Guest writer - Doug E Dogg
This is quite frankly fucking awesome !!.....a 4 piece...
from the Midlands of the UK....very hairy.....vocals, guitar bass and drums
.....massively heavy and doom laden....it sounds like I'm describing
Sabbath doesn't it ?...but No. Fair enough, there are more than the usual
amount of comparisons to be drawn but with this genre of music if there
aren't some then it wouldn't be properly heavy would it ? Its plain to the
listener that this band love early Sabbath and also have Electric Wizards'
"Dopethrone" on repeat play in the tour bus....and also have an
appreciation of Hawkwind circa '71 to '73....I'll explain that shortly.
Lets have a look at the 4 great tracks they have created for our
head nodding entertainment...
1. Retronauts - 8 minutes of the very highest quality doom space
stoner containing massively enjoyable riffs that just burrow
into your brain and refuse to get out again ! Having been listening
predominately to Lemmy's output from the late 60's to date for the
last week or so, this track has a certain Hawkwind-ish feel to it
with the big repetitive riff, vocal phrasing and overall driving
sound not dissimilar to the long sprawling live tracks on the Space
Ritual album from '73. Absolutely marvellous...in fact if this track
was just extended by say, half an hour, I'd be even happier !
2. The Ultra Wizards - as it starts it appears to be a slightly more
upbeat number being more stoner than doom but then halfway
through a mega heavy doom riff is introduced which takes it down
into a very dark place indeed. Mmmmm !!
3. Witchrider - This has the pacing and feel of Sabs "Fairies Wear
Boots" and bowls along like some unstoppable force, all the time
seemingly picking up speed and getting nastier the longer it goes
on. A brisker than usual take on doom...apologies for the constant
Sabs references but I like classic old Sabbath very much and view
such comparisons as a complement rather than anything derogatory
when the band concerned have produced something so good.
4. Damavand - Ahhh...16 minutes....that's more like it.....Nice
gentle intro gives way to a brutal all instrument assault which
could be used as a soundtrack to a film about a medieval siege where
the attackers have a massive battering ram with which they are trying
to get into a castle ! The early riff most satisfyingly morphs into
the stuff of dreams then all of a sudden we have an atmospheric
eerie section to get our collective breath back before it all starts up
again before finally fading out with whining feedback ringing in
our ears......Phew !
I suspect the recording studio floor after tracks 1 and 4 were
completed was covered in shredded plectrums, lumps of finger
tip flesh, blood, pieces of fractured cymbals, broken drumsticks
and discarded drum skins !!
I just have one minor quibble....its only 36 minutes long......
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