SKULLDOZER ~ HIGH TIDE .... review

"Minimalist" is not how Desert Psychlist would describe Skulldozer's music but that is the legend sitting beneath the bands photo on their Bandcamp page, to be fair though they do follow that up with the sentence "loud riffs" and they are definitely words we at The Psychlist can get on board with. You would probably have to ask the band themselves why they decided to describe their music as "minimalist" but we are not going to do that instead we are going to just give you our thoughts on the bands new album "High Tide" and let you decide the rest.

A few thunderous drum beats announce the arrival of first track "Bloody Ground" followed by an equally thunderous guitar and bass riff over which vocalist Ben House sings of "blood running in the streets" in tones that sit at the slightly helium end of powerful. If you were unfamiliar with the Skulldozer before hearing this track you will now know that they are kick-ass unit with their feet planted firmly in the soils of proto flavoured doom and metal, and a very good one we might add. Next track "Sign of the Times" begins with a heavily fuzzed guitar motif from Justin Morgan that is then joined by bassist Dylan Wills and drummer Jay Erbe in a ferocious stonerized metal groove that if it were a few bpm's faster, and did not slow down to allow for a searing lead break, would almost fall into thrash territory. House once again excels in the vocal department here, his higher ended tones coming across at times like a hybrid cross between Sabbath's Ozzy Osbourne and Dope Smoker's Gareth Hopkins but with twice the power. Title track "High Tide" explodes out of the speakers next, the songs dynamic a mix of stop start sludge, doom and drone offset with a mantra like vocal, it is followed by "Erosion" a thrumming slightly off-centred  tome with Sabbathian undertones that boasts a slightly lower key but just as effective House vocal, Dissonance and drone introduces next track "Mass Production" the band then hitting into a strident proto metal/doom groove beneath a surprisingly swinging vocal melody. Skulldozer go epic for the ten minute plus "Misanthromation", here we find the band mixing stoner metal stridency with low'n'slow doominosity, constantly shifting up and down the musical gears around a powerfully delivered vocal that rails against fake news, lies and misinformation, the real delight here though comes when the vocals drop out and Wills and Erbe settle into a thrumming and intense dank groove which Morgan decorates with blistering but tasteful lead work. Final number "Hand of Fate" sees Skulldozer throwing everything into the musical cauldron with doom, heavy rock, stoner metal, sludge and even a little blues all getting mixed and mashed together beneath yet another powerful vocal performance, if this is what the band call "minimalist" then god knows what they might sound like if they ever decide to go down the extravagant route.

Those of you out there who bought into Skulldozer's previous release "Killing Season" will remember that it proudly carried the legend "no bass guitars, bass simulators, or octave pedals were used in the making of this album" new album "High Tide" however does contain bass and the inclusion of that bass has brought an extra thickness and depth to Skulldozer's sound, the songs on "High Tide" feel so much richer and fuller. Of course bass or no bass you still need good tunes and good grooves and you'll be glad to find there is no shortage of either of those on "High Tide".

Check it out ....  

© 2025 Frazer Jones

BUSHFIRE ~ SNAKES BITE TALES .... review

Bushfire, current line up Bill Brown (vocals); Miguel Pereira (guitar); Luis Jacobi (guitar) Nic Kurz (bass) and Sascha Holz (drums), are a band who have been knocking around this scene for a while now but strangely, despite sharing stages with some of the scenes biggest guns, have never quite achieved the levels of recognition their sludgy take on blues and southern metal so richly deserves. Hopefully that state of affairs will change with the release of latest album "Snakes Bite Tales" a heavy punching opus that sees the ban, jamming some of the best, in our opinion, grooves they have recorded since their inception

Opening track "Cult of Conformity" comes out of the traps full on and forceful then settles down into a mid-tempo chugging groove over which the songs lyrics are delivered in tones gruff throaty and powerful the vocalist coming over at times like a prime period Phil Anselmo (Pantera/Down) against a backdrop of ever-shifting riffage, unbelievably busy drumming and piercing lead guitar work. Next song ,"Force Of 1000 Suns", is a thunderous opus with ear-catching guitar motifs and forceful raw edged vocals and is followed by "Dead Man's Hand" a throbbing heavy metal bluesy rocker that sees the band coming over like a hardcore version of Creedence Clearwater Revival in places. Things get a little doomic and lightly psychedelic on the slightly more restrained "Self Inflicted Bite" but then go in a Clutch-like direction on the pulsating "Comfort In Silence". "Under Willow Tree" starts its life down home and bluesy with slide guitars, liquid bass and shimmering percussion framing wearied vocal tones but then slowly increases in volume and intensity to take on a torch-like dynamic before signing off in a crescendo of strident rhythms and searing solos. You might need to fasten your seatbelts for the furious and hard driven "Watch You Drown"  a pacey heavy rocker that gives no quarter musically or vocally. "Valley Of The Freak" is a perfect mixture of southern rock swagger and heavy metal bluster with vocals that sway between laid back crooning and full on roaring over a groove that is constantly shifting up and down its gears. Final song "InTERRORgate" incorporates slurred grungy guitar riffage with doomic rhythm patterns and tops it all off with vocal tones that range from hushed whispers to full on harshness while making stops at all the various dynamics in-between, a mighty finish to a damn mighty album.

Those who are familiar with Bushfire and their output will know that these guys put their hearts and souls into everything they do and that is why there is no such thing as a bad Bushfire release. "Snake Bite Tales" is no different, in fact it maybe their best release to date... well that is until the next one.

Check it out ....

© 2025 Frazer Jones

PILOTOS DEL TIEMPO ~ ECOS DE UN AMBIENTE DEVASTADO .... review

Been a while since Desert Psychlist dipped our toes into the Argentine underground scene so let's make up for that right now by introducing you to Pilotos Del Tiempo, a power trio from Neuquen consisting of Santiago Veiga (drums); Rodolfo Velazquez (bass/vocals) and Martin Walter (guitar/vocals) who have just released their debut album "Ecos de un Ambiente Devastado". If you like your distortion devastating, your fuzz heavy and your psych even heavier we think you are going to love these guys.

The durability of your speakers/headphones get tested right from the very off with swaggering opener "Detrás" not only do they have to contend with thunderous swinging drumming, growling heavily distorted bass and fuzzed to the max guitar riffage they also have to deal with vocal lead and dual harmonies pitched at the raw, loud and throaty end of clean. Those speakers do not get much respite with following instrumental "Queena" either, this tune comes at you lathered in distortion so filthy it will stain your ears, and don't expect to hear some swirling lead work cutting through all the delicious nastiness because even the solos are coated in grimy dissonance. Next up.is "Say My Name" the albums only song with English lyrics, here we find the band offsetting their full on stoner metal attack with elements of heavy psych beneath slightly cleaner but no less gritty vocals, the swirling guitar solos do cut through a little more here but are still far from anything close to being pristine. "Labertino" follows and begins with a mix of whispering and throat singing accompanied by a low bass motif and some weird crackling effects before the song explodes into desert/stoner groove drenched in close to breaking up fuzz, vocals here are a little more melodic and a tad mellower but not what you would call exactly harmonious. Doom makes its presence felt on the slightly schizophrenic "Esclavitud de la Razón" but it is a quirky doom with a hard to explain off centred feel, a feel made even more off-centred thanks to its semi narrated vocal dynamics. The doom sticks around for the blackened and sludgy "Invertido" this song boasting crunching reverberating riffs and pounding steady percussion supporting thick guttural vocal tones, the song also features some cool Iommi-esque shredding in its last quarter. Final number "Vagabundo" brings back the speaker shredding fuzz and distortion and twins it with a vocal harmonies that are a strange mix of stoner rock rawness and clipped goth like cleanliness, even stranger is that those vocals work really well against the wall of noise that is surrounding them.

Gloriously loud and deliciously noisy Pilotos Del Tiempo's "Ecos de un Ambiente Devastado" is not the sort of album you will want to listen to while sipping wine while sitting in front of an open fire, this is an album of heavy, extremely fuzzy and unbelievably distorted music perfect for those times when you feel like getting a little rowdy and off your tits on something alcoholic or pharmaceutical. 

Check it out ....   

© 2025 Frazer Jones

MARY THE ELEPHANT ~ JUMBLE .... review

 

Heavy(ish) grooves that lean towards the more grungy bluesy end of the underground rock spectrum are what Sweden's Mary The Elephant, Hami Malek (vocals); Isaac Ingelsbo (guitar); Johan Fogelberg (bass); Doe (drums) and Patrik Gardberg (lead guitar), deliver with their latest EP "Jumble" a sound very much in keeping with that which could be found on their previous self-titled EP "Mary The Elephant", grooves that could be argued owe as much a debt to bands like Alice In Chains and Stone Temple Pilots as they do the likes of fellow Swedish outfits like Graveyard, Kamchatka and Horisont.  

A chunky guitar motif accompanied by a thunderous drum tattoo kicks off opening number "Chemical Funeral" which is soon joined by the bass in a grungy side of stoner/hard rock groove over which a powerfully delivered vocal rails against the world in tones that possess a throaty gruff soulfulness. Next song "Malady" boasts a less in your face and somewhat more classic rock flavoured vocal melody than its predecessor but do not let that fool you into thinking that this song lacks heaviness or bite as there are plenty of crunching power chords, growling bass and big punchy rhythms to get your teeth into on this one as well as some very impressive bluesy guitar shredding. There is a strong doomic feel to following song "Curse-Breaker" the band musically edging pretty close to low slow and heavy stoner doom territory around an impressively pitched vocal that is delivered just a tad mournful and wearied. After having to deal with an annoying and persistently bothersome wasp/hornet while writing this review the last thing Desert Psychlist needed was a song titled "Swarm" that contains the lyric "I can hear them buzzing all around me" and begins and ends with the sound of swarming insects, that aside this is a superb, if somewhat quirky little number boasting plenty of twists and turns that although may not be immediately evident on a first listen will reveal themselves with repeated spins. Penultimate number "Birth Of A Giant" is a nice if rather brief fusion like instrumental that leads us nicely into closing number "Shadows" a slow building grungy classic rock flavoured tome decorated with a lilting vocal melody and featuring some beautiful Gilmour-esque guitar textures, it maybe not the barnburner some might be expecting as a closer but it is nevertheless still a great song.

Mary The Elephant's "Jumble" is parts swaggering and heavy and parts soulful and mellow, a release that trades more on the strengths of its melodies than it does the power of its riffs. If you were asked to recommend a release to a friend teetering on the edge of taking the plunge into the darker recesses of the underground rock scene then "Jumble" would be the perfect release to point them towards, its got the grit but its also got the polish! 

Check it out ...

© 2025 Frazer Jones

RIFFCHILD ~ SUN WILL FOLLOW ..... review

Riffs, (repeated musical phrases/motifs) can be performed on most instruments and are present in variety of musical forms and genres, though they are predominantly associated with guitars and rock music. In the underground music scene a well crafted riff can be as crucial as a strong vocal melody, if not more so. Bearing this in mind, one can imagine the significant pressure placed on a band that incorporates the word "riff" into their name. Such a choice not only requires them to overcome the  same challenges faced by any emerging band trying to gain some recognition but also demands they meet the expectations of their listeners regarding the quality of said riffs and refrains. Quebec's Riffchild, Louis Vaillancourt (vocals/bass), Enzo Chassé (drums), and Léo Duffard (guitar), are one such band whose chosen name is bound to create such expectations but they justify their name choice by delivering some of the grimiest, most distorted, and fuzz-laden riffs one could hope to find this side of an impending apocalypse, as you will no doubt discover for yourselves when giving their debut release, "Sun Will Follow." a spin.

Riffchild begin their musical assault on the senses with title track "Sun Will Follow", and when we say assault we really mean ASSAULT! Fuzz and distortion here are dialled up to almost breaking point on both guitar and bass with the accompanying drumming teetering on something well beyond thunderous. Now with this level of thunderosity things can get a little messy, and on occasions they do, but it is a glorious messiness off set with vocals that cut through the doomic miasma that surrounds them like a scalpel through rotting flesh, clean clear echoed tones that boast a slightly monastic quality. Vaillancourt sings of Earth's regeneration and rebirth in powerful ringing tones on next number "Arise" his voice wafting monastic and majestic over a backdrop of humongous dank groove made to feel even more humungous and dank thanks to Vaillancourt's own rumbling bass tones and Chassé's gigantic sounding drum patterns, the resulting groove enhanced and taken to another level by Duffard's dark crunching power chords and searing solos. Chassé uses his sticks to count in next track "Exile" and from there on in we go on a musical journey that starts life low slow and heavy but then gathers momentum as it progresses. The song boasts some highly impressive drumming from Chassé as well as great bass work and vocals from Vaillancourt but it is Duffard's lead work in the songs last quarter that is the real deal clincher here. Final song "Léthargie" is everything you could possibly want from a closing number on a release pitched at the doom end of the metal genre, brooding atmospherics, thick reverberating riffage, a variety of  heavy rhythmic drum patterns, swirling solos and superb ethereal flavoured vocals. Take note any new band wondering how to close out their first recording, this is how it should be done!  

Recorded live in Riffchild's practice space, "Sun Will Follow" is a remarkable release that captures the raw, loud, edgy, and uncompromising essence one might expect from a live on stage performance. Obviously there has been some mixing and mastering applied before presenting this four song collection to us, the great unwashed public, but not so much that it detracts from the three guys going at it hell for leather vibe this EP so superbly evokes.

Check it out .....     

© 2025 Frazer Jones

SLEEPING MOUNTAIN ~ SLEEPING MOUNTAIN .... review

Sleeping Mountain may be a name that'll ring bells with regular visitors to Desert Psychlist and the reason those bells will be ringing is due to the fact that we reviewed the bands 2023 self titled debut EP "Sleeping Mountain" on these very pages, a review in which we described the bands sound has having the "complexities and intricacies of 70's prog" mixed with "some of the more melodic and heavier aspects of todays heavy rock, metal and psych scene". Sleeping Mountain were operating as a five piece at the time we wrote those words but have since slimmed down to a trio, consisting of  Aitor Mendez (guitar, keyboards and vocals), David Saunders (bass) and Alexis Humanes (drums and vocals), a move that doesn't seem to have effected the intensity and power of their musical attack one iota, if anything the band sound tighter and even more focused, something which will be come even more apparent when giving their, again self-titled but this time full length, album "Sleeping Mountain" a spin.

Drummer Humanes counts in opening track "Humans" and is quickly joined by Saunders bass in a rolling stoner-like groove over which Mendez, when not filling any gaps with crunching power chords, applies swirly guitar motifs and swooping lead work. The song is basically an instrumental but thanks to some cleverly placed sampled  narrative in its final quarter, and the fact it segues straight into its following track, it does not feel like one. That following track, "Walls of Shadows" begins quite quaint and otherworldly with waif-like wordless harmonies intoned over a musical backdrop that bears lysergic post-metal qualities, however things soon take a doomic turn when Mendez's vocals come in, his powerful slightly accented vocals the catalyst for a long passage off heavy guitar and bass riffing supported by thunderous pounding percussion, a passage that in turn makes way for a period of hazy swirling lysergic bluesiness. "Wildfire" sees Sleeping Mountain still wading in the bluesy waters that informed the final stages of the previous song but this time with dynamics that veer a little less to lysergic and more to heavy and Zeppelin-esque. Next up is "In The Land of Burning Witches" an absolute bangin' tune that wraps a mix of stoner-ish and proto metallic groove around a superbly delivered wending and winding vocal melody, the songs only fault being that at only three minutes plus it finishes far too quickly. "Alibi" initially sits somewhere between a lament and torch song with wearied soulful vocals referencing "reapers" and "souls" but then takes off into harder and heavier territories, all chugging riffage, insistent rhythms and screaming lead work. "The Door" boasts grooves that sway between strident and circular and bluesy and psychedelic over which an impassioned vocal pleads for the portal in the songs title to be opened or at least left ajar while "Tennessee Walking Horse" blends elements of Americana  and southern metal with stoner rock and heavy psych to create a groove that  musically incorporates not only the grace and elegance associated with the breed of horse its title refers to but also elements of that particular breeds renowned four-beat running gait. Penultimate song "Akelarre" has an occult/doom feel about it which given that "akelarre", in the Basque language, translates to "witches sabbath" makes sense. Musically the song has a dank and doomic feel but cleverly brings into play subtle elements of a more post metallic flavour to add texture and colour, vocally the song boasts a Sabbath-esque melody, albeit with a bit more power in the upper registers and minus Ozzy's distinctive nasal whine. Final track "Medusa" kicks off with thrumming stoner-ish bass and guitar riffage supported by hard and thunderous drumming over which a gritty but clean melodic vocal holds sway however just before the halfway mark, and after a brief passage of post-metal ambience, things take on a darker and heavier dynamic which sees the band swimming in waters probably more used to hosting bands like Poland's Dopelord and Greece's Acid Mammoth. Having plummeted into the depths the song then resurfaces in a wave of blistering crunchy hard edged rock over which searing guitar solos blaze and burn.

Sleeping Mountain's transformation from a five piece to a trio is one that suits them, granted they have lost a little of that old school vocal power their previous front man gave them but Mendez more than makes up for that with his soulful weariness. The real difference though is the tightness of sound they achieve as a three piece, which one would guess comes from having to fill spaces that would previously be filled by a second guitarist, their sound is a much more focused on this full length release as well as much bigger and a hell of a lot more forceful.

Check it out .....               

© 2025 Frazer Jones

FUSSKALT ~ FACELESS MAN ..... review

When Kyuss first connected up their amps to a generator in the middle of a Californian desert back in the early 90's little did they know they would be kick starting a scene that would still be thriving thirty plus years later. It may also have come as a surprise to them how much their blend of punk and heavy rock would be embraced by audiences and budding musicians living many miles away in Europe, so much so that even today there are more stoner/desert rock related festivals and events in Europe than there are in the music's North American birthplace. One European band to have taken that desert rock sound and put their own spin on it are Denmark's Fusskalt who hail from the Danish town Skanderborg. Fusskalt first came onto Desert Psychlist's radar via their 2015 release "Overdrive" a collection of hard rocking tunes drenched in fuzzy crunchiness that immediately had us going back to check out the bands previous releases "Songs For Speedin' and Chasin (volume 1)" and its follow up "(volume 2)". Fusskalt really came into their own though with their 2018 release "Intercooler" an album that found the bands sound taking on a more mature and refined dynamic, a sound that still retained its raw edginess but felt slightly less abrasive. Not long after "Intercooler" original vocalist Lars Frederiksen left and so the band had to cast the net wide to search for a new vocalist and in came Nikolaj "Niko" Sune Krogh-Poulsen a vocalist in possession of his own distinctive tone but a tone not so radically different that it would change the bands overall musical attack. It is Niko along with stalwarts Nick Jensen (guitars); Thomas Brandt (guitar); Janus Kinke Pedersen (bass) and Jonas Emil Nielsen (drums) who are responsible for new release "Faceless Man" an EP that sees the band taking that maturity and refinement displayed on "Intercooler" to a whole new level.  

Desert Psychlist is not 100% sure why opening number "Fuzz Cult" is so named as its lyrics make no mention of cults or cabals but let us tell you that if the band did decide to start up some fuzz based religion and used this slice of southern tinted desert rock, boasting gritty clean vocals and backing "woo-woo's" reminiscent of the Rolling Stones "Sympathy For The Devil". as its anthem then we at The Psychlist would be signing up to join faster than you can say "banging"! "River of Gold" follows and is a song that lyrically tackles insecurity and depression head on against a backdrop of thrumming stonerized groove over which Niko tells us he's "fucked up" and "terrified" in wearied but powerful tones, a big shout should go out to Thomas Brandt here, his lead work on this tune is sublime. Nielsen's solid rolling drums combine with Pedersen's low rumbling bass and Jensen's fuzzy riffs and chunky power chords to give Niko a platform to wax lyrical about  his feelings of loneliness and invisibility on the strident "Sirens", Brandt again pulling out all the stops here with his lead work. Title track "Faceless Man" is part a lament, part a torch song and part a slow burning hard rock behemoth that is fronted with a powerful vocal that is soulful and reflective in the songs verses and angry and pleading in the chorus with the songs musical dynamic following a similar path to its vocals with passages of bluesy languidity rising up to huge crescendo's only to then slowly drift down again. Last number "Hippielort (The sacrifice I make)" is a song that sits somewhere between 90's stoner and 70's hard rock but with present day versions of both dynamics mingled in, as is the case with every song on this superb release each member is on their "A" game.  Those non-Danish speakers among us who might be wondering about the word "hippielort" in the songs title will be pleased to know that "lort" translates to "shit" in English.... so basically this is a song about "hippy shit"! 

With not much news coming out of their camp and no new releases since 2018's "Intercooler" many might have wondered if Fusskalt had hauled up the white flag and called it a day, thankfully that was not the case and this year sees the band return with not only a brand  new EP, "Faceless Man," but also a brand new vocalist, if you thought they were great before wait until you hear them NOW! 

Check 'em out ..... 

    

© 2025 Frazer Jones