Stone Nomads debut "Fields of Doom" blew out of nowhere and devastated the minds of all those who heard it, a mixture of old school proto-doom and modern day sludge that hit with the force of a hurricane and laid waste to all in its path. The band at that time consisted of Jude Sisk (bass/vocals); Jon Cosky (guitar/vocals) and Dwayne Crosby (drums) but for their new album ",,,At the Gates of Solitude" (Gravitoid Heavy Music) Cosky and Crosby have recruited Esben Willems to take on the drum duties, a slightly altered line up but still the same musical force of nature.
Those references to blowing and hurricanes seem justified given that this albums intro piece is entitled "Post-Apocalyptic Winds" a brief but wholly interesting instrumental made up of wind effects, reverberating guitar refrains and pounding percussion but it is what follows that really blows the barn doors off, What follows is "Frigid" a chugging behemoth driven by powerful drumming and grizzled bass over which crunching chord progressions and searing solos are interspersed with growling lead vocals and equally growly harmonies, a beast of a track in all its aspects. "Blackened Paradise" follows and lives up to its title by being a slice of blackened dank grooviness that has one foot planted in black metal and the other entrenched in death tinted doom and is accompanied by appropriately bestial vocals. You might have noticed by now that whereas the bands previous album, "Fields of Doom", was rooted in more traditional/proto territories things here lean towards the more sludgier end of the doom genre, however that slightly changes for next track "Tempter" (a Trouble cover), those heavy sludge leanings still in existence but tempered with elements of old school heavy metal gallop and thrash-like furiosity, the song also features ex Trouble man Kyle Thomas guesting on vocals. The serene acoustic guitar noodling of "Premonition" allows us to momentarily catch our breaths but then its all back aboard the good ship heavy for "Upon the Hands of Gods", another song that mixes old school metal and thrash with new school sludge and groove, it also boasts some pretty impressive lead work. "Rumination" allows us another moment of brief instrumental respite before we are thrust into the mire again with "The Void that Remains", here we find Stone Nomads fully embracing the doom, not so much in a Sabbathian way but more in a Candlemass/Solitude of Aeturnus sort of way, the trio making clever use of atmospherics and dynamics to give the song an epic, almost cinematic, feel. Final song "Overlords" adds to Stone Nomads résumé of old school and new school grooves elements of both Celtic and Viking metal swagger and twins them with some clever harsh/clean/harsh vocal dynamics to add an extra level of depth and magnitude to the songs dank dark atmospherics, a monstrous finale to a truly monstrous album.
"Fields of Doom" was a stunning debut album but one that was very much a sum of its influences, with "...At the Gates of Solitude" Stone Nomads have found their own voice. The sound the band capture on this album is heavier, blacker and more extreme than anything that graced their debut and is all the better for it. "Fields of Doom" gave Stone Nomads an audience "...At the Gates of Solitude" is the band showing that audience what else they have in their locker.
Check it out ....
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