I used to feel like I had my finger on the pulse of just about everything “heavy.” I think I’ve grown a lot more laid back and my “writer’s ego” (the bane of many a young buck journalist) has taken a welcome shrink over the years. Let’s face it, we can’t all come off like the late, great Bob “Kick Ass” Muldowney and be the “stay off my lawn” guy with the heart of gold. Nah, with the number of underground bands exploding since the dawn of the internet and people like me relaxing a little as they hit ages like 65, more things are bound to get by ya.
So goes it with English band MORASS OF MOLASSES. When I checked out a clip of their new album on Ripple, “End All We Know,” I’d figured they were a new bunch hawking their debut. When “End…” showed up on my doorstep, however and I did a little research, I was surprised to find out it was their 3rd.
MORASS OF MOLASSES are an interesting band. They have been described by Kerrang (that old English warhorse of a mag) as “Enough bowel-quaking low-end to fill another Sabbath album.” Now to me, in the light of the proliferation of stoner/doom bands on the planet, that’s not a very enticing description. Closer to the heart (no, they don’t sound like RUSH!) is the blurb on MOM’s (sorry!) FB page. Therein, they are heralded as “Like a thick stew, rich with blues, heavy on entry & mellow in aftertaste. A recipe born of tradition, with many a familiar ingredient. Chunky, hearty and satisfying.” Now while the last line here sounds more like an advert for Campbell’s Soup, & the middle comes off as unexciting, it’s the opening I like: the “heavy on entry & mellow in aftertaste.” This gives you the idea that this trio is NOT exactly typical and that their songs involve multiple layers of impact.
Even so, I still don’t feel like these guys are giving themselves enough credit for standing out from their peers. Because they do. And decidedly. While “End All We Know” is sonically heavy (the bass will surely rattle your fillings), I find it to be exceedingly pleasant to listen to repeatedly. Yes, there are a lot of angular guitar lines onboard. Listen to the syncopated opening of “The Origin Of North” or the twisting maelstrom that coalesces into “Sinkhole.” Robert Fripp would probably welcome these vertebrae-jarring riffs, if he weren’t telling them to stay off his lawn. But among all that, as well as the spasming MOTÖRHEAD plunge of “Hellfayre,” there’s another element afoot here: the melodies. Despite their progressive nature and leaden backing, the 6-string licks offered by Phil Williams are frankly some of the most uplifting &, as someone said, even “hippie-ish” you’re going to hear this side of a Quicksilver album.
When you stir that in with the dreamy Floydian openings of songs like “Naysayer” & “Prima Materia,” it’s a combination that will have you humming to yourself all day. Then sprinkle on the other added treats like flute in “Terra Nova,” and decorate it with Williams syrupy fuzz solos, Bones Huse’s cavernous vox and the tribal percussives of Raj Puni, you have a real delicious stew. Hey, maybe the band’s description was a little more apt than I’d thought. I’m having this for dinner!
Ripple comes through again!
-Ray Dorsey
MORASS OF MOLASSES:
Bones Huse - vocals/baritone
Phil Williams - lead guitar
Raj Puni - drums/percussion
Sian Greenaway - guest vocals
Matt Ainsworth - flute/synth
Comments