Tag: doom
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Venomous Maximus – No Warning
I had the chance to catch this Texas quartet at Milwaukee’s Days of the Doomed fest in 2013, where Venomous Maximus distinguished themselves as the most up-tempo outfit on the bill. Unfortunately, they got left behind at the border on the High on Fire/Pallbearer tour a couple years back, which was super-lame, cuz they probably…
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Ether – There is Nothing Left for Me Here
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Florida man gets divorced, writes sludge-metal record. OK, so maybe that headline didn’t make the news. While divorce and separation have inspired countless classic country cuts, I think this second effort from Florida outfit Ether might be a first—the only sludge album dealing with marital breakdown. And…
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Sigil – Kingdom of the Grave
Sigil have produced a most assured debut. Influenced by the likes of Discharge, Entombed, Black Breath, Death, Immolation and Morbid Angel, Sigil are ploughing their own furrow. A pleasing aspect to this album is the crusty sound to the riffs. I was reminded of the likes of Doom here; these are some seriously dense and effective…
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Hollow Leg – Crown (Murder edition)
Now here’s a band that’s after my bloated, sagging stomach. I dunno if Florida outfit Hollow Leg can actually chow down with the best of them, but when it comes to throwing down, well they do a pretty good job of that. Crown, their third album, came out last year on Argonauta Records, but with…
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Volur – Ancestors
The sophomore album from Toronto folk-doomsters Volur is nothing if not an ambitious effort. Though it only contains four tracks, it clocks in at over 53 minutes, with some songs stretching over 15. And while the lyrics are not clearly discernible, I do detect a theme here—each song title begins with “Breaker.” We start off…
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Destroyer of Light – Chamber of Horrors
I first heard this Austin outfit on their 2015 split with Godhunter, where they almost stole the record from one of my favourite underground sludge bands at the time. Destroyer of Light even put their own super-slow-mo take on a Pentagram classic, which certainly made me take notice. And now they’re back with their second full-length…
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Beastmaker – Inside the Skull
Beastmaker is a band with solid heavy-rock bloodlines—their singer’s father played bass on Montrose self-titled, arguably one of the finest examples of American proto-metal and inarguably the best thing Sammy Hagar has ever sung. The California trio rises above the crop of faceless Swedish outfits on Rise Above, taking us back to the glory days…
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Contra – Deny Everything
When I get something from a band I’ve never heard of, I usually give it two or three songs to grab me. In this case, Contra grabbed me right away, reminding me of now-defunct local outfit AF Analog (who have since given way to the excellent Warsnake). Like the AF Analog dudes, the guys in…
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Drug Honkey – Cloak of Skies
With a name like Drug Honkey, you know it’s gotta be good. Although you were probably expecting some slow southern sludge à la Weedeater or the Wisconsin drug trip of Bongzilla, what we’ve actually got here is effects-laden psychedelic death/doom that comes off as a cross between Winter and Sons of OTIS… and yet, I’m…
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Lung Flower – Effigy
Once more, an independent band puts higher profile bands to shame. Lung Flower play seriously heavy groove metal in the vein of Pantera and Black Label Society. The packaging and art for this CD shows a commendable commitment to the physical product of music, and for that they should be applauded. The production is clear…