Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Follow The Movements


Follow The Movements is an album by the Psychedelic Garage band The Movements from Sweden. If you don't know this band by now, then you really have to check out the albums Grains Of Oats and The World, The Flesh And The Devil! And don't forget the magisterial album For Sardines Space Is No Problem of the side project The Movements (Space Edition)!
Side A of Follow The Movements is a collection of previously unreleased songs. The highlight of side A is definitely the song You Don't Know.
Side B contains the EP Drag Me Up that was released in 2004. These songs are more straight forward and less Psychedelic and Space. Nevertheless, these are great songs!
This chunk of vinyl is an awesome collection of songs by this fantastic band! Enjoy!

The Movements - Follow The Movements (2010)




An Asean Doom Split


This split album was shared with me by Asad from the band Myosis. Thank you for that, Asad!
This split album is a collaboration of the bands Myosis and J. Both bands have each recorded three songs for this split album. The result is more than nice.
Myosis is a Stoner and Sludge influenced Doom Metal band from Karachi, Pakistan. Their music sounds nicely brutal and heavy. The guitar riffs are filthy as hell and the singer has a beautiful rotten voice.
From Singapore comes J. This is a by Sludge inspired Funeral Doom band. According to Facebook, J is influenced by the following bands: Esoteric, Skepticism, Colosseum, YOB, Sleep and Electric Wizard. This gives you an idea of what you can expect.
In short, this is a very great split album! Listen and judge for yourself! Enjoy!

Myosis/J - Schism Of Precepts (2011 Split Album)


Myosis: Facebook


Tuesday, April 26, 2011

A Nice Doom Split


Thanks to Vania for finding and sharing a link of this split album!
My latest post was about the Black Pyramid debut album. In one of the comments someone requested this split album. Before this request I had no idea of the existance of this split album.
This split album by the bands Black Pyramid and Old One is a real nice one. Black Pyramid offers some more of their great Stoner/Sludge/Doom Metal sound.
Olde One is a duo from Morehead, Kentucky, U.S.A. and they're more Doom orientated. I like their sound, it is heavy and slow.
I think this split album will be enjoyed by many Doom heads! Enjoy!

On this four-song Serpent Records split release, Massachusetts doomers Black Pyramid contend with Morehead, Kentucky duo Old One and show us as listeners two of the major developments in American doom over the last decade or so. Where the trio Black Pyramid go grand, constantly vying for the most epic riff, progression, sustained note, whatever, Old One opt for a grittier, nastier, sludgier sound that somehow holds on to a sense of ritualism without falling prey to ‘70s posturing or mere Electric Wizardry.

Black Pyramid are first, killing the Sagittarius all over their two tracks, “Illumination” and “Warswine.” “Illumination” makes for a quick 15 minutes, but shows marked sonic development from the band’s self-titled MeteorCity debut last year. The first six minutes or so rely on essentially the same riff, but the groove of the song and playing and singing of guitarist Andy “Dinger” Beresky is such that you lose yourself rather than lose interest. Black Pyramid’s rhythm section proves to be among the meatiest in the scene today, with bassist Gein’s rumblings providing a solid foundation for Beresky and the deft cymbal work of drummer Clay Neely.

There aren’t many structural differences between “Illumination” and the battle-ready “Warswine,” which is some seven minutes shorter at 7:57, but what Black Pyramid are showing with the track is their ability to apply more than one formula to their sound. Doubtless we’ll see more of this with their next release, whatever and whenever that might be, but what’s essential to understand until then is that Beresky, Gein and Neely are growing as players and as a unit. I was too busy thinking of Black Pyramid as a kickass album to think of it as a display of potential, but in the context of the years to come, that might have to be how it’s interpreted.

And then there’s Old One. Purposefully regressive, the duo of bassist Brandon Howard and drummer/vocalist Mike Cooper runs a constant organ line under the faster-paced “Over the Hill” while grooving out on the barebones nature of their craft. There’s a sense of abandonment throughout the track -- as in recklessness -- but Old One don’t ever actually lose control of the song in any of its six minutes. About as close as they come to frills is slowing down the ending to lead it into the 12:43 closer “Hexed.” Here the ultra Electric Wizard vibe comes out even more, and though the production is lo-fi, Old One don’t by any means fail to get their point across. Cooper’s vocals are a little cleaner, but the sloppier, live feel is maintained, and at the right volume, the lower-than-low end bass is enough to make you feel like you just put a quarter in your speaker because it advertised “magic fingers.”

It’s two separate s t y l es within the same genre, but Black Pyramid and Old One manage to each convey an atmosphere of their own in under 25 and under 20 minutes, respectively. The success of the former’s self-titled will no doubt pique interest in the split, but whatever your reasoning for looking it up, be sure to listen to both bands with an open mind thinking doomed thoughts. Consider it recommended.

(By JJ at Stonerrock.com)

Black Pyramid/Old One - Split 12” (2010)


Black Pyramid: MySpace - Facebook - Reverbnation - LastFM

Old One: Website - MySpace - Facebook

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Psychedelic War Metal


Black Pyramid is a band from Northampton, Massachusetts, USA. This trio plays some awesome Stoner/Sludge/Doom Metal. I saw these guys performing at the Roadburn Afterburner and they made quite an impression.
Black Pyramid is their debut album from 2009. This album is to say the least excellent.
And what makes this album so excellent? First, there is this great rhythm section. Second, there are these mighty guitar riffs. Thirdly, there is these fantastic vocals. And there must be mentioned that these guys can write some great songs!
That makes the album Black Pyramid so excellent! Enjoy!

I want you all to close your eyes and envision this scenario: it’s 1975. Black Sabbath are sitting round the table. Suddenly, a flash of bright light, and a time portal appears. It’s the guys from Grand Magus, just done with recording “Kingslayer” for their “Wolf’s Return” album. They greet each other jovially as brothers in metal. They listen to each others’ music, and the guys from Black Sabbath say: “Guys, this song is out there! It’s rad! Can we borrow some of your inspiration? We want to make our music so it completely implodes your eardrums now, man!”

Of course, the Magus crew ain’t the worst guys, so they agree Sabbath can borrow the album for inspiration purposes. “You gonna sing on it, Ozzy?” they ask. “I don’t have the time, I gotta sniff dog’s asses and destroy my brain with various chemicals,” Ozzy replies, “but I got a cousin who’s an okay singer and his voice is kinda similar. I’ll ask him.”

Then in 2009, the result is found in an abandoned attic, and released under the band name and title of “Black Pyramid”. Wow, I bet no one expected that sudden plot twist. I should be paid by M. Night Shyamalan for this shit. Anyway, yeah, the album. This sweet baby didn’t hook itself into my left testicle straight away, but rather grew on me with repeated listens like a tumor. It’s heavy. It’s not just “Wow, this Lord of the Rings deluxe edition bound in solid iron is really heavy”. It’s “Moon crashing into Earth, your ass is dead center beneath it, fucked up luck kid” heavy. It’s in the bass. It’s in the thick, crusty guitar. It’s in the superb riffing. It’s in the whole package. If the singer didn’t sound like some twice-removed cousin of Ozzy, but had done a good heavy growl, there would be too much heavy. The album would have collapsed onto itself, creating a black hole that would suck up the solar system.

At this point, you may think I’m hyperboling just the slightest of amounts. Fuck you.

Oh yes, I think I need to discuss the actual music. Okay, quick run-through then; combine stoner doom metal with a huge fucking OOMPH, know what I’m saying, OOMPH, with Sabbathian style classic heavy/doom, except everything is better than Black Sabbath, despite the singer having a couple of weak points. He sounds a bit thin sometimes; of course, with the enormous weight these guys tossed into the album, it’s hard for any singer not to sound thin. But the riffs, the riffs! You know this kind of metal is all about the riffs, yet these all surpass a huge majority in the genre. Slow and fast, both types work. Deliciously.

The biggest plus here beside the actual music is the fucking production. No Wall of Pro-tools here; this shit’s been layered and expanded until both the guitars and bass were thicker than the blubber in your mom’s vagina. Listen, feel your head implode, and weep. This is one of the best stoner doom releases we’ll see this year.
(From Global Domination)

Black Pyramid - Black Pyramid (2009)






Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Well Hunger


I really have to thank Brian for sharing this awesome album!
Kapitan Korsakov is a Alternative/Noise trio from Ghent, Belgium. Their album Well Hunger is an impressive masterpiece. Kapitan Korsakov's music is characterized by the brutal guitars, a driving rhythm section and an aggressive singer. It reminds me a bit of the Butthole Surfers. The highlight of this album is the 48 minutes lasting song Sheep Dig. Enjoy!

Something Belgian, something buzzworthy! Often abbreviated to KKK, the Belgian band Kapitan Korsakov's debut Well Hunger was very well received by critics. Cutting Edge said "Well Hunger is a personal, noisy voyage, beginning with the trashy rock song "When We Were Hookers", a sound which becomes expanded and enlarged by the large number of sonic experimentations that Kapitan Korsakov add to it". This single even got them the prize for the most furious riff of 2009 on Studio Brussel's Select. They beat the stiff competition The Hickey Underwold, A Place To Bury Strangers and Baroness in this competition. Cutting Edge recently made the bold claim that "Kapitan Korsakov are the Belgian Fucked Up".
(Their bio from MySpace)

Kapitan Korsakov - Well Hunger (2009)





Places To Hide


Thanks to Thomas from the band Jack & The Bearded Fishermen for sharing their album!
Jack & The Bearded Fishermen is a band from Besançon, France. This band plays some decent Stoner Rock. Places To Hide is their second full-length album that is released by Impure Muzik.
This album contains ten superb tracks. The characteristics of Jack & The Bearded Fishermen are the groovy tunes and the great vocals. Place To Hide is for sure worth the listen. And if you like it, buy it! Enjoy!

Following their formation in 2005, these gentle, not-so-hairy fishermen have sailed the East coast of France under the undisputed authority of their captain Jack. Though the crew of this intruiging ship may have changed slightly at their last few ports of call, they are currently docked in Besançon, their helm still fixed firmly in the same direction. Taking into their itinery the nehanderthal blues, they will cross through troubled waters and musical fury. They will navigate between melody and impatience, skirting still pools of tension and waves of explosion...
(Their bio)

Jack & The Bearded Fishermen - Places To Hide (2011)





Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Balm For The Ears


Het Droste Effect is according to Wikipedia a specific kind of recursive picture, one that in heraldry is termed mise en abyme. An image exhibiting the Droste effect depicts a smaller version of itself in a place where a similar picture would realistically be expected to appear. This smaller version then depicts an even smaller version of itself in the same place, and so on. Only in theory could this go on forever; practically, it continues only as long as the resolution of the picture allows, which is relatively short, since each iteration geometrically reduces the picture's size. It is a visual example of a strange loop, a self-referential system of instancing which is the cornerstone of fractal geometry.

Het Droste Effect is also an Experimental Psychedelic Space duo from Eindhoven, Holland. The sound from their recent EP can be discribed as unique. This free download EP contains four awesome tracks. The two guys from Het Droste Effect got some help from four other musicians. The result is really great. The EP starts with the terrific song Balsem Voor De Oren. This song has some great guitar riffs. The second song Sweet Dreams Bandito begins relaxed and easy, then it gradually grows to a nice climax. The third song Helluva Dirty K9 is a brief but intense precursory transition to the last song Lollita Can Dance. This is absolutely the highlight of this EP! The added saxophone gives this song so much more value. Nicely done!
In short, The Droste Effect has definitely proven themselves with this twenty minute EP. This band is an enrichment for the Dutch scene. And the good news is that The Droste Effect will enter the studio again for some new recordings. Enjoy!

Het Droste Effect’s first EP is self recorded on 8-track cassette tape at Studio Casa Cassette Eindhoven, The Netherlands. It contains 4 instrumental tracks ranging from repetitive robotrock to calm ambient to psychedelic kraut and space rock, infused with field recordings and special guests on bass, moog, vibraphonette, saxophone and monotron.

Inspired by many great bands from the past and the present, Hermann (guitar/engineer) & Thompson (drums/percussion) set out to create a sound of their own. We started rehearsing in the summer of 2010 and started recording soon after as a duo. We will not be playing live in the near future. However, we will be back in the studio soon for new recordings.

(From Bandcamp)

Het Droste Effect - Het Droste Effect EP (2011)



Thursday, April 14, 2011

Musical Black Hole


Macaco Bong is a trio from Brazil. This band plays Instrumental Rock that balances between Jazz, Post Rock and Math Rock. Their album Artista Igual Pedreiro is not just an ordinairy album. It is an awesome masterpiece! These musicians can rightly be called virtuosos. This is wonderful music that is sometimes quite complex. All the songs are brilliant compositions. I say this album is highly recommended! Enjoy!

Macaco Bong comes from the middle of South America. And them... their music comes from nowhere. There's a story that they heard Hendrix just 2 months ago, but isn't a forced issue, it's true, isn't a story. Macaco Bong is simply the most incredible brazilian band, their instrumental music defy any logic, any description... defy everything, we can call "musical black hole", but them is easy.
(From MySpace)

Macaco Bong - Artista Igual Pedreiro (2008)



Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Space Autopsy


Grains Of Oats is the first release of the Swedish band The Movements. This awesome band plays sixties inspired Garage Rock with Space and Psychedelic elements. Grains Of Oats was originaly released in 2006. This is the rerelease from 2008 with two extra bonus tracks. Enjoy!

The Movements was formed during the early years of the new millenium by bass-player Daniel “Dolly” Pettersson in the rough environment of the old harbor town Göteborg, Sweden. He intended to form a band which could brake free from genre trends but still keeping it true to the original feeling of yesterdays´ rock n´roll. In 2002 Dolly was wrongfully sentenced to five years in prison. The band decided to temporarily replace him on the bass with Daniel “Jokkmokk” Eriksson, and with this young sami from northern Sweden, they recorded and released their famous first EP “Drag me up” on Lonestar records in 2004.

They started to frequently tour around Europe and have since then survived everything from cancer, car-crashes, the taxman, and the strains of endless hard touring. Their first two albums (produced by Björn Olsson and released on Alleycat Records) contain an energetic and innovative mixture of styles. With 60´s garage rock in the foundation they put in elements from krautrock, psychedelia, punkrock and what ever comes to their minds. The Movements share a big love for catchy choruses and shattering hooks but also for loosing it completely in spacey jams. It´s important to them to claim their creative freedom by underline that they are not puritans of anything and that their music can take off in any direction they feel like. They have often been called for the most interesting and fresh rock-group around these days.

While in the process of recording their third full length album the original bassplayer Dolly was released from prison and rejoined the group. The album they where working with was a theme record about the life of Swedish astronaut Christer Fuglesang. The record made them quite famous in Sweden since the astronaut loved it and brought it with him up to space when space shuttle ISS took off in august 2009. They then became historic as being the first spacerock band ever to actually have been played in space!

When The Movements is not on tour, which is their favorite part of playing in a band, they hang out around the neighborhoods of where their recording studio is located. It is built inside an old parking house down at the fishing harbor of Gothenburg. They built the studio inspired of the German band Can to be able to record more frequently and to experiment more. Right now they are working on some recordings for upcoming single releases, a new album, and of course, planning new tours.
(Their bio)

The Movements - Grains Of Oats (2008)




Tuesday, April 12, 2011

I Accidentally Enriched Myself With Happiness


Thanks the band Float A Ziggy for sending their new EP!
Six months ago I've posted here the first EP by Float A Ziggy, an Alternative Rock band with Grunge and Stoner influences from Groningen, The Netherlands.
Now they're back with the new EP The World Is My Muse. Beforehand, I had no high expectation of this EP, because I was told that the musical direction would be different. But Hell, this new EP is an impressive piece of work! These are five excellent songs.
According to the band this EP can be considered as apocalyptic. Float A Ziggy has not much positive to say about the future. In short, the songs are about self-enrichment of managers of big companies, the exploitation of religion and the desire for the sixties.
Float A Ziggy claims to be inspired by the following: The Smashing Pumpkins, Queens of the Stone Age, Silverchair, The Melvins, Nirvana, Soundgarden, Kyuss, Deftones, Masters of Reality, Type O Negative, Hüsker Dü, Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, Beatles, The Doors and Herman Brood.
So you have a small idea of what Float A Ziggy is about. Enjoy!

Alternative Rock in a Beatles coat. Intense trio with great aspirations. Played 40+ shows and are planning to make 2011 their most succesful year up until now. Inspired by contemporary politics and everyday life, they toured the Netherlands in 2010. These guys are releasing their second EP 'The World is my Muse' in April 2011.
(Their bio from Facebook)

Float A Ziggy - The World Is My Muse (2011)



Celebration Of A Wounding.


The following contribution is this album from the band Nero Order.
From San Francisco, U.S.A. comes Nero Order, a foursome that plays some great Sludge with Doom and Metal influences. Their debut album The Tower contains four song that can be described as heavy. These songs are quite long (from 9 up to 17 minutes). With these four songs, Nero Order gives you a clue of their capabilities. Their music is aggressive with a dramatic touch. Absolutely worth a listen! Enjoy!

Avant-metal alchemists Nero Order fuse elephantine rhythms with vast, tragic melodies and moody, severe vocals — concocting a sound that is simultaneously abrasive and consonant, dynamic and cacophonous; academic in scope and violent in delivery.

Though formed in early 2006, Nero Order has willfully chosen to stay silent and hidden, focusing on crafting their Great Work: the full-length album The Tower. Consisting of four meticulously composed movements, The Tower is an exercise in duality, both aurally and aesthetically. Sonically dense, ambitiously constructed, and intensely executed, the songs that comprise The Tower are stylistically without par in the current rock landscape.

The gravity of mid-late period Neurosis, the frenetic energy of Junkyard-era Birthday Party, the minor melodic sense of Metallica’s Master of Puppets, the staggering volume and intensity of early Swans, the grandiosity of Pink Floyd’s Meddle, and the riff-obsession of Black Sabbath.

(From Facebook)

Nero Order - The Tower (2010)




Lord Of The Sun


This album was sent in by the band The Sand Collector!
The Sand Collector is a five piece band from Alicante, Spain. This band plays Stoner Rock with Sludge, Doom, Southern and Metal influences. The album Lord Of The Sun contains 11 songs, which can be qualified as excellent. This band plays their music very well and they have a singer with a great voice. The Sand Collector is a band with a lot potential. That is proved by this album. Enjoy!

Lord Of The Sun” is the re-edition of our EP, with 4 new songs (and a surprise at the end in the original cd´s) 11 songs, nearly an hour of music. We could say that Stoner Rock is the main influence, but we can also find doom, heavy metal, hardcore, sludge or country.

A crystal production with powerful sound and with compositions full of memorable riffs and solos, bass lines that have nothing to envy Scott Reeder himself, powerful drums and epic choruses.

Strongly recommended for fans of Spiritual Beggars, Clutch, Grand Magus, Down, Black Sabbath, Dozer, Baroness, Alice in Chains, Cathedral, The Sword, Alabama Thunderpussy, Red Fang, Pendejo!

(Promo text)

The story of The Sand Collector as a band is relatively young. This project was born when Julian Velasco and Miguel A. Fernandez played together in a past formation of post metal / doom called Nahrayan, this group was born in 2000 and approximately in 2,002 already composing some riffs that are currently in songs by The Sand Collector.

For lack of time,they could not continue with that idea, shortly after the dissolution of Nahrayan, took up the idea, this time with the help of Tano Gimenez on bass. Still, both Julian (Muerte por mil cortes, Earth without Heaven) and Miguel (ex-Deep Red Blood) were involved in other projects, like Tano (Coco Illán).

The three continued with the project and for some months in 2007 was assisted by some members of the acclaimed experimental metal band Nahemah. For a while, Miguel Palazón was the second guitar, Pablo Egido vocals and Paco Porcel on second bass. Following the signing of Nahemah by Lifeforce, could not continue training due to their commitments with his main band and
The Sand Collector again a group of three, until 2009, then the band was finally completed with the addition Pepe Belda to the voices, with experience as a vocalist in rock formations and alternative metal, and the entrance to the second guitar Fernando Ferre (Shaolinyera).
(From MySpace)

The Sand Collector - Lord Of The Sun (2011)






Wednesday, April 6, 2011

The Amazon In The Pyramid Of Sacrifice


This split EP was also sent to me by Valentin and the guys from Bookmaker Records!
This split EP contains one song by Henryspenncer and the other song by Among The Bones. I think Henryspenncer doesn't need further introduction here.
Among The Bones is just as Henryspenncer an one man band from London, UK. The man behind Among The Bones is Misha Hering and and he is very capable in creating obscure Psychedelic soundscapes. This is a first-rate EP with two artists who have found each other. Enjoy!

This opus is the result of a collaboration between two artists: One English (Among The Bones) the other French (Henryspenncer), both having composed one track for the release. Henryspenncer's "The Amazon" is a vast voyage, as epic as it’s hypnotic and Among The Bones' "Pyramid of Sacrifice", a long and droning tribal ritual, both form two chapters of the same story. A mystical journey through an unexplored and alien jungle.
(From Bookmaker Records)

Among The Bones & Henryspenncer - Split EP (2011)



Among The Bones MySpace & Facebook

Henryspenncer MySpace

To The Timeless Valley


Thanks to Valentin and his friends from Bookmaker Records for sharing his second album!
After the album The Shelter Days, the one man band Henryspenncer is back with the new album To The Timeless Valley. It is again a nice journey through landscapes of dark Psychedelic sounds. Valentin excels again on his guitar in various ways. For example, his slide guitar is afresh unsurpassed. Together with the electronic industrial and cosmic sounds in combination with Americana it is a beautiful whole. If you enjoyed the album The Shelter Days, then To The Timeless Valley will not disappoint you. Enjoy!

Henryspenncer's music is marked by the confrontation of psychedelic guitars and industrial percussions, folk sounds and drone atmospheres, coexisting in long progressive compositions. "To The Timeless Valley", Henryspenncer's second album, invites you to get lost in an unseen musical world evocative of large imaginary deserts, beyond time and the world.
(From Bookmaker Records)

Henryspenncer - To The Timeless Valley (2011)




Monday, April 4, 2011

Lettuce Storm


Voodoo Mule is a band from Ljubljana, Slovenia. With this demo offers this trio some nice Stoner/Doom Metal tunes. This band claims to be inspired by bands as Melvins, Jimi Hendrix, Sleep, Kyuss and Electric Wizard. So this gives you a small idea of what Voodoo Mule is about. This demo contains three tracks that are pretty good, but the problem with demos is that the sound often is not as good. Nevertheless it is still a good demo. Voodoo Mule definitely can mean something in the future. Enjoy!

Voodoo Mule - Demo (2011)




Friday, April 1, 2011

Strong Reflection


A special thanks to Jimmy from the band Mars Red Sky for sending me their CD!
I've posted the single Cursed from the French band Mars Red Sky a while ago here. This is their self-titled debut album. And I have to say it is Awesome with a capital A! This trio plays some impressive Psychedelic Stoner Rock. This album contains seven excellent songs. The first song Strong Reflection gives me goosebumps right away, as beautiful as it is.
The power of Mars Red Sky is the combination of magical Stoner Grooves and mesmerizing vocals. This singer has truly a fantastic voice!
This album contains also that great track Cursed, that earlier appeared on their single. This is an album you should buy just blindly. It is highly recommended! Enjoy!

Mars Red Sky - Mars Red Sky (2011)