Author: Gruesome Greg
-
Beastwars – IV
The band that put New Zealand on the doom-metal map is back with their fourth full-length effort. IV sees Beastwars return with another platter of raw, visceral, doom/sludge, clocking in just shy of 38 minutes. “Raise the Sword” comes rumbling out of the gate, with a rough-and-tumble riff a la slow-mo High on Fire. Verses…
-
Atala – The Bearer of Light
Maybe it’s because they’re from the middle of nowhere, but I feel that California desert doom trio Atala never gets the respect they deserve. These guys play the kind of doom that Saint Vitus made famous, and their last couple records were produced by the likes of Scott Reeder and Billy Anderson… but you still…
-
Slomatics – Canyons
There’s something to be said for originality in doom. With most of the bands whose names contain either Witch or Wizard, you kind of know what kind of generic riffage and occult symbolism you’re gonna get. But Slomatics, their name just oozes doom, without sounding like everyone else. And when it comes to the music,…
-
Spirit Adrift – Divided by Darkness
Spirit Adrift’s previous album, Curse of Conception, was one of the best doom metal, if not overall metal albums of 2017. I know it ranked quite highly on my year-end top 10 list – and I definitely wasn’t alone. But now I’ve heard that they’ve switched things up a bit for their latest record. While…
-
Magic Circle – Departed Souls
Magic Circle’s first two albums are considered underground classics of true doom metal, so when they announced that Departed Souls, their first new record in four and a half years, was going to be more “70’s sounding,” there was some cause for concern. But I can assure you that if you like your doom of…
-
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: UFOMAMMUT/Kings Destroy/Witchrot @ Hard Luck Bar, April 27, 2019
Italian progressive sludge/doom outfit Ufomammut has been around for 20 years now…and until last night, I had only seen ’em once, back in 2015.
-
Smoulder – Times of Obscene Evil and Wild Daring
Epic doom is alive and well in 2019! Not only do we have a new Candlemass, with Johan Langqvist—and a guest appearance from Iommi—but there are also a few new outfits eschewing bongs and wizards for swords and sorcery, all in the name of doom. Among this new wave of heaviness is Toronto’s Smoulder, who…
-
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: Graveyard/Uncle Acid @ Danforth Music Hall, March 30, 2019
Uncle Acid put on a pretty solid set focused on their most recent record, Wasteland. They also made full use of the former movie theatre’s setup, with a full video backdrop throughout their set…
-
Getaway Van – self-titled
Man, just the band name and the logo of this Vancouver outfit has got visions of Fu Manchu slowly cruisin’ through my head before I even push play. Hey, it’s no Boogie Van, but this Getaway Van is still Hell on Wheels, dude! OK, so they might not be the closest disciples of the Fu,…
-
High Reeper – Higher Reeper
After putting out a smokin’ Sabbath/Saint Vitus-inspired self-titled record about a year and a half ago, Philly’s High Reeper is already back with album number two. Why get high when you can get higher, bro??? The eight-song, 40-minute effort picks up right where its predecessor left off, with “Eternal Leviathan” serving up a solid slice…