Dead
Wilderness was added to my wishlist
based upon my Bandcamp feed showing
some promising activity a while back. For whatever reason, in my head, I was
thinking this was a band by the name of Shooting Guns from Canada whom,
being a good band, just didn't quite muster enough clout to garner high praise
from myself. Once I got to digging around and after I had listened to the latest album several times I noticed the band were
indeed familiar after their bandcamp page came to light showing off their
back catalogue and the album Planet of the Black Sun in
particular. It sometimes confuses me when the band and the label distro have
the same albums up on different pages. The label page offers the album at €1
and the band page offers it at €5 which includes lyrics. I’m kind of
bummed I went with the cheaper option once I realized the lyrics were included
in the band’s page download. It’s always great to confirm the lyrics on heavy
rock n roll, which doesn’t always present itself in the clearest fashion.
Upon hitting
play on Dead Wilderness, the apparent
3rd full length album from the Spanish rockers, just less than a
week ago I was blindsided by the extremely powerful fuzz attack from the get
go. The songs are relatively long by stoner fuzz standards but they have that
grip that keeps you at the edge of your ear buds the entire time.
Intoxicatingly catchy grooves palpitate like my heart rate as I type this from
the stationary bike at the gym. Dead
Wilderness, throughout its 6 song arsenal, manages to extract a spine
tingling sense of joy seldom achieved on first listen let alone each successive
listen. There is just something special going on beneath the lethal fuzz.
The drumming
is as hot as an ignition wire on a freshly hijacked hot rod, the vocals purr
like an African lion on steroids, and the groove swirls like the Sahara Desert
sands in an infinite dust devil. The raw power and grit summons an indirect
comparison to the first listens I had to the album ‘Nocturnal’
by Aleph Null early in 2014. Just
something totally odd, yet fascinating about the structure of the epic length
desert rock tunes. I encourage you to check these guys out and for a measly €1
it could be yours to download. Your hard drive will thank you later.
Highlights
include just about every song but in particular I was astonished at the 1-2
punch of songs 3-4. 'Roots' begins
with a paralyzing riff leading into an infectious vocal harmony bridged with
blood shot eye guitar interludes. The song relentlessly crams riffs down your
skull cavity with what seems like an unforgettable melody and not for one
minute comes across as monotonous, despite its length of over ten minutes.
Again, not typical for stoner metal, but with unmistakably bitchin' production
it works wonders. The song fakes like it's over around the 7 minute mark
slowing down to a doom pace but revives itself with a mind numbing closing 2
minutes. Before you have time to completely catch your breath 'Lucifer’s Word’ blares its wicked riff
pattern into your ears cinching your mind like a hangman’s noose, “YEAH!! |You won’t know me as your enemy
|You won’t stand me when I’m by your side |You won’t want me to arrive” The
brutally beautiful chorus line carves a sense of fright into the scene with the
melodically sludge soaked rhythm. The entire album is all win and I have been
just as into it on each and every repeat listen. The album closes out with a
gorgeous instrumental ditty that absolutely shreds. I can't say enough good
things about Dead Wilderness. I
certainly find it a cut above the last album Planet of the Black Sun, which was a brilliant album itself.
Bandcamp album of the month and its only day 2!
-The
Huntsman
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