Curse The Son - Psychache




When I switched to vinyl in 2013, I gave a lot of thought to what my first purchase would be. I spent many hours scouring over heavy music on Bandcamp, Youtube and Soundcloud, and ultimately I landed on the freshly released Vol. II by Spelljammer from STB Records. The long, monolithic songs beckoned to me and I was excited to finally get that first vinyl into the collection.

Little did I know, the Spelljammer was a hard sell out and I would have to wait nearly three months to find a copy. I ended up snagging the All Them Witches debut, Our Mother Electricity as my first wax, but I remained deeply interested in the stoner/doom/sludge DIY scene and the amazing quality that is available from small labels like STB.

Flash forward a year, and STB is still at it. Now, with eight releases under their belt, and a determined commitment to feed profits into future releases, the label is better than ever, and so is the music.

Recently, I got a chance to spin a pre-release vinyl of the forthcoming Psychache from Hamden, Connecticut trio Curse The Son and I was thrilled to crack it open and see a beautiful tri-colored vinyl inside the creepy, black and white cover art. I plopped it down onto the trusty Pro-ject and what poured forth was a delectable slurry of shuddersome, majestic doom. Atmospheric, macabre and wonderfully menacing doom.  

The album is filled with droning, heavy tracks highlighted with alluring tempo changes, bludgeoning riffs and revenant-esque vocals. Indeed, the entire production has an eerie revenant feel to it, and formidable tracks such as Spider Stole The Weed and Goodbye Henry Anslinger will have you reaching for your best bong and begging the incorporeal vibe to wash over you like a thick cemetery fog.  

STB Records is releasing this vinyl in three distinctive versions, including the sexy tri-color black/white/grey version I reviewed limited to 125 copies, a clear, blood splattered with OBI version limited to 100 and a diehard edition with custom patch sporting a creamy bone and black blood splatter limited to 75. Each goes on sale promptly at 12pm EST, Saturday, July 26th.


                                                       
While Psychache is surely no concept album, it gives the listener the same feeling that souls of the newly deceased must have experienced as Charon ferried them across the fabled river Styx. Climb into the blackened craft of madness and let them steer you along your own dreadful journey, my friends. It's a frothy ride of pure hedonistic pleasure.

 - Oldfatbroke
                                                                      

Comments