WATCHER ~ S/T 3 SONG EP........ review

Way back in the 70's when I was at school, those of us who were into the heavier end of rock music usually fell into two camps, those that loved the bluesy hard rock of Led Zeppelin and those who worshipped at the alter of Black Sabbath. Arguments would flow back and forth who had the better singer, guitarist. drummer or bassist but nothing was ever resolved and no one ever agreed on anything..... except for one thing and that one thing was we all loved a little Welsh trio called Budgie. Budgie were a band who managed to draw from both Zeppelin and Sabbath, taking elements of both and blending them into something unique and completely their own. You might be wondering where i'm going with all this...well I'll tell you... i've just heard a five song EP from a Californian four piece that brought back memories of those days, that four piece have the same mixture of dark sabbathian riffage married to hard rock grooves and are called Watcher.

A crunching fuzz drenched circular guitar motif kicks off first track "Leave Me" backed by a big bass lines and pounding percussion all combining together to create a groove very much birthed in the seventies but raised in the 00's. Vocals are reminiscent of Rival Son's Jay Buchanan, soulful with a touch of bluesy timbre, his delivery powerful and perfectly pitched. He bellows and roars over a groove that  many could  describe as sabbathian with zeppelin-esque bluesy swagger but Desert Psychlist likes to call KICK-ASS
"Dirt Box" begins with a delicious bass line then segues into heavy blues groove that shifts through a number of differing dynamics and sees the vocalist soulfully sermonising like a lay preacher whilst the guitars tear the air with howling bluesy guitar solo's
"Sinner Lady" is a stonerized blues boogie fractured with moments of heavy doom drenched riffage and driving rhythmic  power. The vocalist once again proves his worth with yet another outstanding display of soulful rock vocalising
"PSW" sees Watcher  paying their experimental card, aan acid soaked instrumental with guitars feeding back and droning over a strident  bass and drum foundation, lysergic grooves going off on wild tangents before returning then spiralling away again. Loose, atmospheric and totally mesmerising it is without doubt the stand out track on the album.
"Hard Luck Hym" closes proceedings with a Zeppelin-esque blues scorcher spliced with touches of Sabbath-like atmospherics, a combination that brings to mind the rockier moments of New Jersey alt. bluesers Parlour Mob's "And You Were A Crow"
Only five tracks but if the potential shown in these  tracks is anything to go by then I predict good things for Watcher
Check 'em out....