Category: Reviews
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Mos Generator – Electric Mountain Majesty
I believe this is album number five from Pacific Northwest vets Mos Generator, who’ve been kicking around — and old school — since the dawn of the new millennium. Their sound certainly takes you back more than 15 years, more like 40, to the good ol’ days of vintage rock ‘n’ roll. “Beyond the Whip”…
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Ogre – The Last Neanderthal
I actually saw one of the last shows Ogre played before they originally broke up, at Rochester’s Born II Late doomfest in ’09. Didn’t know much about the band beforehand, but their performance was so impressive that they stopped the show for a one-hour intermission afterwards. Their then-swansong, Plague of the Planet, quickly became one…
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Mount Salem – Endless
Originally released in 2013, Endless comprised the first six tracks the spankin’ new Chicago band Mount Salem wrote. That caught the attention of Metal Blade, who’ve reissued the release with two new tracks. This powerful doom-rock quartet consists of guitarist Kyle Morrison, bassist Mark Hewett, drummer Cody Davidson and vocalist/organist Emily Kopplin, whose voice measures…
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Kamchatka – The Search Goes On
This Swedish trio, Kamchatka, is best known for touring with Clutch, collaborating with Clutch (J.P. Gaster appears on a couple of their albums) and hell, even sorta sounding like Clutch. So if you like Clutch, keep reading… Their fifth album is somewhat shorter than previous efforts, offering 10 tracks in about 41-and-a-half minutes. “Somedays” kicks…
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Recess, Reassessed: Come Out and Play by Twisted Sister
After ceaseless rock ‘n’ roll hurdles overcome, and a legacy of thousands of sweaty shows, Twisted Sister’s third LP, 1984’s Stay Hungry, had brought the rewards the band so clearly sought. Stay Hungry sold over three millions copies in the US, millions more overseas, and all that success was a well-deserved triumph for Twisted Sister,…
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BL’AST! – The Expression of Power
I must admit that I missed out on BL’AST! the first time around, eventually getting word of these guys through bands like Black Flag and Fu Manchu. But it wasn’t until their long-lost album Blood! was recently unearthed by Southern Lord that I really got into ’em, so this remastered reissue of their ’86 debut by the…
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Coffinworm – IV.I.VIII
A double dose of Coffinworm reviews – Gruesome Greg and Matt Hinch both weigh in on IV.I.VIII. The Indiana band’s second full-length album is out on Profound Lore. It’s been nearly four years in the making for album number two from this Indiana sludge crew, and I was hoping it’s been worth the wait. I’m one…
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Psalm Zero – The Drain
Profound Lore has become known over the years as a go-to label for some of the best and most extreme black and death metal bands. But with the release of Vaura‘s The Missing last year, the label opened up another avenue of exploration. Somewhat in that vein comes Psalm Zero. The collaboration between Castevet‘s Andrew…
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The Socks (self-titled)
These Socks don’t stink! The French quartet brews a blend of pungent, throwback heavy psych on their Small Stone debut. Kicking off with “Lords of Illusion,” The Socks use their illusion to channel Hendrix, Purple and Sabbath throughout this nine-track, 44-minute effort. There are also shades of modern bands like Monster Truck on the organ-accented…
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Fossils – Flesh Hammer
Now, I know you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but the album art on this one is made outta beef jerky, and I loves me some beef jerky… Anyhoo, Fossils is a Danish guitarless duo, and this is their third album, and third album about meat — at least in name,…