Onhou are a doom metal band from the Netherlands and this is their second album.
Onhou crush together sludge, doom, and post-metal into a dense ball of heaviness and mood. Containing four songs spread over 42 very moreish minutes, Monument is a record that any adherent to the cult of sludge should seek out. Continue reading “Onhou – Monument (Review)”
This is the debut album from UK sludge doom band Existence Dysphoria.
Minus Negative contains 31 minutes of unfriendly sludge doom. It’s a mix of caustic sludge and crushing doom, combined with elements of stoner and progressive rock. Continue reading “Existence Dysphoria – Minus Negative (Review)”
Ufomammut are an Italian doom band and this is their ninth album.
The follow up to 2015’s Ecate and 2017’s 8, Fenice offers up a change of direction for Ufomammut’s in some ways. Continue reading “Ufomammut – Fenice (Review)”
This is the third album from Towards Darkness, a post-metal metal band from Canada.
Towards Darkness have a heart of doom, which is then combined with sludge and post-metal to produce 44 minutes of engaging and immersive music. Continue reading “Towards Darkness – Tetrad (Review)”
Bismarck are a doom metal band from Norway and this is their debut album.
Here we have 35 minutes of doom metal that incorporates quite a few different sub-styles into its melting pot. Drawing on influences from stoner, doom, drone, progressive, sludge, psychedelic, and post-metal, Urkraft is a well-rounded and satisfying slab of heaviness. Continue reading “Bismarck – Urkraft (Review)”
This is the second album from Jupiterian, a Brazilian atmospheric doom/sludge band.
Offering a beguiling mixture of oppressive darkness and vivid resplendent beauty, Jupiterian weave their textured sound around a core of intensity that sees this album be as compelling as it is affecting. Continue reading “Jupiterian – Terraforming (Review)”
Ufomammut are an Italian doom metal band and this is their latest album.
Following on from the extremely enjoyable Ecate, 8 is another 45 minutes or so of prime doom metal, delivered in Ufomammut’s own inimitable style. Continue reading “Ufomammut – 8 (Review)”
Soothsayer are a doom band from Ireland. This is their latest release.
Soothsayer play atmospheric doom/sludge that thrives on dense, dark emotion and otherworldly atmospheres.
This is slow-building music that wields atmosphere like a wrecking ball, crushing everything around it with the sheer weight of oppressive mood and feeling. Continue reading “Soothsayer – At This Great Depth (Review)”
Organ are an Italian Doom band. This is their début album.
Organ play a merging of Doom, Sludge and Psychedelic Metal.
A colossal, crushing sound heralds Tetro’s beginning, and this is a theme which is developed throughout. They’re not without their introspective moments, but the overall emphasis is on heavy atmospheres.
Speaking of atmosphere, Organ have it in buckets. Or rather, waves, as the onslaught of heaviness seems to internally generate its own ecosystem which bleeds out of the speakers like controlled tsunamis of density.
Relentless, repetitive rhythms drive the music forward, while dark vocals seem to lurk just beneath the surface. Harsh screams and cleaner vocals both have a place on this record, although the singer’s voice is used like an additional instrument to merely enhance the power and focus of the main musical maelstrom.
A roiling, churning beast of an album. It’s relatively short for this kind of release at ‘just’ over half an hour in length, but it packs a lot of punches into that time and Tetro is a very worthwhile listen for anyone into layered, atmospheric Doom.
For fans of Om, Electric Wizard, Sleep, Yob, In the Company of Serpents, Ufomammut, Generation of Vipers, etc.
Ufomammut are from Italy and play Doom Metal. This is their seventh album.
Ufomammut create confident, exploratory Doom that builds atmosphere in the best tradition of Neurosis, Yob and the like.
This is music that’s both heavy and nuanced, having the instant appeal to draw you in and the depth of longevity to last.
Ufomammut are undoubtedly heavy, but they also have their considered side. The songs are mature and well-written works of contemporary, otherworldly Doom that take you on a journey through waters uncharted.
I like that the band incorporate psychedelic influences into their sound without diluting the core nature of their Doom Metal aesthetic. Strange sounds and effects enhance the delivery of the tracks, giving the listener even more to bite into.
The vocals are low-key affairs in some ways, almost lost in the barrage of apocalyptic riffs and thundering, winding drumming. They’re used less as vocals in their own right and more as another weapon in their musical arsenal, merging with the music at a cellular level.
I’m always a fan of songs where the bass makes a noticeable difference to the performance and Ecate uses the bass wisely. It sounds good and works well across these tracks.
After this many releases Ufomammut clearly know what they’re doing and Ecate is yet another top album of quality Doom. If anything, this is a step forward for the band as Ecate really is pretty damn good.
Wonderbox Metal 