"Dope Rider's" cover art was very misleading to me. Before I decided to hit the play button, I thought it was going to be listening to Stoner/Desert Rock. The opening drum beat sort of back this notion up as well. However once the strings and the vocals came in I realized I was listening to an entirely different beast altogether. Kurokuma's fiery Sludge Doom is catchy as fuck. The riffs and grooves had me locked in right away on "Dope Rider". You have to savor them though, because this EP is only like 13 mins long. When that final riff on Track 2 ("Dope Rider Part 2"), and you revel in the gooey sludgy goodness of its detuned riffage, you find out how fleeting that moment really was when the song ends minutes later. That's alright though, because if you're like me, you will just start the damn EP all over again and give it a few more listens, because it's that fucking good.
There's also a hint of Noise Rock abrasiveness, but I don't know if it's enough to reclassify this as being anything other than Sludge Doom. It can be heard primarily in the vocals and the bass. I really dug the screaming from the vocals, and I felt like it had the right amount of aggression to compliment the riffs. I think the drums have something really interesting going on. I don't think I truly noticed until a few listens of the EP that he has this consistent hard hitting shuffle and swing throughout both songs. I think maybe the last bar or so is played straight but who cares, it was a little off and a little different, and added a little flavor to the whole Sludge Doom experience. Overall, this EP was a pleasant surprise. I'm really glad this didn't turn out to be a Stoner/Desert Rock album, as Sludge Doom is really more my thing anyway. With all that being said, I highly recommend this one! Cheers!
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