This Louisiana band has been around for quite awhile. I mean QUITE awhile. They formed in 2013 and the first I’d actually become aware of them was when I read reviews of this, their 4th full-length platter. Now “Reverie” is 3 years old itself, but thanks to the amazing folks at Ripple (Hi, Todd!) it’s finally spinning in my player. So, while this certainly would be LATE for a full-on new album review, it surely deserves some real mention. It’s also a perfect time, with FORMING THE VOID set to play at RippleFest Texas in September, their first activity in a good while.
I’ve seen these guys labeled with some bullshit terms that you read online a thousand times a day like “stoner metal” and “sludge.” These throwaway descriptions suit the legions of half-ass bands out there for sure, but not these guys. Nah, this is way better than that. “Reverie” sounds like an organic cross between the middle Sabs and Finnish gods Kingston Wall. The riffs are huge, the vocals are hypnotic but, as always matters to Ray, those fucking guitars! The leads reel me in with their mixture of heaviness and a decidedly lysergic Eastern bent that I simply can’t resist. They take me back to the sonorous wailing of KWall’s late Petri Walli and that’s a beautiful thing. Laced through the 7 cuts here, they add layering to grooving yet ass-busting proceedings and make these ears very happy.
And that brings another thing to the fore. Unlike their previous records, “Reverie” sees FORMING THE VOID keep the maximum song-length to 5:43. That’s a little different for a style that may lend itself to stretching the “exploratory” to “wandering” in some hands. Not here. This is a dynamic release that manages to grasp both the butt-busting & meditational and serve it up in nice sized mirco dot chunks that satisfy and pulverize. “Side 2” is especially strong with a pair of my faves, “Manifest” & “The Ancient Satellite.” Git it!
-Ray Dorsey
FORMING THE VOID:
Luke Baker - bass
Shadi Omar Al Khansa - guitars
James Marshall - guitars, vocals
Thomas Colley - drums
Comments