Posted in Whathaveyou on October 30th, 2025 by JJ Koczan
Looks like a banger of a way to lose time for an entire weekend. Inhale the mountain air till you pass out, wheel yourself into Denver’s Bar 404 and set up shop for three days of curated heavy local and farflung (though not the band Farflung), find your bliss and if you’re lucky you might even remember it afterward. The first-ever HUFR Fest — gonna be more like a HUGR Fest by the time everybody’s done giving hugs — will launch with a bang. Looking for something without the same headliners you’ve seen a hundred times? Here’s an event digging into the underground for real and finding something to offer apart from the did-you-know-High-on-Fire-won-a-Grammy norm. I don’t even know Vashon Seed, but I’m keen to find out.
Okay I took two seconds and googled. Roots in Sub Pop pre-grunge Seattle noise, heavy punker approach, one record out in Sept. 2020 (hell of a time for a debut), find it below. See how easy and fun it can be to learn new things?
Six bands Friday, six bands Saturday, five on Sunday. Deer Creek seem to have dropped off, which is unfortunate, but there’s still nary a clunker to be found. If you go to this one, I hope it’s as much of a blast as it looks:
HUFR FEST: Mile High Riffs
April 24–26, 2026 | Bar 404, Denver, CO
The Heavy Underground Farm Report proudly presents HUFR FEST: Mile High Riffs, a three-day celebration of Colorado’s heaviest underground sounds. From stoner rock and doom to psychedelic and desert grooves, this festival unites local legends and national rising acts for a weekend of riffs, community, and fuzz-soaked vibes.
LINEUP Friday, April 24 Vashon Seed Hibernaut Violet Rising Lord Velvet Sonolith Lost Relics
Saturday, April 25 Psalm Momovudu Godzillionaire Luna Sol Blue Heron Cobranoid
Sunday, April 26 Nomestomper Black Sunrise Messiahvore Shadow of Jupiter Peach Street Revival
Upstart doom rockers Psalm present their second EP, In Darkness… Have Mercy, tomorrow, July 15. Based in Las Vegas (and maybe also California?), the three-piece of bassist/vocalist Jon “Fro” Torres, guitarist Carlos Martinez and drummer Ian Henneforth (also Sonolith, ex-Spiritual Shepherd, etc.) have restructured somewhat since their first short offering, 2021’s Blessed Are the Cursed, as this encouraging 19-minute/four-song release both introduces Henneforth to the band and slides Torres from guitar to bass, with Martinez new on guitar. That’s a two-thirds-new trio, just to do the math real quick, and it puts Torres in the position of being the lone founding member of an outfit who got together just five years ago, in the year of our pestilence, 2020.
There’s two ways that can go. Either Psalm will have figured out their lineup dynamic and In Darkness… Have Mercy will be like a second debut EP setting them on a forward course together into an unknown-but-that-much-more-doomed-for-their-presence future, or the lineup will keep changing, as happens sometimes for myriad reasons. For what it’s worth, listening to the second-half takeoff of “Messiah” on this EP, Psalm are nothing if not solidified. They unveil a hint of nascent melodic complexity in the opening “Misery,” and “Messiah” trades between loud and quiet in a first half underscored by the bassline before the riff kicks back in for the chorus. It’s classic stuff; doom wrought by doomers, traditional but with a generational shift in perspective as the younger Psalm adopt the methods of genre and begin to make them their own.
I’ll spare you the poignant musing about Black Sabbath retiring even as their influence spreads through up and coming bands 50-someodd years later — you know it already and how much wax poetry do you need in your life? — and out of respect to Psalm and the work they do here, making their lumbering tones move in the penultimate “Value the Suffering” while taking a risk on some oldschool-style double-kick behind a Troubled riff and so on, they feel more in league with Los Angeles Early Moods in their young-band-taking-on-an-old-sound realization. It’s not just the ‘fro. There’s a gnash in the vocals as “Blessed Are the Cursed” — which appeared as the title-track on the first EP, but has been re-recorded by the band as they are now — and if you told me “Messiah” was playing off a buried-vocal Candlemassian flow early on, I wouldn’t argue the point. The fact that you can hear multiple ideas playing out in the songs is a strength.
Through the character of their tones, the detailing of the mix that puts the vocals low to make the guitars sound that much bigger, and the dug-in-but-not-staid energy they bring to doom, plus the fact that they’re obviously still growing as a band and figuring out who they want to be — which is reasonable for a band who don’t have a full-length out yet, or, I suppose one who has 15 — Psalm give an exciting glimpse at their doom in the process of its shaping. It’s nice to feel good about an act with potential, and Psalm make it easy to root for them and want them to do well, because the end result of the songs is demonstrative of the care put into making them. You can hear commitment to ideology in the material, but it’s an exploration of its own farthest reaches too, and speaks to the band actively pushing themselves forward in craft.
One looks forward to a first album from Psalm, but don’t let the fact that it’s only four tracks keep you from taking on In Darkness… Have Mercy in the moment of its arrival, i.e. the present. This is a band with something to offer in doom, and they’re just starting to manifest that in their work. It may be they sound all the more fresh for the shiny-new incarnation of the band, but screw it, I’ll take it either way as they immediately lock in the nod of “Misery” at the outset for the next return and herald the mark they hope to leave on the style. Chug and immersion, as part of a sound that bridges generations and will hopefully continue to flourish.
In Darkness… HaveMercy is out tomorrow. Stream it in full on the player below, followed by a few words from the band, and please enjoy:
After four years and a couple of grueling months of preparations, it is finally time to welcome Psalm’s new EP ‘In Darkness…Have Mercy’. These tracks are nothing short of heavy and are ever-evolving, and with this EP we’d like to introduce a new lineup to take you through a soul- crushing journey that you won’t forget. With Carlos Martinez on guitar and Ian Henneforth on drums, we aim to conjure a full wall of sound made of earth- shaking guitars, low metallic bass, and atomic, pounding drums.
Psalm – In Darkness… Have Mercy EP out July 15th, 2025 Self-released (Digital) CD, Cassette, & Vinyl coming soon Las Vegas, Nevada
Psalm is: Jon “Fro” Torres – Vocals/Bass Carlos Martinez – Guitar Ian Henneforth – Drums
Posted in Whathaveyou on June 16th, 2025 by JJ Koczan
This press release is my first exposure to Las Vegas’ Psalm, who got their start in plaguetimes and are self-releasing their second extended-player, In Darkness… Have Mercy, next month, and my presumption is that’s because I suck at this, but here we are. There’s no audio from the new release yet, but the band’s prescient-of-horrors-to-come 2024 single “Ruin” is streaming below, and I dig the blend of rawness and traditionalism. And you may recognize drummer Ian Henneforth from Sonolith, or his prior outfit, Spiritual Shepherd. I even got to see that band one time in 2014. Six lifetimes ago.
In the spirit of the press release and the music, I’ll make it as straightforward as I can: here’s a thing to keep an eye out for. Info came from the PR wire:
Las Vegas doom power trio Psalm’s sophomore EP “In Darkness… Have Mercy” out July 15th
Psalm is an up-and-coming Las Vegas doom metal band formed in 2020, during the Covid pandemic in the depths of the San Fernando Valley. Evolving from the old school doom of yore into the modern age, the three-piece concoct a vicious blend of heavy, groovy, and a bit of speed to craft the Psalm sound.
Recently having the opportunity of being featured in Weedian’s 2024 “Trip to California (Doom Edition)” compilation, and recruiting new members Carlos Martinez and Ian Henneforth (Sonolith), a bright future for Psalm glimmers from the shadows. Heralding the new era is sophomore EP “In Darkness… Have Mercy”, to be released July 15th.
“After four years and a couple of grueling months of preparations, it is finally time to welcome Psalm’s new EP ‘In Darkness… Have Mercy’. These tracks are nothing short of heavy and are ever-evolving, and with this EP we’d like to introduce a new lineup to take you through a soul-crushing journey that you won’t forget. With Carlos Martinez on guitar and Ian Henneforth on drums, we aim to conjure a full wall of sound made of earth- shaking guitars, low metallic bass, and atomic, pounding drums. As part of gearing up to lay the tracks down, we had a very adrenaline-driven show opening for Pentagram at the famous Whisky a Go Go to get the juices flowing for what was next to come. The show’s energy and vibes carried into our recording, and thus ‘In Darkness… Have Mercy’ was born.”
Psalm – In Darkness… Have Mercy EP out July 15th, 2025 Self-released (Digital) CD, Cassette, & Vinyl coming soon Las Vegas, Nevada FFO: Trouble, Solitude Aeternus, Pantera, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath
Tracklist: 1. MISERY 2. MESSIAH 3. VALUE THE SUFFERING 4. BLESSED ARE THE CURSED
Psalm is: Jon “Fro” Torres – Vocals/Bass Carlos Martinez – Guitar Ian Henneforth – Drums
