THE EVIL ~ SEVEN ACTS TO APOCALYPSE .... review

As we have stated on these pages before Desert Psychlist likes to review albums and EP's in the month of their release but every now and then we find something we've missed, usually something released on the last day of the month, that we feel is too good to be ignored and so on these occasions we break that rule. This is the case with Brazilian doomsters The Evil's new album "Seven Acts To Apocalypse", the album landed on the last day of March and for some reason or another flew under our radar and that of many others which is a strange state of affairs given the bands self-titled debut, "The Evil", was so warmly embraced by all who heard it. The band, Miss Aileen  (vocals), Theophylactus (bass), Iossif (guitar) and Saengar (drums/percussions), hail from Minas Gerais, Brazil and jam a groove that is rooted in doom but incorporates into that groove elements of classical music and opera, however do not go lumping The Evil in with those symphonic metal bands like Nightwish and Epica, these guys are a different animal entirely.

Swirling wind effects and low droning bass introduce opening track "Envy" which is then is joined by a dank slurred Sabbathian guitar refrain and the soaring vocals of Miss Aileen, her vocal alternating between straight edged clean and gritty and soaring and operatic with the odd spoken narrative thrown in for atmospheric effect, it's doom folks but its doom with a classical edge. "Pride" follows and it seems that guitarist Iossif may be a bit of an Alice In Chains fan as he once again tints his refrains with a Cantrell- like slur. The vocals here are a superb mix of  ethereal croons and operatic vocal pyrotechnics with the latter dynamic really hitting its stride in the songs final quarter. As you may of already noticed the track titles reference mans seven deadly sins and so we have "Greed" next, a song that sees Theophylactus, Iossif and Saengar laying down a low slow chugging circular doom groove over which Miss Aileen waxes lyrical of mans obsession with having more in tones both gritty and soaring. "Sloth" follows and boasts a slightly more strident and metallic tempo with the vocals still alternating between straight and operatic but with a few unexpected vocal curveballs thrown in for added interest. "Lust" tampers down the operatics slightly and sees Miss Aileen exploring the more rockier range of her vocal spectrum over a backdrop of dank doom expertly delivered by her fellow band members. "Voracity" is up next, a low slow and heavy tome that features one of the best vocals on the album, vocals that begin macabre clean and menacing and build up to operatic and classical as the song progresses, well that is until the song reaches its three quarter mark and the band erupt into an up-tempo stoner/proto-doom groove with Miss Aileen's vocals taking on a similar gnarly dynamic. Last track "Wrath" finds Saengar supplying a barrage of thunderous rhythm for Iossif and Theophylactus to jam dark angular riffs over, Miss Aileen filling in all the available spaces around and in-between with her, by now, familiar mix of clean ethereal and classical flavoured vocal outpourings, its impressive stuff.

There are times throughout "Seven Acts To Apocalypse" when you could be fooled into thinking that you are listening to a doom version of Carl Orff's infamous cantata "Carmina Burana" backed by musicians from Black Sabbath, Sleep and Conan, such is the grandeur of the vocal performances and the dankness of the doomic grooves present beneath those vocals. Of course there will be those that find The Evil's blending of doom and opera totally atrocious and going against the true essence of doom but then isn't doom all about telling stories to an atmospheric musical soundtrack and are not those the same elements that can found in all the great opera's? We'll let you make your minds up on that one.

Check it out ..... 

© 2023 Frazer Jones

CENTER OF THE EARTH ~ MARS .... review

The Danes are on the march again, this time their target is not the green and pleasant fields of England, as it was in days of yore, this time their sights are set on the dusty cold deserts of the Red Planet! Well not exactly but this seems to be the loose concept behind Danish combo Center of the Earth's latest release "Mars", a three song opus, recorded live in the studio, telling epic tales of swords and sorcery set to a soundtrack of crushing stonerized doom and wonderfully twisted heavy psych and space.  

Center of the Earth, Frederik Holm (guitar/vocals); Jesper Laugmann (guitar/backing vocals); Aksel Brammer (drums) and Sebastian Wilsleff (bass), may not wield swords and shields but the effect they create with their music is every bit as intimidating. Low slow heavy refrains driven by thunderous drumming and decorated in tunefully roared vocals is the order of the day here, a dynamic which would normally have us placing them in the stoner doom camp, but then there is also an intriguing psychedelic element to their sound that muddies the water somewhat and gives their grooves an unexpected cosmic twist. The best example of this "twist" can be found in the epic sized "Old Fang" a song that starts off in classic stoner doom mould, with Holm waxing lyrical of  sailing across red sands with "sword and shield and death at hand" over crunching low slung power chords and pummelling percussion, but then suddenly takes a left turn into what can only be described as a dark monastic passage with the vocals taking on a Gregorian cadence and the guitars getting psychedelic and other-worldly. "Witchqueen" follows and the initial dynamic is again low slow and heavy but is saved from becoming one-dimensional thanks to some searing blues tinted guitar work and a really powerful bear-like vocal. As the song reaches towards it finale the song  morphs into a chugging stoner/proto-doom groove proving that not only can these guys doom they can also rock out. Final number "HC Mechadevil" is an absolute peach of a song to close out on, an undulating doom-ic romp packed to the rafters with dank guitar tones, subterranean level bass lines and an incredible mix of tight and fluid drumming, a word of warning...listeners may well have to turn the volume down a few notches on their listening devices for this or they may soon be on the lookout for a new set of speakers.

 Not strictly stoner doom, despite its sometimes leaden tempo's, and not strictly traditional doom, thanks to its passages of heavy psych and space like experimentation, Center of the Earth's "Mars" is a bit of an enigma. It is some sort of doom, of that there is no doubt, but its not typical of the genre nor any of doom's sub-genre's which, in a scene saturated with similar sounding bands, is probably it biggest and best asset.

Check it out ... 

© 2023 Frazer Jones

FAERIE RING ~ WEARY TRAVELER .... review

James Wallwork (guitar/vocals), Kyle Hulgus (guitar), Alex Wallwork (bass) and Joey Rhew (drums) hail from Evansville, Indiana and make music under the collective name of Faerie Ring. Some of you might remember Faerie Ring making somewhat of a splash with their 2019 debut "The Clearing", a riff heavy collection of "weedian" flavoured heavy rock/stoner doom that along with obvious influences like Sleep and Black Sabbath also drew inspiration from desert rock giants like Fu Manchu and Kyuss. The band return this year with a new album, "Weary Traveler" (King Volume Records), a blistering follow up that finds the band still "following the smoke to the riff filled land" but taking full advantage of a modern studio to refine and polish their "weedian" tomes.

 Let's be honest here, for most of us fans of heavy rock music, and especially underground heavy rock music, it is all about "the riffs", you can dress things up by talking about atmospherics, textures, tones and lyrical imagery but if "the riffs" ain't cutting it then you are probably going to see us moving on to a band whose riffs do. Now that might sound shallow but unfortunately it is true, how many budding axe heroes will pick up a guitar for the first time just so they can play a shimmering arpeggio, the answer is not many, the majority will want to crunch out the iconic riffs from songs like "Smoke On The Water", "Sunshine Of Your Love" or "Highway To Hell" and only then move on to more complicated things. Now we are not trying to paint Faerie Ring as a band whose whole sound is solely reliant on the strength of their riffs, they have far more going for them than that, but their riffs are an important element of their sound and boy do they have some beauties, thick crunchy ones, dank dark reverberating ones and some so heavy they are in danger of collapsing under their own weight. Riffs aside Faerie Ring also have some other things working in their favour, firstly the vocals, which are clean powerful and possess a mournful edginess, secondly the relentless intensity of the bands rhythm section, which at times is breath-taking, and thirdly the subtle colours and textures the two guitarist bring into play when they are not banging out a gnarly refrain, check out the sublime "Endless Color/Dope Purple" for proof of that last statement. It is these extra elements, working in conjunction with those aforementioned riffs, that takes Faerie Ring's "Weary Traveler" from being just another run of the mill gnarly riff fest to being something quite special indeed. 

Fans of Sleep, The Sword and Black Sabbath will love what Faerie Ring bring to the table with "Weary Traveler" but lets be clear about something and that is these guys are no bandwagon jumping doomsters trying to clone a sound that has proved fruitful for others. Faerie Ring are their own animal, their sound might bear similarities to those band mentioned but it is a sound that has its own unique flavour, its own characteristics, its own signature and most importantly its own RIFFS!

Check it out .... 

© 2023 Frazer Jones

SINS OF MAGNUS ~ SECRETS OF THE COSMOS ..... review

Here is something you don't find on Desert Psychlist everyday, a band carrying the tag "Viking metal" beneath their Bandcamp profile, we of course have nothing against "Viking metal", we get off on bands like Bathory and Amon Amarth as much as the next Berserker/Shield Maiden, its just that the album we are reviewing today doesn't quite fit snugly into that whole old gods, axe'n'riff thing, its less one-dimensional, far more diverse and whole lot more enjoyable. The album we are discussing here is "Secrets of the Cosmos" from a combo going by the name of Sins Of Magnus, Eric Early (bass/vocals); Rich Sutcliffe (guitar/vocals) and Sean Young (drums), a trio from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania who describe themselves as a sort of Black Sabbath/Motorhead hybrid with an obsession with all things Norse.

Don't go expecting long drawn out songs stretching well over the nine minute mark as that is just not what Sins Of Magnus are all about, this is a band who like to get their punches in quick and move on, six minutes equates to an epic in this bands book and their music is all the better for that. Things get off to a Sabbathian flavoured start with "Snakes", the songs catchy vocal melody bears a distinctive Ozzy like nasality, however the songs groove is more desert rock than it is proto-doom and is punctuated with passages of punk(ish) bluesy swagger. Title track "Secrets of the Cosmos" follows and apart from its grittier vocal and its "No Quarter" like finale it is hard to find anything Viking to report on, this is pure punk edged stoner rock jam packed with enough hooks to fill a cloakroom. And so it continues through the whole album, each song possessing its own individual merits, each heavy but never overpowering, each bearing a marked difference in attack from its neighbour. When the band do don their Norse armour, like on "Stoking The Flames" and "No Sanctuary" it is more in the vein of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" than it is say Amon Amarth's "Put Your Back Into The Oars" or Bathory's "Blood Fire Death", less abrasive metal more raw rock. The band even get a little alternative and quirky on "Mother Knows Best" (which features Pete Cortner on vocals), and go urban and hardcore on "Is Anybody There?" (featuring Sam Pinola), both tracks showing a level of diversity far removed from the Viking metal they seem to have found themselves associated with.

If you are looking to inflict a Blood Eagle on that annoying neighbour whose dog has deposited something nasty on your lawn, then maybe "Secrets Of The Cosmos" is not the soundtrack you are looking for. Sins Of Magnus may toy with Norse imagery but to tag them as Viking metal is kind of stretching things a little far, sure there are aspects of the metal sub-genre that can be found in their grooves but you can also find elements of hardcore punk, desert/stoner rock and Sabbath-esque proto-doom in what they bring to the table, a sound that is as raucously diverse as it is delightfully dangerous.

Check 'em out .....  

© 2023 Frazer Jones

SYNCOLIMA ~ WAVELENGTHS ... review

 

Mansfield, UK's Syncolima came into being after bassist Stoff and drummer Gaz Evans pulled the plug on their previous band Witchtripper and began looking around for a guitarist who could also handle vocals. The pair approached Josh Morgan, who had previously been plying his skills with Supersonic Death Monkey, Morgan agreed to give things a go and after a productive jam session it become apparent that this was something that had wings enough to fly, and so Syncolima were born. The band didn't waste much time documenting their existence and soon released an album, "Where The End Meets The Beginning" which saw Syncolima fusing together elements of hard rock and metal and then adding into that mix pop like hooks and ear catching melodies, not exactly a mainstream rock sound but one that at times came pretty close. This year the band return with their second album, "Wavelengths" a tome with much the same flavour as its predecessor only this time containing a little added spiciness.

"Beautifully Unsaid" kicks things off , a raucous blend of crunching guitar refrains and strident rhythms married to a clean, slightly gritted vocal, a song with the sort of crossover appeal bands like Thin Lizzy and UFO once boasted of, crunchy enough to please the rockers but with a groove that could possibly appeal to a wider demographic. Desert Psychlist has to admit to having reservations about next track "Riff", not because it doesn't rock, because it does, but because its sermon like vocal is more geared towards audience participation and doesn't quite work (for us) as an album track. "Communicide", however, is the perfect album track, a song that rocks when it needs to and lays out languid and lysergic when it doesn't while next track "New Beginnings" finds Syncolima toying with a little proto-doom, not quite Sabbath-esque but certainly in that ballpark. Title track "Wavelengths" is an undulating gem that routinely shifts between hazy and heavy with Morgan tailoring his vocal and guitar tones to accommodate the songs changes and Stoff and Evans laying down an almost fusion type groove to drive those changes. "Death of an Enemy" and "The Dregs" are out and out heavy rockers  that are sure to become live favourites while "Down In The Muck" twins a 70's heavy rock groove with a 60's flavoured vocal melody then signs out on a Celtic reel played at warp speed. "Dead and Gone" follows and is a hard rock gem with an almost theatrical dynamic that is both playful and rocking, The band bring things to a close with "Pound of Flesh" another undulating tome that twins languid passages with heavier sections and sees Morgan chopping out Lizzy/UFO flavoured guitar refrains and lysergic laced guitar solos while Stoff  lays down exceptional bottom end in support, Evans' tight solid and powerful drumming the glue holding it all together.

Syncolima are not a doom, a heavy metal, a stoner, a psych, a glam or even a pop band but at the same time they are all those things and more, they are a band unafraid to dip their toes into any genre that takes their fancy just so long as they can make it rock. They have a sound that is unmistakably British and owes a debt to Thin Lizzy, UFO, Stray and bands of that ilk but one, that like those bands mentioned, is international in its appeal. "Where The End Meets The Beginning" was a great debut, "Wavelengths" is a superb follow up, their next will be a MONSTER!

Check 'em out ..... 

© 2023 Frazer Jones

VOID KING ~ THE HIDDEN HYMNAL .... review

We at Desert Psychlist absolutely love a big clean powerful vocal, this is not to say we have anything against the guttural growlers, the demonic screechers, the ethereal crooners and the whiskey ruined roarers who also populate the hard rock, stoner, doom and psych scene, all of which have been covered and praised on these pages, it is just that there is something about a strong rich voice (male or female) that really smacks our sweet spot and sends shivers of delight hurtling down our spines. Indianapolis quartet Void King possess amongst their number a vocalist of such power and tone, the bands line up of Derek Felix (drums/percussion), Chris Carroll (bass) and Tommy Miller (guitar) lay down grooves that blend proto and traditional flavoured doom with elements of classic metal, hard rock and grunge, it is a sound that even without the addition of vocals would sound majestic and mighty but with Jason Kindred's rich strong tones front and centre things take on a whole new level of impressive as you will no doubt discover when listening to the bands latest album "The Hidden Hymnal"

"The Hidden Hymnal" is not just a collection of songs built around powerful grooves and and an exceptional vocal, dig into the albums lyrics and you will find intelligent observations of our current political climate, our relationships with each other and the individual choices we make in our lives. Opening song "Egg Of The Sun" might boast thick reverberating doom flavoured guitar tones and thunderous rhythms but vocalist Kindred is not waxing lyrical about devil's and demon's he's pointing a finger at those that turn a blind eye to intolerance and prejudice, a state of affairs perfectly summed up in the line "Mine eyes have seen the tyranny of the hatred caused by bended knee", telling us "It's time to shine the light In the cracks where they like to hide". Following number " The Grackle" tells the story of an injured bird being taken in and nursed back to health against a backdrop of strident metallic bluster, a moralistic tale told in forceful tones whereby the bird could be an analogy for helping a friend down on their luck or a political refugee in need of support, a great song either way you care to read it . Third track "Engulfed In Absence" is an emotive lament/tribute to a departed parent/guardian that if it had been sang to a backdrop of bluesy guitar and sympathetic keyboards could have possibly come across as a little cheesy, thankfully Void King chose to go in completely the other direction and what could have been laid back mournful and sad is instead heavy celebratory and thankful. Next track "When The Pinecones Close Up" not only boasts a superb vocal it also throws the spotlight on how good a band it is that supports that vocal, Carroll's low boneshaking bass lines lock in with Felix's thunderous and tight drums to lay down a platform of groove that even at its quietest is still mountainous while Miller's guitar work, although not soaring here, is the glue that that holds it all together, his thick toned riffs reverberate and thrum like an overloaded power cable. Void King get a little bluesy for penultimate number "Brother Tried" a gritty rant against fake news and misinformation and those that use the internet to both control and divide while final song  "Drink In The Light" is another tune that can be read two ways, is it one man describing an episode of hypochondria, as the line "Fear fills in the times when the mind is allowed to roam" seems to suggest, or is the body in question a lyrical tool to explain a society slowly falling into disrepair, our money is on the latter but we could be wrong so we'll let you decide.

Doom, stoner/hard rock and metal bands are dab hands at telling tales of the dark arts, wizards and witches and swords and sorcery but not so good at dealing with things sitting on their own doorsteps. This is where Void King's "The Hidden Hymnal" differs from albums released by many of their contemporaries, here we have songs that reference fathers, brothers, current political situations and social media, an album populated with people events and situations we can not only relate to but have to deal with everyday, its basically all our triumphs all our disappointments and all our fears set to music.

Check it out .... 

© 2023 Frazer Jones

SONIC DEMON ~ VETERANS OF THE PSYCHIC WAR ... review

That dastardly duo of A (guitar/bass/vocals) and P (drums) return with another platter of distortion drenched fuzz flooded acid doom. For those of you scratching your heads wondering who the fuck A and P are then you will probably know them better by their collective name of Sonic Demon, an Italian duo renowned for barely audible vocals roared, shouted and snarled over backdrops of Electric Wizard inspired gnarled guitar riffage and relentless powerful drumming. Those with their fingers on the pulse of the Italian acid doom/scuzz scene will probably already be familiar with the bands previous outings "Doom 2020" and "Vendetta" and will know that finesse and subtlety are not high on Sonic Demon's list of musical attributes, but even they may be surprised by the venomous attack of their latest release "Veterans of the Psychic War" (Majestic Mountain Records/ Interstellar Smoke Records)

Sonic Demon are with "Veterans of the Psychic War" inviting you to hear the scuzz, feel the scuzz and become one with the scuzz. This has got to be the bands most gnarly, raucous and uncompromising album to date, its fuzz and distortion has a tangible quality that adheres itself to you like a foul filthy grime and makes you feel like taking a long hot shower moments after its last note has faded into the ether. From opening song "Electric Demon" to closing number "To Hell and Back" there is hardly any let up, moments of hazy quiet reflection are rare and when they do present themselves, like on the excellent "Black Pill" and the psychedelic and bluesy "Sexmagick Nights",  they have an almost reverse shock effect whereby the listener, who by now is expecting more scuzzed out gnarliness, suddenly experiences a "where the fuck did that come from" reaction when an out of the blue  passage of lysergic haziness suddenly appears.  Like many of the bands populating the Italian acid doom scene Sonic Demon are not overly concerned with the clarity of their vocals and bury them way back in the mix, the odd word can be picked out here and there but on the whole are delivered in a barely audible sneered snarl, strangely this is the bands, and for that matter the scenes, biggest selling point because those coming to this music are not looking for pristine solo's and sing a long choruses, they are here for the rawness, the ferality and the filthiness of the fuzz all of which Sonic Demon deliver by the truckload.

Sonic Demon make the music they want to make, they are not trying to please anyone but themselves. You are unlikely to find this duo getting in depth articles written about them in glossy mags like Classic Rock and Metal Hammer simply because they are just too feral, raw and uncompromising for the readership of those publications. However for those of us who like their grooves filthy and their vocals sneered and snotty Sonic Demon are manna from heaven (or maybe hell) and their album "Veterans of the Psychic War" a shining example of how damn good nasty can be 

Check 'em out ....   

© 2023 Frazer Jones