Sweden truly is a melting pot for all sorts of high-octane Stoner Metal acts – Monolord, Graveyard, Hällas, Greenleaf, Void Commander; you name it. It is almost like the ideal home for acid trip-inducing slow-paced riffs. Even back in 2021, the label/collective Weedian curated a compilation album consisting of the finest psychedelic haze-laden Stoner Metal bands hailing from Sweden, entitled Trip to Sweden. One of the bands featured on the gnarly lineup of that compilation, the Västerås-bound 10,000 Years, are actually the one whose latest release I’m reviewing today.
Out via Ripple Music, which specializes in heavy psychedelic, Stoner, and Doom, 10,000 Years are releasing the adrenaline-inducing All Quiet On The Final Frontier. Heavily inclined towards subsonic fuzz and churning riffs as well as screams compatible to the transient void, this release would potentially align with the preference of those who are into Kylesa, Dozer, and The Sword. Not only is this release a suitable soundtrack for blazing blunts, it will also set all your sound systems ablaze – almost like a forbidden sorcery, with passages comparable to furious incendiaries.
Marking the first feature of new drummer Alvin Risberg (who is also the brother of bassist/vocalist Alex Risberg), this album presents an impeccable wave of powerhouse drumming accompanied by Erik Palm’s malevolently droning riffs as well as Alex’s thunder-like bass lines and howling vocals.
10,000 Years are well-known for incorporating recurring themes like science fiction and horror in their songwriting, making their albums meticulously conceptual. Having previously released a series of complex deep lore entitled Albatross Trilogy, now they leave the trilogy behind and embark on a new fresh start with this release. While still retaining the Stoner Metal elements and keeping the psychedelic riffs intact, they experimented on a new approach that is more melodically inclined on this album – one of the evidences that mark the band’s evolution of sounds throughout the years of their subsonic journey.
The complete lineup that helped make this album come into existence is just as powerful; with the recording process taking place at the Stockholm-based Studio Sunlight under the controls of Tomas Skogsberg, the mastering was done by Magnus ‘Devo’ Andersson at Endarker Studios in Norrköping.
Overall, these profoundly composed eight tracks are like the psychedelic-stoner embodiment of science fiction, with all their respective lores and narratives.
Definitely a suitable soundtrack for, you know, fun stuff.
Buy the album here:
https://10000years.bandcamp.com/album/all-quiet-on-the-final-frontier
9 / 10
RALKA SKJERSETH