Slomatics – Future Echo Returns (Review)

SlomaticsSlomatics are a sludge/doom band from the UK. This is their fifth album.

A brief overview of Future Echo Returns – doom, sludge, psychedelia, stoner, feedback, atmosphere, synths, heaviness, riffs, leads, solos, metal, songs. More than anything this last one; this album is about songs. Damn good ones too.

In addition to the songs themselves, Slomatics are all about the Continue reading “Slomatics – Future Echo Returns (Review)”

Nekhen – Entering the Gate of the Western Horizon (Review)

NekhenThis is the debut release of Nekhen, a blackened doom solo project from Italy.

Even though this is the project’s first journey out into the world, the brains behind the outfit is obviously not lacking in ambition. According to the press blurb – ‘The album is intended as Continue reading “Nekhen – Entering the Gate of the Western Horizon (Review)”

Monolithe – Zeta Reticuli (Review)

MonolitheMonolithe are a French doom band, and this is their sixth album.

Monolithe are no stranger to this site, having been covered previously here, here and here. This latest album is the second part, a companion release, as it were, to their last one, Epsilon Aurigae, and continues their evolution away from their original funeral doom style into uncharted territories.

Like Epsilon Aurigae, Zeta Reticuli sees the band keeping aspects of funeral doom, but adding increasingly progressive influences to their sound. It also sees them keeping the same format – three songs, 15:00 minutes each, exactly. Continue reading “Monolithe – Zeta Reticuli (Review)”

Green Yeti – The Yeti Has Landed (Review)

Green YetiThis is the debut album from this Greek psychedelic doom band Green Yeti.

This is huge music from a huge green monster. What’s not to like?

There’s over an hour’s worth of music on here, spread across four colossal songs. And what damn good songs they are too.

The band jam out riff after riff, exploring psychedelia, doom, stoner and all things Continue reading “Green Yeti – The Yeti Has Landed (Review)”

Warped Cross – Abbot of Unreason (Review)

Warped CrossWarped Cross are a sludge metal band from Germany and this is their début album.

This is underground filthy sludge metal that takes inspiration from bands like Eyehategod, Crowbar, Down, Corrosion of Conformity, Cathedral and Electric Wizard. There’s a hint of, (dirtied-up), grunge in their sound, (not too dissimilar from the recent Boss Keloid album), as well as some pinches of old-school punk. There’s even a touch of Type O Negative in places.

This is raw and utterly unpolished, but Continue reading “Warped Cross – Abbot of Unreason (Review)”

Rue des Cascades – Odes to Love, Flames to Paris (Review)

Rue des CascadesThis is the début album from this Swiss post-hardcore/sludge band.

There are only two tracks on this release, but lasting 39 minutes in total there’s more than enough content to keep people happy. Although, as we’ll see, happiness might not be the best term used in conjunction with the music on here.

So what do we have here, then? Rue des Cascades play music that combines ambient/post-rock quietness with louder post-hardcore/sludge sections. This is quite atypically done, though, and isn’t a case of simply juxtaposing clean/distorted or Continue reading “Rue des Cascades – Odes to Love, Flames to Paris (Review)”

Chalice of Suffering – For You I Die (Review)

Chalice of SufferingThis is the début album from US doom metal band Chalice of Suffering.

Across this 72 minute release Chalice of Suffering offer up their brand of misery-laden funeral doom for the delectation of listeners everywhere.

For You I Die is slow, dark and atmospheric. The songs take Continue reading “Chalice of Suffering – For You I Die (Review)”

Cough – Still They Pray (Review)

CoughThis is the third album from Cough, a doom metal band from the US.

Cough. It’s a funny name for a band. Still, I’ve heard worse, a lot worse.

If you’re a fan of bands like Yob, Electric Wizard, Sleep, Candlemass and the like, then you’ll probably already know that Cough create the kind of repetitive, hypnotic doomscapes that you’re gonna love. Continue reading “Cough – Still They Pray (Review)”

Messa – Belfry (Review)

MessaThis is the début album from Messa, a doom/drone metal band from Italy.

Messa provide the listener with almost an hour of occult retro doom and dark ambience.

This is akin to a strange-yet-effective mix of Sunn O))) and Pentagram, with deliciously seductive female vocals included. Some tracks are dark ambient/drone, full of mysterious atmospheres and distorted malice, while others take Continue reading “Messa – Belfry (Review)”