Retrofuture Caveman is the best album title I’ve heard in a hot minute. It has the honor of adorning the fifth album from Romanian instrumentalists Methadone Skies, which is set to release May 7 on their own Haywire Records label as the follow-up to 2019’s Different Layers of Fear (discussed here). I haven’t heard the record yet, but I’ve managed to make my way through the startlingly cinematic video below for “Infected by Friendship,” and soothing vibe of the track even in its more surging moments is only encouraging in terms of making me look forward to more. Some heavy post-rock in there, but hell, I’ll take that. More please.

Album announcement came down the PR wire:

Psych ‘n’ Doom Post-Rockers METHADONE SKIES Reveal Album Details And Brand New Music Video!

Retrofuture Caveman coming on May 7th!

Romanian psychedelic doom and post-rock collective METHADONE SKIES has announced the details of their upcoming, fifth studio album, entitled Retrofuture Caveman, which is slated for a released on May 7, 2021.

Following their highly acclaimed, 2019- album Different Layers of Fear, the instrumental quartet did not waste any time and started working on their new record during the pandemic. METHADONE SKIES, who formed in 2009, has released 4 full length records so far; each LP shares its own musical direction, often leaning into stoner, post-rock and doom metal territories. Never fearing any boundaries, every album highlights the sum of the band’s various influences and constant sonic exploration.

Retrofuture Caveman dives even deeper into the post-rock and doom metal worlds. These contrasting styles are ultimately blended with progressive elements, a stoner rock touch and psychedelic spheres. While this eclectic mix flows in a perfect balance, Retrofuture Caveman will easily become the band’s most ambitious and mature work to date. But let the music speak for itself, as METHADONE SKIES has just premiered a brand new music video for their first album single, “Infected By Friendship”! The track is one of the most straight-forward and uplifting songs you will find on their new record, gradually exploding into a massive wall of sound. Its surreal music video was created by the band’s drummer, Flavius Retea, and Alexandra Dragu, watch the clip right here.

“We usually pick a heavy song as an album teaser, but this time we tried something different, ” the band comments. “We really dug the song right from the beginning of the creation process and it feels more soothing than many others in our catalog. The title obviously references the pandemic, yet we wanted to give the term a positive twist. Music became even more important for people in these complicated times, so we hope it acts as a sonic getaway from the listener’s daily routine.”

Retrofuture Caveman was recorded in Timisoara, Romania, at Consonance Studio by Edmond Karban, Cristian Popescu and Andrei Jumuga (all of them members of DorDeDuh and Sunset in the 12th House), and was mixed and mastered by James Plotkin. Additional keyboard layers were added by Marius Muntean (The Thirteenth Sun, Black Water). The album will be released on May 7th as LP Gatefold, CD, Digital formats and a limited Cassette Tape edition through METHADONE SKIES’ own imprint, Haywire Records. The artwork was created by Mihai Manescu (aka Obsidian Nibs).

Album Tracklist:
1. Retrofuture Caveman
2. Infected by Friendship
3. The Enabler
4. Western Luv ‘67
5. When the Sleeper Awakens

METHADONE SKIES is:
Alexandru Wehry – Guitar
Casian Stanciu – Guitar, E-Bow
Mihai Guta – Bass
Flavius Retea – Drums, Percussion, Keyboards

https://methadoneskies.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/MethadoneSkies
https://soundcloud.com/methadone-skies
https://www.instagram.com/methadoneskies

Methadone Skies, “Infected by Friendship” official video

Lest you thought the multinational explosion of death-doom that 2020 has wrought was over, well, maybe there were more to include in this year but they were just too slow so we’ll have to carry over to 2021. Though their style strikes as decidedly Finnish in its initial impression, Mourners hail due south, from Romania, and will make their debut Feb. 5 through Personal Records with Act I: Tragedies. They’re streaming what would seem to be the post-intro opener of the record now, and if you want to get a feel for who they are as a band, a 10-minute cut should probably tell you a lot of what you need to know, what with the gurgling growls, low-toned miseries and so on. Shades of Skepticism, Funeral, and so on, as one could only hope for a band so obviously bent toward death.

Art, PR wire info and the track follow. Immersive balm for lost souls:

MOURNERS set release date for PERSONAL RECORDS debut, reveal first track – features members of EYE OF SOLITUDE, CLOUDS

On February 5th, 2021, PERSONAL RECORDS is proud to present MOURNERS’ highly anticipated debut album, Act I: Tragedies. PERSONAL RECORDS is the new label imprint of MAJESTIC DOWNFALL mainman Jacobo Córdova, and will be distributed by CHAOS RECORDS.

Hailing from Romania, MOURNERS arise from the ashes of funeral doom legends Eye of Solitude. In many ways, MOURNERS is a continuation of Eye of Solitude’s legacy – incredibly heavy and slow, tense atmospheres, and utterly gut-wrenching guitars – but in other ways, the band is its own entity entirely.

Indeed, after a decade of being scene kings, Eye of Solitude give way to MOURNERS, who seek an even-more-uncompromising sound with their debut album, Act I: Tragedies. At once even heavier and more atmospheric MOURNERS’ first full-length seeks extremes of expression, dragging the listener down into a deep well of solitude (of course!) and smothering impossibly dense layers upon it so that there’s no escape…ever.

But, likewise crucial to MOURNERS’ background is the highly acclaimed Clouds: both Daniel N and Mike D, MOURNERS’ central duo, play in that ongoing atmospheric doom-death formation. Not surprisingly, the resulting sound of Act I: Tragedies is paradigmatic FUNERAL DOOM, and proudly so, but also with considerable flavor from classic doom-death, indeed giving MOURNERS an even-more-crushing aspect.

It is not hyperbole to say that the impeccably monikered MOURNERS take the wider funeral doom / doom-death genre to a whole new level whilst (proudly) staying within its boundaries. Graced with suitably somber cover art courtesy of Gogo Melone, Act I: Tragedies starts the year on the highest of highs – by taking the listener to the lowest of lows.

Tracklisting for Mourners’ Act I: Tragedies
1. Apparitions [2:11]
2. The Way Of Darkness [10:30]
3. Souls Breathing Nothingness [10:21]
4. Lost [2:32]
5. Ansu Enthroned [9:03]
6. Forms Of Delusion [8:35]
7. Journey In Fear [7:31]

mournersfuneral.bandcamp.com
www.personal-records.com
personal-records.bandcamp.com
www.facebook.com/personalrecords666
Instagram.com/personalrecords666

Mourners, “The Way of Darkness”

Different Layers of Fear is the fourth full-length from Romanian atmospheric sludge/heavy rockers Methadone Skies. Issued through their own Haywire Records — an offshoot of Haywire Booking — the album brings the four-piece to an entirely different scale of work than they’ve gone before, following-up 2016’s Colosseus (discussed here) by pushing outward across a 71-minute 2LP that’s simply a new echelon for them. With the returning four-piece of guitarists Wehry and Casi, bassist Mihai and drummer Retea, the band embrace a psychedelic atmosphere constructed with clear ambient intent, melding together elements from post-metal and lysergic flow in a way that leaves one wondering how they got to be so separate in the first place. The seven-song instrumental offering brings a weighted tonal presence used for effect in moments like the last-couple-minutes crescendo in the 16-minute closer “Manos” — as in, “the hands of fate?” — and the lumbering earlier cut “Contra,” which is the shortest on the record at 6:10. Elsewhere, from opener “Where Were You When We Were into the Void?” through the extended duo of “God Help Us All” (12:55) and “Focus” (11:59), they balance that heft with an airy wash of effects to create a thoughtful and ethereal wholeness that’s engrossing even as it continues to dig deeper and deeper into itself.

Jams? Maybe. At least in some measure rooted in jams, but maybe Methadone Skies are more experimental than jammy. Not in the kitchen-sink sense of they’re-actually-banging-on-a-kitchen-sink — arrangements are largely straightforward despite added keys throughout from Marius Muntean — but in that their pieces seem to have an overall direction in mind, such as when “God Help Us All” follows its hypnotically repeating guitar line into an oblivion of noise wash, or when “Focus” turns from its sprawling fuzz into an uptempo post-rock progression in its second half. Some structure. Some master plan at work. “Contra” might be the most upfront of all the songs on Different Layers of Fear, and it comes paired with “Ol’ Painless,” which drifts through the early going of its linear build in order to provide due payoff ahead of the penultimate “A Glitch in the Sun,” which boasts a guest vocal from Davide Straccione (Zippo, Shores of Null, also head of Spikerot Records), who switches between crooning, whispers and harsher shouts over the 10-minute span of the track, adding to the emotional crux of the melodic guitar floating behind.

And when it comes around, “Manos” is almost an album’s flow unto itself, as Methadone Skies earn the added runtime through a patient execution that brings groove to bear even as it spaces out with intertwining guitar and synth in its earliest movement, right until the crushing central riff — yes, the one that comes back at the end — kicks in and sets up the essential back and forth of the finale. That moment too is well-earned, and though at an hour-plus, Different Layers of Fear is well past the line of what might be considered manageable, even if one has to take it in multiple sittings, it proves to be worth the effort of meeting them on their level.

The video for “Control” was filmed during the making of Different Layers of Fear, and I’m just going to assume that the wavy-vision on the footage captured of the band while they played is not, in fact, an effect put on the video, but actually how it appeared in the studio. Would only make sense. Also keep your eyes out for the dinosaur. He’s in there.

Please enjoy:

Methadone Skies, “Control” official video premiere

Second track off ,,Different Layers Of Fear” set for release May 10th via Haywire Records. Footage filmed during the recording of the album at Consonance Studio in Timisoara, Romania. Music by Methadone Skies. Keyboards and synthesizers were added by Marius Muntean (The Thirteenth Sun, Black Water).

The artwork was illustrated by Mihai Manescu (Obsidian Nibs). Different Layers of Fear was recorded at Consonance Studio in Timisoara in October – November 2018 by Edmond Karban, Cristian Popescu & Andrei Jumuga (all members of dordeduh, Sunset in the 12th House), then mixed and mastered by James Plotkin in December 2018 – January 2019.

Methadone Skies are:
Wehry – Guitar
Casi – Guitar
Mihai – Bass
Retea – Drums

Methadone Skies on Thee Facebooks

Methadone Skies on Bandcamp

Through performance footage and interviews, the new documentary Otherworlds over Éire tells the story of how the 2016 collaboration between Valborg and Bloodway. The German and Romanian outfits had toured together in Ireland on a 2015 run called ‘Horrors of the Unknown’ alongside Perihelion — a documentary by director Gina Sandulescu exists for that as well — so while neither party was unknown to the other the second time around, the three shows in Dublin, Belfast and Limerick allowed the two groups to further explore the bond they shared, which in turn led to their working together on the Karbon Winter EP (discussed here) that was released last summer.

Some of the tales they tell will ring pretty universal to anyone who’s ever been involved in an underground tour. Trouble getting here or there, dudes in your band getting wasted, living in close quarters, playing in dark bars and struggling to exist for the 23 hours in the day that aren’t involved in either loading onto stage, playing, or loading off. While in Ireland, Valborg and Bloodway both took part in the Distortion Festival in Belfast and the Siege of Limerick in that city, but their tales of travel and of the experience of being on tour together, resonate. They talk about it the way bands talk about it — a little guarded for the masses, but honest in relaying both the positive and negative aspects of putting in that time.

And considering they went on to produce Karbon Winter together, the perspectives of these two anti-genre groups feels even more valuable to get in this form. You can check out Otherworlds over Éire in its entirety below and read more about Sandulescu‘s work alongside the artist Costin Chioreanu (also in Bloodway) and how this documentary happened in the PR wire info beneath.

Please enjoy:

Valborg & Bloodway: Otherworlds over Éire documentary

After the German trio Valborg got acquainted with the kindliness of Romanian band Bloodway while they toured in the later one’s host country, the two groups decided to embark on a new journey together and go and play in a realm that was out of their common roads. The aspect which makes these two bands correspond in a captivating way relates to the styles they approach. Although they are extremely different they are both based on a single thing: they cannot be easily categorized. They incorporate death metal, progressive, gothic, doom, black and avant-garde tendencies.

In the fall of 2016 the two bands went in a short tour in Ireland, where they had three gigs each and everything got enveloped in the Halloween atmosphere which was unfolding in one of the most suitable places in terms of historical and cultural matters. The first show took place in Dublin, another one was part of the Distortion Festival in Belfast and the last stop was in Limerick for the Siege of Limerick festival. Here is a short film depicting some of their live experiences and memories. The musicians in both bands question the reasons for touring in foreign places and putting all their emotional and material efforts into such things. This happens in a time which is overcrowded with underground events and what not. The experience itself and the moments spent in the company of close friends or nice strangers, represent the key to everything.

Romanian filmmaker, writer & journalist Gina Sandulescu have followed & filmed the bands in the short tour in Ireland and now have released the documentary named ‘Otherworlds Over Éire.’ Gina Sandulescu filmed in the past videos with Costin Chioreanu from Twilight13media (https://twilight13media.com/) for such bands as AT THE GATES (The Book Of Sand), BLOODWAY (The Transfinite Castaway; Mirror Twins) and WINTERHORDE (Worms of Soul), to name just a few.

Valborg on Thee Facebooks

Bloodway on Thee Facebooks

Karbon Winter on Bandcamp

I’ll rarely say this, but Valborg & Bloodway get my vote for Roadburn 2017. Not that I actually get a vote, but if I’m fortunate enough to go and they’re on the bill, I’ll be there front and center when the German and Romanian collaborative outfit start into the tracks from their Karbon Winter EP, newly issued and positively crushing in its churn. The collaboration was apparently born of a joint tour, but as you can see in the lineup info below, it really is the two bands working together, and it sounds massive enough to come from two outfits, one of which includes acclaimed artist Costin Chioreanu and the other Christian Kolf, also of post-metal experimentalists Owl.

You can check out the title-track of the EP in the video below. See if the cave-echo doesn’t do it for you. It’s sure as shit doing it for me:

VALBORG and BLOODWAY digital EP ‘Karbon Winter’ out now!

After the “Horrors of the Unknown” tour in fall 2015, it was clear to many that the friendship between Bloodway and Valborg was something truly special. In January, while Valborg was in Bucharest for a concert, the two bands met, composed and recorded a song together, “Karbon Winter”. Few months later a second song entitled “Ashes”, was worked out by only the bands guitarists. So, this way, this digital EP got born. This is not a split, this is actually music crated together by both bands!

1. Karbon Winter 06:17
2. Ashes 04:23

This EP is a collaboration between 6 musicians:
Costin Chioreanu – Guitars, Keyboards (Bloodway)
Christian Kolf – Guitars, Vocals (Valborg)
Florian Toyka – Drums (Valborg)
Jan Buckard – Bass (Valborg)
Alex Ghita – Percussion (Bloodway)
Mihai Andrei – Bass (Bloodway)

“Karbon Winter” song credits:
Music by Valborg and Bloodway. Lyrics by Christian Kolf.
Composed and recorded in studio 148, Bucharest, Romania on January 7th, 2016. Recorded, mixed and mastered by Marius Costache at Studio148.

“Ashes” song credits:
Music by Costin Chioreanu & Christian Kolf.
Recorded on June 7th, 2016. Mixed and mastered by Costin Chioreanu.

Cover Art by Costin Chioreanu – www.twilight13media.com

You can listen “Karbon Winter” EP in full or buy it from:

https://bloodway.bandcamp.com/
https://zeitgeister.bandcamp.com/

Valborg & Bloodway, “Karbon Winter”

Romanian heavy rockers Blacksheep called it quits earlier this year but have come roaring back propelled by new drummer Herman Heidel, and they present their first single as this incarnation of the band in the Western-themed “Gunsmoke.” The track can be heard now in a kind of semi-video YouTube stream plugging its release alongside images of guns, smoke, etc. to go with the samples in the song itself from old Western movies, among them Once upon a Time in the West. Blacksheep momentarily tap into their inner Morricone as well, but the bulk of “Gunsmoke” revolves around its burly delivery and catchy hook. The band calls it “death and roll,” but if you’re thinking Entombed, that might be a little more extreme than where Blacksheep end up.

Info and audio:

BLACKSHEEP: ‘Gunsmoke’ single released

After Liviu Gugui, the band leader have decided to disband the band on 15 January 2016, the Romanian death’n’roll band BLACKSHEEP have reunited with a new line-up on 4 May 2016 by adding the drummer Herman Heidel (BREATHELAST, ex-MONARCHY, ex-CADAVRUL, ex-MAGICA) to their ranks.

The current band line-up of the band is:
Liviu Gugui <<L.G. “The Marshal” Shepherd>> – lead vocals, guitar (2012-)
Andrei Costan “The Stallion” – guitar (2014-)
Silviu Ruta “The Kid” – bass (2014-)
Herman Heidel “The Gunslinger” – drums (2016-)

Herman Heidel it is one of the most well known and versatile Romanian drummers. Along the years he have played and released albums with such bands as BREATHELAST (post-hardcore/metalcore), MONARCHY (heavy metal), CADAVRUL (death metal) and MAGICA (melodic/heavy power metal).

After the reunion, the band have released Gunsmoke, the first new single. The song Gunsmoke have been recorded at Big Fat Sound studio (https://www.facebook.com/bigfatproduction) from Bucharest, Romania with Cristian Dunarintu, the guitarist from Shesdead as a sound engineer, while the mix and master was made by the guitarist Andrei Costan “The Stallion”. The video is signed by Costin Chioreanu from Twilight13media (AT THE GATES, AURA NOIR, ARCTURUS, SIGH, VIRUS, Roadburn Festival etc).

https://www.facebook.com/blacksheeproll
https://www.instagram.com/blacksheep_death_n_roll/
http://blacksheeproll.bandcamp.com/releases

Blacksheep, “Gunsmoke”

Romanian instrumental four-piece Methadone Skies will release their new album, Colosseus, April 4 via Haywire Records. It is their third full-length behind 2012’s Enter the Void (review here) and 2014’s Eclectic Electric, and it brings with it five new tracks that feed into a central linear flow across a 39-minute LP span, starting with the push-you-into-the-fray rush of opener “Muscufo” and continuing through the crunching, lumbering finish of closer “Master of Convulsions.” Between those two, on “The Elemental,” the brief, sub-three-minute centerpiece “Ruse” and the title-track, Methadone Skies situate themselves somewhere between heavy rock, psychedelia and progressive doom, playing to one side or the other through songs that are immersive without the need for verses or choruses, and which draw a complex picture of where the Timisoara-based band — guitarists Wehry and Casi, bassist Mihai and drummer Retea — are at seven years into their tenure.

Topped off with artwork by Tonino Bosco, Colosseus begins at a rush with the progressive tapping that starts “Moscufo,” and while much of what ensues will be more indebted to Karma to Burn, they never completely give up that sense of something deeper happening than a simple parade of riffs. By the time it’s three minutes in, “Moscufo” has established a back and forth between dense distorted roll and this airier type of noodling, and as interplay between the two guitars is marked out early as fair game, it becomes a distinguishing factor as Colosseus continues to play out through the flowing stretches of the nine-minute “The Elemental,” which balances post-rock and heavy low end thrust more than ably en route to a half-time-drummed drone-out, less contrasting tones than setting one behind the other to bolster its position, and into “Ruse.” The aforementioned center cut, the shortest at 2:55, is also the most spacious, bringing those post-rock elements to the fore as an interlude. One can’t help but wonder if it was given its title as a reference to the manner in which it lulls the listener into a false sense of security before the heft of the extended B-side tracks “Colosseus” and “Master of Convulsions” kick in, but if it’s delusion, it’s a pleasant one.

With such a peaceful stretch preceding — not to mention with its title — it falls on “Colosseus” to be the album’s most weighted offering, and for its first movement alone it indeed might be that, but as it moves past its initial thrust and chug, it shifts into a long stretch of open tones and far-back percussion that makes “Ruse” seem downright prescient, rather than a work of trickery. Thicker tones reemerge as it passes the halfway point and once again Wehry and Casi lead the winding course, but even as it comes to a fuzzy head past 10 minutes in, “Colosseus” holds true to its overlaid progginess, and in that way it very much represents the record as a whole, which takes a speedy victory lap in the beginnings of “Master of Convulsions,” before a more percussive and grooving break takes hold and sets the stage for the final build. Structurally similar to the title-track ultimately, “Master of Convulsions” is marked out by the massive slowdown in its second half, and while it’s not Methadone Skies‘ only intent with their third offering, clearly they didn’t want to let it end without leaving a crater behind. So be it.

Ahead of the April 4 release for Colosseus, I’m thrilled today to be hosting the premiere of the title-track. You can find it in the YouTube embed below.

Please enjoy:

Methadone Skies, “Colosseus”

Second reveal from our new album ,COLOSSEUS”, to be released on the 4th of April 2016 via HAYWIRE RECORDS.

Recorded, mixed and mastered at Consonance Studio Timisoara between August 2016 and January 2016.

Methadone Skies on Thee Facebooks

Methadone Skies on Bandcamp

Haywire Records

Big-riffed Romanian psychedelic rockers Methadone Skies will issue their new album, Colosseus, on April 4. The record follows 2012’s Enter the Void (review here) and 2014’s Eclectic Electric and brings five new tracks, the second of which, “The Elemental,” is now available to stream. The song sets itself quickly to establishing wide-open spaces and a largesse of sound, and though it toys some with pace throughout its nine-minute roll, building a good head of steam to finish out slow, it never seems to lose that plus-sized vibe.

Announcement from the band is below, followed of course by that track. Dig it if you dig it:

We are excited to finally share some news about our upcoming album, Colosseus! It will be released on April 4 as vinyl, CD and digital download through our own imprint, Haywire Records. Production was once more handled by Edmond Karban and Cristian Popescu at Consonance Studio, where it was recorded, mixed and mastered over the course of 7 months.

We are proud of Colosseus, because we managed to capture the power of our live performances and had the chance to try new things too. We will debut a song off the album soon, stay tuned! Meanwhile, the cover (again done by ZIPPO’s very own Stonino) and tracklist can be found below:

01. Moscufo
02. The Elemental
03. Ruse
04. Colosseus
05. Master of Convulsions

Confirmed tour dates so far:

April 14 – Cluj, The Shelter
April 15 – Timisoara, DAOS club

Check back, more shows to be announced in the near future, as well as full details regarding the ones already mentioned.

Methadone Skies was formed in March 2009, as a trio of friends started to discover their love for music. Although at first they tried to restrict themselves to a definite musical style and approach, they soon realized that they had to start shaking things around without the limit to a stereotype genre.

Wehry – Guitar
Casi – Guitar
Mihai – Bass
Retea – Drums

https://www.facebook.com/MethadoneSkies
http://methadoneskies.bandcamp.com/

Methadone Skies, “The Elemental”