Figured I’ve tracked so many cool new and old albums in the
latter quarter of the year that I’d clean out my bag of camp supplies. Camp can
become cluttered over time and needs to be unloaded every now and then, right?
Anyhow, here are some great albums to check out that I’ve stumbled onto
recently that deserve another opinion, in no particular order:
Waingro – Waingro
Unrelenting heavy, thrashy, hardcore metal from Canada is
Waingro. Equal parts Cancer Bats (also Canadian) and Black Sabbath, Waingro
will smash your face with pummeling groove, metallic force, and delightfully
grating vocal chops. The fast paced, short duration songs put a hardcore edge
to the sludgy/doom backbone. To top off the killer jams, they have a beautiful
vinyl edition up for sale on their page for a reasonable price.
Serpent Lord –
Serpent Lord
Serpent Lord summons up an ode to the pinnacle times of
heavy grunge when Cornell and Staley ruled the world. Combining meaty vocals
and fuzzy stadium rock riffs, Serpent Lord keep the energy high and the rock
rolling like thunder crashing off a cloudburst.
Those Hounds –
Mother Earth is Sick
Poppy punk rock laced with enough fuzzy groove to induce a
serious case of headbobititus. Bridging the gap of stoner and grunge rock the
indie-punk vocal soarage carried by catchy leads will have you molesting the
repeat button. I'm a sucker for these 2 and 3-piece bands that are able to
construct such an enticing melody with minimal help from other members.
Spirit Seed – Deep
in the Weeds
Main man from the retro thrash band Early Man has a side
project? Why didn’t anybody tell me this sooner? Been a longtime fan of Early
Man and Spirit Seed completely blew my mind. Deep in the Weeds institutes more
of a laid back grunge rock with doomy atmosphere than the high octane thrash of
Early Man, and is indeed a favorite late discovery of mine. Take a listen for
yourself!
Grusom – DIY Demo
Typically, for me, demo’s are hit and miss, mostly miss, due
to the rough cuts and lack of production and/or material. However, Grusom’s
do-it-yourself output demonstrates the potential for greatness. I particularly
love the occult-blues theme going on with the added presence of robust vocals
and a thick melodic organ backdrop brings a spooky factor to the table that is
unmatched by most full length albums. Keep your ears on these guys. I am
expecting great things and hope for a follow up sooner rather than later.
Snake Thursday –
Iter
“Snake Thursday is a
rock trio from Poznań inspired by stoner rock and old school heavy metal. The
band aims to make music filled with energy, melody and dirt, built around
memorable riffs and relating to heavy music roots.”
Comparisons have been made to Dozer, which not until after I
listened and later read back on others' takes did I hear the Dozer comparison,
but ya, they are right. This does have a heavy Dozer vibe. However, they have
definitely left their own imprint on this album as well as their earlier album
released back in 2013. Bass-heavy fuzz drenched with a hefty dose of smoke and
covered in filthy desert dust. Snake Thursday should not only appeal to the
average Stoner Rock fan, it will have the experts jumping for joy as well.
Slomind – Solar
Plexus
Slomind? More like Blowmind!! Seriously guys..... Come on.
This shreds apart most albums I've listened to all year long including close to
1,000 albums. Aleph Null status with
its own signature, and I had to pay for it. Let’s see some more faces on this
page! Favorite track: 06 Thru The Eyes of God.
Haw – Soundtrack
to Our Friendship
Haw literally just now crept up in my sights. I pulled the
trigger immediately dropping it in its tracks, to end the season with a trophy
harvest. Combining heavy southern hardcore sludge with that same austral bluesy
luster, Soundtrack to Our Friendship insinuates a rather radical and intense
set of vows. Vocals veering from crusted sludge to arena rock howls and guitars
ranging from heavy distortion with groove to interspersed acoustic ballads, Haw
cram your senses with a fistful of riffs.
Plainride – Return
of the Demo Tape
Have to give a shout of to this random sighting on bandcamp
and again another promising demo from a band called Plainride. Throaty,
muscular vocals moan out across classic stoner dirge with a bluesy, swampy
southern attitude. Drinkin’, druggin’, ass-kicking good times to be had to this
ballsy riff fest. Giving off a Five Horse Johnson kind of vibe I could see
Plainride fitting comfortably amongst the Small Stone Records family with a bit
of tender loving care. Another one to keep your pipe
cherried to.
Don Pedigo – The
Cross Eyed Sessions
We’ll end this session with The Cross Eyed Sessions by Don
Pedigo from Nashville, Tennessee. Bear
with me here, I realize some of you may be caught off guard with an
Americana/Country album included with a barrage of stoner sludge
recommendations. Truth is, I’ll tell em like I hear them. This type of stuff
gets just as much playtime as the heavy hitters, and Don Pedigo upon initial
discovery is a heavy hitter in the Americana/Alt-Country realm. The Cross Eyed
Sessions should appeal to fans of Jason Isbell and Old Crow Medicine Show to
Bruce Springsteen with his pleasantly raspy voice and band complete with all
the trinkets. Lovely album to play right after an intense sludge metal
listening session.
-The Hunstman
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