Author: Gruesome Greg

  • Sithter – Chaotic Fiend

    Sithter – Chaotic Fiend

    Now, Japan has produced some pretty solid stoner and death/doom bands over the years, from Coffins to Corrupted, Eternal Elysium to Chuch of Misery… not to mention Boris, who practically deserve their own category. But when it comes to straight-ahead Japanese sludge, I usually come up empty. So when I heard that Sithter, a band…

  • Scum – Garden of Shadows

    Scum – Garden of Shadows

    Bit of an interesting back story behind this one. This Finnish death/doom outfit formed in 1990, and was signed to the legendary Black Mark Productions, where they put out a couple records in ’94 and ’95. Garden of Shadows, recorded in ’96, was to be Scum‘s third album, but Quorthon reportedly tossed this demo in the…

  • The Second Coming of Heavy Chapter IV: Red Mesa/Blue Snaggletooth split

    The Second Coming of Heavy Chapter IV: Red Mesa/Blue Snaggletooth split

    Like I said when I reviewed Chapter 3 of this compilation, Ripple Music has become somewhat of a tastemaker in the stoner-rock scene, a modern-day Man’s Ruin or MeteorCity, if you will. And they’ve only built on that reputation in the past couple years, signing the likes of Wo Fat and Devil to Pay and…

  • Soggy – self-titled

    Soggy – self-titled

    My introduction to Soggy came when I saw their frontman get up and jam with The Shrine at Pyscho Las Vegas. The Shrine covered Soggy’s 1981 single “Waiting for the War” a couple years back, so they went online to see if they could find the guy… and the rest is history. I had no…

  • Backwoods Payback – Fire Not Reason

    Backwoods Payback – Fire Not Reason

    I last heard from Backwoods Payback about five years back, when they released their Momantha record on Small Stone, a pretty decent dose of southern-fried heavy rock from a band outta Pennsylvania. In the years since, they’ve switched a few things up, dropping from a four-piece to a trio before releasing this album independently. Most…

  • Hornss – Telepath

    Hornss – Telepath

    This heavy trio hails from the Bay Area, and one guy is a dead ringer for a younger, pre-bearded Al Cisneros, but if you’re looking for Dopesmoker Part Deux, look elsewhere—the 11 tracks on Hornss’ second album clock in at a combined 30 minutes. A heavy bass rumble begins “St. Genevieve,” and there are certainly…

  • Fistula – The Shape of Doom to Cumm))))

    Fistula – The Shape of Doom to Cumm))))

    Seems it wasn’t so long ago that I was reviewing Longing for Infection, the last album from Cleveland crusty sludge crew Fistula. After that stellar sludge record came out in July, they’re back again already with another seven-track effort, although this one is almost more of an EP, clocking in just over 25 minutes. Judging…

  • Funeralizer – self-titled

    Funeralizer – self-titled

    Some people say The Sword went to shit after drummer Trivett Wingo took off—and while his departure isn’t entirely to blame for their wimpier direction, it’s safe to say he’s moved on. Wingo’s new outfit, Funeralizer, sounds absolutely nothing like J.D. Cronise and company… so if you’re looking for “How Heavy This Axe, Redux” look…

  • Tiebreaker – Death Tunes

    Tiebreaker – Death Tunes

    Now, we know that Norway is known almost as much for black metal as it is for cross-country skiing, but when it comes to stoner rock, most of the action is happening across the pond in Sweden. Hell, even when we hear of a Norwegian heavy-rock outfit, there’s always at least one black-metal dude in…

  • Buzzard Canyon – Hellfire & Whiskey

    Buzzard Canyon – Hellfire & Whiskey

    If one were to judge a book by its title, you might surmise that Buzzard Canyon was an outlaw country outfit — Hellfire & Whiskey sounds like a deep cut you’d hear on a Hank Jr. record, or something from modern-day Nashville darling Chris Stapleton. But there’s a half-decent chance this band has never even been…