By Gruesome Greg
Sweden’s New Keepers of the Water Towers have a pretty ridiculous name and their song titles are equally silly (“Scientists and the Man of Ice,” “Giant Subway Beast” and so on.) From a lyrical standpoint, these guys would be perfect for a split EP with Chicago doom/death practitioners Lair of the Minotaur.
Chronicles marks the band’s full-length debut for MeteorCity, combining the two EPs they put out on small-time Toraz Records. In total, fifteen tracks make up the 60-minute album, which is comprised of “The Chronicles of Iceman” and “Chronicles of the Massive Boar.” Musically, the band sounds like a cross between Clutch and Mastodon, with slight progressive leanings. I also can’t help noticing a resemblance at times to Windsor-based sludge/death dealers Georgian Skull…
The fifteen tracks on this record run the gamut from fast-paced riffing to slow, chugging doom. Any lyrical themes suggesting of a (or rather a pair of) concept album(s) are loosely defined, at best. Although the faster songs aren’t bad, New Keepers should stick with their mid-paced sludgy grooves, which produce the catchiest moments on the album. I never thought I’d be singing along to a song called “The Three Headed Cow.”
(MeteorCity)
