listen Now: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/blackmooncult1/stoned-ape

Bandcamp: https://blackmooncult3.bandcamp.com/album/stoned-ape

Toledo, OH – Prepare for a thunderous plunge into the primordial mind as Black Moon Cult release their latest single “Stoned Ape” , now streaming worldwide on all major platforms.

This heavy psychedelic anthem rips open the doors of perception with its fuzz-drenched riffs, trance-like grooves, and searing cosmic energy. Inspired by the controversial Stoned Ape Theory —the idea that psychedelic mushrooms accelerated early human consciousness— “Stoned Ape” soundtracks an evolutionary mind trip through rhythmic chaos and cosmic revelation.

“Stoned Ape” is about that spark—the moment our ancestors stepped outside the food chain and into abstract thought. It’s not just about evolution, it’s about awakening,” says frontman Kaleb Riser .

Black Moon Cult fuse elements of doom, heavy psych, prog, and desert rock , delivering a signature sound steeped in the lineage of Black Sabbath , Captain Beyond , Nebula , and Hawkwind , yet visionary in scope and scale.

The single offers a preview of the band’s debut full-length album , Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig) , arriving September 4, 2025 via Black Doomba Records , with an exclusive Bandcamp pre-sale launching August 15, 2025 .

The album—an epic tale woven with Lovecraftian cosmic horror, ancient myth, and biblical revenge—promises to be a hallucinogenic journey for fans of The Sword , Mos Generator , and early Pink Floyd .

Produced by Black Moon Cult , recorded at The Mohawk Studio by S. Daley , and mixed/mastered by Tony Reed (Saint Vitus, Mos Generator), the album delivers an immersive sonic landscape of massive riffs and swirling atmospheres.

Since forming in 2021, the band— Kaleb Riser (vocals, guitars, synth), Kevin Lewis (bass, synth), Jeff Vandebussche (drums), and Logan Mais (synth, theremin)—has built a powerful live reputation, including a standout performance at Maryland Doom Fest 2024 , and shared stages with The Obsessed , Today is the Day , and The Atomic Bitchwax .

Black Moon Cult’s “Stoned Ape” is out now. Plug in and let the evolution begin.

ALBUM INFO
Title: Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig)
Release Date: September 4, 2025
Pre-Sale: August 15, 2025 (Bandcamp Exclusive)
Label: Black Doomba Records
Genre: Heavy Psych / Doom / Psychedelic Rock
FFO: Nebula, The Sword, Captain Beyond

Tour Dates:
9/10 – The Crypt – Denver, CO
9/11 – The Echoes – Albuquerque, NM
9/12 – The Blooze Bar – Phoenix, AZ
9/13 – The Bancroft – San Diego, CA
9/14 – The Tiki Bar – Costa Mesa, CA
9/15 – The Redwood – Los Angeles, CA
9/16 – Thee Parkside – San Francisco, CA

BLACK MOON CULT IS:
Kaleb Riser: Guitar/ Vocals
Kevin Lewis: Bass/ Vocals
Logan Mais: Synth/Theremin/Vocals
Jeff Vandebussche: Drums/Vocals

https://www.facebook.com/PsychedelicBlackMoonCult/
https://www.instagram.com/blackmooncult
https://open.spotify.com/artist/5D5iLfunYONp4hSAvAmn5z
https://psychedelicblackmooncult.com/

https://www.blackdoomba.com/
https://blackdoombarecords.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/blackdoombarecords/
https://linktr.ee/BlackDoomba

Black Moon Cult, “Stoned Ape”

Even as Ohio’s Electric Citizen set out on their East Coast tour supporting their new album, EC4 (review here), the band have announced the follow-up West Coast jaunt set to take place in October. Note as well that they’ll bring Earth Tongue, who I’m pretty sure moved to Germany from New Zealand, where they got their start, along for the ride, presumably for that extra push of sweetly satanic good-time heavy. It’s Earth Tongue‘s first time in the country. Don’t embarrass yourself by not being there.

In the meantime, I’m stupid stoked to see Electric Citizen this week the way a lot of other people experience shows, i.e. without a two-hour commute. They play Autodidact Brewing on Thursday in my hometown of Morris Plains, New Jersey (actually Parsippany, but we use Morris Plains’ post office), and will have due boogie fortification from the support of Maryland classicists Magick Potion for the evening. Can’t wait.

New dates, and the old ones, I suppose, come from socials:

Tour continues in October with a killer band from New Zealand @earthtongue on @intheredrecords – Their first time in the USA.

Oct 10: The Ship – Kansas City, MO
Oct 11: HQ – Denver, CO
Oct 12: The DLC – Salt Lake City, UT
Oct 13: Shrine Social Club – Boise, ID
Oct 14: TBA – Sacramento, CA
Oct 15: The Ritz – San Jose, CA
Oct 16: Kilowatt Bar – San Fran, CA *
Oct 17: Permanent Records Roadhouse – Los Angeles, CA
Oct 18: Jacumba Breakdown – Jacumba Hot Springs, CA + *
Oct 19: Yucca Tap Room – Tempe, AZ
Oct 20: Sister – Albuquerque, NM
Oct 22: Resonant Head – Oklahoma City, OK
Oct 23: Reverb Lounge – Omaha, NE
Oct 24: Reggies – Chicago, IL
Oct 25: The Pyramid Scheme – Grand Rapids, MI
+With High on Fire *No Earth Tongue

ELECTRIC CITIZEN remaining summer dates::
July 15 Philadelphia, PA @ Milkboy
July 16 Hamden, CT @ Space Ballroom
July 17 Morris Plains, NJ @ Autodidact
July 18 Brooklyn, NY @ TV Eye
July 19 Easthampton, MA @ Marigold Theater
July 20 Baltimore, MD @ Metro
July 21 Raleigh, NC @ Pour House
July 22 Charleston, SC @ Lo-Fi Brewing
July 23 Atlanta, GA @ 529
July 24 Knoxville, TN @ Open Chord
July 25 Nashville, TN @ The ’58
July 26 Louisville, KY @ Portal

Seven years after their last release “Helltown”, Electric Citizen returns with their fourth album “EC4” — a powerful statement of renewal and raw energy. Written by Ross Dolan with contributions from the full band, the album was meticulously crafted over several years and recorded with Mike Montgomery and John Hoffman at Candyland Studio in Dayton, KY. It was mixed by Collin Dupuis (Lana Del Rey, The Black Keys) in Detroit and mastered by JJ Golden (Ty Segall, Calexico) at Golden Mastering in California. The album art was created by Neil Krug (Lana Del Rey, Tame Impala, Weyes Blood), who the band worked with for their first album “Sateen”.

ELECTRIC CITIZEN is
Ross Dolan – Guitar
Laura Dolan – Vocals
Nick Vogelpohl – Bass
Nate Wagner – Drums
Owen Lee – Keyboards

www.electriccitizenband.com
www.instagram.com/electriccitizenband
www.facebook.com/electriccitizen

heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com
www.heavypsychsounds.com
https://www.facebook.com/HEAVYPSYCHSOUNDS/
https://www.instagram.com/heavypsychsounds_records/

Electric Citizen, “Static Vision”

Electric Citizen, EC4 (2025)

Following up on their West Coast tour announcement a couple weeks back, Ohio-based heavy rock upstarts Black Moon Cult have unveiled the cover art for their impending first record, to be released in the coming months (i.e., no exact date listed yet) through Black Doomba Records. Preorders start next month for what I’m assuming is a September release, which would be loosely timed with the tour, and one assumes the band would have copies on the road to sell, and so on.

The cover art is by Mike Stuart of Thunderbird Divine, and below you’ll find that along with the announcement of the album from Black Doomba, as posted on socials. Looking forward to this one:

BLACK MOON CULT – OPHIDIAN FUTURE (THE CHILDREN OF YIG) – ART AND TITLE REVEAL!

Black Moon Cult’s debut album is entitled “Ophidian Future (The Children of Yig)” 🐍🐍🐍🐍

Kaleb Riser speaks of the album: “Ophidian Future is thematically influenced by Lovecraftian cosmic horror, ancient Chinese mythology, and the biblical story of the Garden of Eden, where God takes away the serpent’s limbs and casts him out of paradise. All of this comes together to create the story of a serpent/reptilian race/their desire to “take back the garden”

Some lyrics convey these themes: “Leave me my teeth and my tongue and my neck, the rest I will steal in time,” “Ophidian Future, Serpentine masses align, back to the garden, back to the life that was mine.”

READ ON about the art 👇

The cover art is by Mike Stuart, drummer of Thunderbird Divine, and here is Mike with a few words to explain it 🤘 “I can’t express how awesome it has been to work with the dudes in Black Moon Cult. They had a clear vision of what they wanted, yet gave me space to put my own flavor on things. Having mostly done work for my own bands, most recently Thunderbird Divine on Black Doomba Records, it was nice to step out of my comfort zone and I really appreciate them giving me a chance to be a part of their journey.”

At Black Doomba Records we feel the same, proud to be able to put out this special album by these extraordinary musicians.

Wondering what’s next? Continue following this band’s journey here. By the way, the Pre-Sale begins in August. More about that later, and more to come from Black Moon Cult.

Tour Dates:
9/10 – The Crypt – Denver, CO
9/11 – The Echoes – Albuquerque, NM
9/12 – The Blooze Bar – Phoenix, AZ
9/13 – The Bancroft – San Diego, CA
9/14 – The Tiki Bar – Costa Mesa, CA
9/15 – The Redwood – Los Angeles, CA
9/16 – Thee Parkside – San Francisco, CA

BLACK MOON CULT IS:
Kaleb Riser: Guitar/ Vocals
Kevin Lewis: Bass/ Vocals
Logan Mais: Synth/Theremin/Vocals
Jeff Vandebussche: Drums/Vocals

https://www.facebook.com/PsychedelicBlackMoonCult/
https://www.instagram.com/blackmooncult
https://open.spotify.com/artist/5D5iLfunYONp4hSAvAmn5z
https://psychedelicblackmooncult.com/

https://www.blackdoomba.com/
https://blackdoombarecords.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/blackdoombarecords/
https://linktr.ee/BlackDoomba