Slund - If You're Angry And You Know It, Clap Your Hands EP (2018)

So here's another great release by Slund. Even though this blasts by in under 12 minutes, this is definitely worth your time. For those unfamiliar, Slund is a one man project that combines Doom, Sludge, and Grind in a cacophony of bludgeoning riffs and high speed violence. Slund's recent release "If You're Angry And You Know It, Clap Your Hands" sees the band stripping away most of its Doom trappings, and mainly retaining the sludge aspect for the sake of deep grooves. If anything I feel like this release has more of a power violence feel to it (call it grindviolence or whatever, sometimes labels just become redundant at a certain point), at least compared to the previous albums. The samples on this release between tracks are fan fucking tastic. They definitely add a sense of cynicism and humor to the tracks for sure. This EP is fucking awesome, so if you're already a fan of Slund, I don't really need to convince you to listen to it or whatever, because you probably have. However if you're a newbie to the band, this might be a good place to start, and just work your way back archaeologically. Quick, Brutal, and Straight to The Point, Slund decimates with this  enjoyable Sludge/Grind offering. Highly Recommended! Cheers! -Samir

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Yith - IMMEMORIAL (2018)

The eternal abyss has a hunger that knows no bounds, forever swallowing any unfortunate soul who makes the mistake of wandering too close to its endless maw. And at the center of that abyss - the very origin point - there must be something that sounds like Immemorial, the second full-length album from the one-man monolith that is Yith. With a masterful combination of the bleakest elements of black metal and doom metal, this is music that will reduce you to nothing more than dust floating forgotten across a desolate wasteland. It draws upon the slow, gloomy atmosphere of doom painting a bleak backdrop over which an unforgiving swill of black metal noise cascades like a waterfall. Touches of quiet synthesizer serve to heighten the tension, sending a chill down your spine and letting you dwell in a sea of foreboding before throwing you into the crashing waves of dark, melancholic sound. There are some terrifying melodies that emerge to evoke a sense of supernatural dread and the bitter, ripping force of the vocals seems to maul you with every word. The last track "Wilderness" provides a few moments of quiet reflection with a distant, forlorn churning that allows the overwhelming torrent of misery from the previous tracks to soak in. "Immemorial" is definitely an album you need to hear because it's as good as it is bleak - and it's bleak as fuck. -Brandon

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Demon Head - The Resistance (2018)

Man, I love Demon Head. If you haven't heard these dudes yet, they're coming out of the wilds of Denmark playing diabolical doom rock and they're playing it clean - little to no fuzz found here. A year after their sophomore album "Thunder On The Fields", they're back with a new EP called "The Resistance" featuring two tracks of earthy magic. There's a sort of natural mysticism in everything these guys do and this EP is no exception! The first song on here is the title track with bass lines and guitar leads seem to take inspiration from early metal or even proto-metal, but put a gloomy twist on things while maintaining the band's pure tone. The more pensive moments serve to create a spark of fear and doubt, but then the song comes galloping back with an air of grim hope. The other tune on here is "Rivers Of Mars" which seems to bring just a touch of bayou flavor to Demon Head's sound. It's a bit brighter and more rock oriented, but the vocal tone casts a sinister shadow over the track. The vocals across both songs manage to hit this beautiful balance of deadpan and soulful with a subtle hint of Danzig - it's a unique voice that fits the band's style perfectly. This pair of tracks makes a great addition to the Demon Head discography, but with the short length it's got me hungry and wanting more! -Brandon

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Eagle Twin - The Thundering Heard (2018)

I think I discovered Eagle Twin in 2010, a year after they released their first album "The Unkindness of Crows". It changed my perspective on what Doom Metal was or could be for sure. These two dudes were playing songs that had amazing riffs, yet everything was kind of loose and free in a way. The guitar sound was toasty as fuck, and Gentry Densley's voice was something unlike anything else I heard at that point in the genre. Incorporating Tuvan Throat Singing and using powerful animal imagery in his lyrics to coincide with his deep bellowing chants, Gentry was like a mad shaman of doom and gloom. The band released their second album "The Feather Tipped The Serpent's Scale" in 2012, and for whatever reason I didn't get the memo on this, and found out after the fact, but was delighted nonetheless.
So now here we are 2018, and history repeats itself once again. I thought maybe when I caught wind that they had a new single out, I'd catch it just in time. I even followed them on Bandcamp, so I would get an alert for when the album dropped. Again, I totally missed out on the day this came out, but I'm here to write that I fucking love this album. Four track, and 40 plus minutes of everything I explained above. I think this time around they added some some bluesier elements in there that added a layer of swagger and bravado, not necessarily missing from the earlier works, but a natural progression that just makes sense. Gentry's tone is just a fierce and fiery as ever, and perhaps even sludgier. The overall sound on this is just fucking massive, but I guess it should be if you're going to name your album "The Thundering Heard". I'm glad 2018 has given us some great releases thus far from some of my favorite bands, and this one is no exception. Great Fucking Album! Period! Cheers! -Samir

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Slave Hands - World Rid Of All Living (2018)

Slave Hands is the epitome of the Old School Sludge sound. The band provides us with a perfect mix of "Gluey Porch Treatments" era Melvins, Eyehategod, and Grief on "World Rid Of All Living". This latest release has the band melding slow moving metal and hardcore punk, and grinding it down to a filthy pulp of misery and despair. It's worth mentioning the moments of dissonant guitar parts that add a layer or dread to music that's already putting its listener at unease and agitation. Each song trudges along at a sloth's pace, as if we are experiencing our last day's on Earth in a barren wasteland, poisoned, starved, and looking for shelter and food under a harsh unforgiving sun. With its fat, blistered strings, its sickening vocals, and its slow yet violent drumming "World Rid Of All Living" takes all the raw primitive Sludge sounds of the past to inform us of our dark days in the future. And if the brutality on this recording is any indication of what's in store for the human race, it's a grim fucking outlook for sure! I definitely dug this one. I'm a sucker for this Old School shit. Highly Recommended! Cheers! -Samir

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Satori Junk - The Golden Dwarf (2018)

A few years after their self-titled full-length album, Italy's Satori Junk have once again emerged from the black of night to lure listeners into their den of hazy psychedelic doom with their new release "The Golden Dwarf". This time around there's a little less fuzz (especially around the vocals) to further expose the naked, unnatural horrors that await you. After a spoken intro the music starts all bluesy and ominous like a film noir before descending into the smoky underworld of stoner-doom with eerie acid-inspired keys over the top. Satori Junk absolutely nails the 60s/70s organ sound - something that lesser bands might use as a crutch - but even underneath its electronic wailing the riffage is heavy and can get thick as fuck as though you're wading through a horde of ghosts that are trying to drag you to the grave. There are a few subtle goth rock twists to the typical doom formula as well - I hear a touch of Bauhaus breaking through on tracks like "Cosmic Prison" and "Death Dog". The title track is full-on breath-taking terror from the get go, doom metal soaked in a chilling, gloomy atmosphere, but then halfway through it bursts into frantic rocking fury - but after all the energy is spent the song falls back into slow doom for just a minute before dissolving as the breathless instruments hopelessly struggle to stay alive. And then the final track comes in with a booming organ introduction that will blow you away - the heaviest cover of The Doors' "Light My Fire" that we will probably ever hear. If you thought that Type O Negative had already brought this song to the dark side then think again because Satori Junk kills all of the song's upbeat swing and instead creates a downtrodden doom with new keyboard and guitar solos that seem to dance and scream with a sick delirium. The whole album feels like a fever dream that takes place in a haunted mansion - something that will give you chills for weeks to come. If you're into doom that's horror-inspired, key-heavy, and/or psychedelic Satori Junk have really put together something special with The Golden Dwarf.-Brandon

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Pink Cocoon - Alienation (2018)

Montreal has a problem on their hands in the form of a group called Pink Cocoon. Guitarist and vocalist Zolla Marc and his shadowy associates are filling the airwaves with sweet, sloshy psychedelic doom that entrances listeners and leaves them stumbling through the night with rotten smiles and red eyes. This intoxicating sonic poison has been recorded across six tracks and the resulting EP has been dubbed "Alienation". Pink Cocoon evokes the sounds and dark spirits of staples like Electric Wizard and Black Sabbath but then sugar-coats everything using just a hint of bubblegum bounce to make it too delicious to resist. These are smoky graveyard jams bursting with an unnatural brightness and groaning under all the bluesy swagger and guitar leads. The tone wavers and teeters like a drunkard with a curse but the songs still strike with dirty intent and precision. Tracks like "Someone Is Out There" and "Child Of Death" throw in some catchy rock 'n' roll stylings a la Nirvana and it bleeds over the fuzzy stoner doom beautifully creating a brilliant image of death dancing wild and dreary-eyed. Scatter in a few eerie undertones and you've got yourself a dangerous set of songs that will have you ready to hop the fence to the cemetery and make the tombstones shake! -Samir

 

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