DOOMICIDAL ~ SPAWNED IN HELL ....... review

The tree of DOOM has grown many branches, funereal ,stoner, epic and blackened are just a few sub-genres to sprout from the seed sown by Black Sabbath in the early 70's but it was in the, wealth obsessed "greed is good", 80's that doom really started to blossom with the likes of Trouble, St. Vitus and Pentagram taking things to the next level
Bath,UK's  Doomicidal live in a space where those two periods meet, jamming a groove somewhere between the heavy rock of Sabbath and the classic doom of Candlemass, a groove that has a foot in both camps but adds a little psychedelic colouring into the equation to keep things topical.
The trio of Migo Gage - Guitar/vocals, Roger Densham - Bass/vocals and Gareth Jones - Drums (he plays on the EP but has since been replaced by Dave Stephens)  have taken all these elements and incorporated them in a three track EP recorded at Stage 2 Studios (Bath UK) and available on Bandcamp titled "Spawned In Hell"

Only three tracks long and lasting just under twenty minutes "Spawned In Hell" is nevertheless epic, not in the doom sense of the word but in its overall depth and musical content.
Opening track "Colossus" is a fine example of this epicness, beginning with glorious psychedelic dissonance before segueing into a slow and deliciously heavy refrain. Gage's guitar and Densham's bass combine together as if one laying down a slurred groove thick with reverb and fuzzy gain. Densham adds to this a vocal that is more spoken in tune than it is sung, his tone clean and slightly melancholic as he speaks/sings of  serving the Anti-Christ and being a "demon spawned in hell". The second half of the song sees Jones and Densham locking in to hold down the groove while Gage rips a series of scorching and truly inspired solos from his fretboard before all three come together again to take things to the close.
"Mirrors and Smoke" raises the temperature with a Sabbath-esque stoner doom groove ably driven by Jones' pounding drums and Densham's booming bass and overlayed with Gage's fiery guitar work. Vocal duties are this time taken up by Gage and sang  in a mantra type, almost Gregorian-like chant. The track then moves up a gear with Jones laying down a furious percussive barrage around which Densham weaves thick throbbing slabs of four string thunder and Gage rips WAH drenched licks, riffs and solos.
"Less Than Perfect" begins on a wave of dark droning feedback  and deeply distorted bass before taking off into a swooping doom laden groove intermittently broken by a chugging, head nodding, stoner metal refrain. Vocals are again sang by the guitarist and are again more chanted than sang, a trick that adds to the monolithic intensity of the groove surrounding them. Jones puts in yet another good shift on drums, crashing his cymbals, pounding his skins with muscular power and skill, driving Gage and Densham on from his stool. Densham, meanwhile, manages to lock in tight with  both Jones and Gage, his deep thrumming bass an integral component of the bands sonic blueprint. Gage peels off yet another series of tasteful and feel drenched solo's this time adding a little bluesy phrasing and psych colouring into the mix, his guitar soaring over and around the heavy rhythmic pulse beneath it. Heavy, atmospheric and a perfect blend of those elements mentioned in the opening paragraph it closes this EP with style.
Check it out.....