Five albums into their career, the fact Pallbearer was once a Doom Metal band has faded into the haze of the atmosphere that dominates Mind Burns Alive (Nuclear Blast Records). Of all the metal sub-genres, fans of doom metal are the most forgiving when it comes to a band outgrowing the confines of the genre. Perhaps this is just Brett Campbell’s beautiful singing voice distracting you from the lyrics, which are as equally as bleak as those on the previous album. There might be a marginally more optimistic tone to “Where the Light Fades.” These depressive expressions are a thread of continuity tethering this bands’ entire body of work. Continue reading
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ALBUM REVIEW: Black Rainbows – Superskull
Stoner rock is often thought of in the same dim light as Doom, but this Italian band has dropped an album that serves as an example of how the two genres differ. While stoner rock and doom both share DNA with Black Sabbath, these guys ride on their riffs with a boogie that share a similar cactus patch as Clutch. They do pay homage to Sabbath, mainly in the singer’s piercing declarations that sound like Ozzy by way of nineties grunge. Their fuzz-laden riffs focus on grooving, rather than carrying the stark undercurrent of aggression that powered Sabbath’s darker guitar sound.
Grim Reefer Fest 2023 Books Bongzilla, Ilsa, Borracho, Haze Mage, Wizard Rifle, and More!
Baltimore’s annual Grim Reefer Fest has announced its full lineup for the upcoming event. Baltimore, MD on Saturday, April 29th, 2023. Heading up the bill are Bongzilla, with Ilsa, Borracho, Haze Mage, Wizard Rifle, False Gods, Sun Voyager, Faith in Jane, Holy Fingers, and Blightbeast! Tickets are $35 in adv and $50 at the door and can be purchased directly at the link below.
Poster by GhostBat
Sleep Releases The Unedited Version of “Dopesmoker”
For Bandcamp Friday just passed (December 3rd, 2021) Sleep released their unedited version of their classic album Dopesmoker, originally released on 4/20 in 2013 via Southern Lord. The album is available now streaming from Bandcamp and CD. It also includes live versions of “Holy Mountain and “Sonic Titan!” Purchase and stream the album as the band re-envisioned it, and read the fascinating backstory below.
REVIEWS ROUNDUP: Lucifer, Shi, Crop, and The Lucid Furs
Lucifer – Lucifer IV
With Lucifer releasing albums of a consistent style at a workman’s pace, it’s easy to overlook the underlying trajectory that’s been gradually in motion. There’s not much of those Occult Doom roots left on Lucifer IV (Century Media Records) as the band has seemingly completed their transformation from female-fronted Uncle Acid to what sounds like Karen Carpenter singing over KISS riffs. Fortunately, it’s hardly a drastic change as Johanna Sadonis’ sultry croon and the freerolling grooves remain as common denominators.Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Bongzilla – Weedsconsin
Bongzilla’s fifth album comes with an interesting set of curveballs, being their first full-length release since 2005’s Amerijuanican as well as their first to be recorded as a trio. However, very little has changed about the Wisconsinites’ vision in the sixteen years they’ve been away. As evidenced by an appropriately dumb but endearing title like Weedsconsin (Heavy Psych Sounds), the Sweet Leaf remains the focal point of their aesthetic and their Stoner-Sludge sound is as potent as ever.
There is Now a Beer Inspired by Sleep’s “Dopesmoker” Album
Sleep may be the band most aligned with Stoner Doom Metal culture and sounds in history, but now there is a beer directly inspired by the band, both in its flavor and distinctive artwork. “Hopsmoker” Beer by Widowmaker Brewing of Braintree, on Massachucets’s south shore, has brewed a batch of Pale Ale with the feel and flavor that fans of the Church of Matt Pike will rip off their sweaty shirts off for and bow down to! The can even features unique Weedians and a logo font on the can resembling the Dopesmoker album logotype! There were selling deluxe packs initially with a 4-pack, rolling paper, and other merch but it sold-out quickly. Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Blood Incantation – Hidden History of the Human Race
Chalk it up to me partaking more in the reefer these days and revisiting professional wrestling as a hobby again, but I feel like I took a chair shot to the back of the skull. Why am I feeling discombobulated? Have you tried listening to Blood Incantation‘s Hidden History of the Human Race (Dark Descent)? No? Then why don’t you go to your nearest highway and attempt to run across during rush hour traffic? Best of luck.Continue reading
The Damned Things – High Crimes
I’d love to travel back in time and run into a much slimmer and naïve high school version of myself and let him know that we screwed the pooch and elected an asshole as president (worse than Bush) and that a member of Anthrax would collaborate with some of the dudes in Fall Out Boy. Then I’d leave him alone because all of that would likely give him some sort of brain aneurysm. But hey it’s 2019 and here’s The Damned Things‘ sophomore effort, High Crimes (Nuclear Blast).Continue reading
Toto Releases Their Cover Of Weezer’s “Hash Pipe”
In one of the great turns in recent rock history, 1970s rock masters Toto have covered Weezer’s ‘Hash Pipe’. This follows Weezer’s covers of Toto classics ‘Africa’ and ‘Rosanna’. You can stream and buy the track right now!Continue reading