FOR THOSE ABOOT TO ROCK: Riffs of Canada with Pale Mare (Toronto, Ontario)

By: Mark Tremblay

Album Type: EP

Date Released: 10/11/2017

Label: Medusa Crush Recordings

For those of you who long for the days of “Blessed Black Wings” era High on Fire, this record is the perfect trip down memory-lane.  If you dig thick and dirty riffs, you’ll dig Pale Mare.

“Pale Mare EP” CS//DD track listing:

1). Descolada

2). Carthage

3). Hoplite

The Review:

Toronto’s Pale Mare has finally released their long awaited self-titled EP. After making a name for themselves locally opening for acts such as Windhand and Weedeater, Pale Mare have unleashed their well-honed brand of sludge metal. For those of you who long for the days of “Blessed Black Wings” era High on Fire, this record is the perfect trip down memory-lane.

The EP comes out of the gate swinging with “Descolada”; a song built upon a heavy riff that would make Matt Pike smile. Where Pale Mare break from the pack, however, is this jazz break they’ve fused into the middle of the song. The clean shimmering guitar chords and wah-tinged bass give them a nuisance and balance not often found in riff-driven music.

 “Carthage” is a straight out banger that page homage to early Baroness EP’s “First” and “Second” while adding their own twists. Luke Roberts’ drum fills on this track are particularly jaw-dropping. Given the fact that he is also the guitarist and main creative force behind Ayahuasca, it begs the question “Is there anything Luke Roberts can’t do?”.

The albums closer “Hoplite” is continuation of all these elements mashed together in one riff-crammed magnum opus. Pale Mare is a throwback to the hey-day of the Savannah sludge metal of the early 2000s, only with a twist. If you dig thick and dirty riffs, you’ll dig Pale Mare.

“Pale Mare EP” is available here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

For Those Aboot to Rock: A Countdown to Canada Day. The Olde edition

Three years can seem like an eternity to even the most die hard doom fan, particular if your favourite band hasn’t deliver any riffs during that time.  Take the band Olde for example, after delivering their self-titled debut and garnering critical acclaim from the doom underground, fans have been clambering for  their crushing sonic blows. Fear not, because Olde are set to return on  August 11 with their  STB Records debut “Temple”, an album that delivers everything “Olde” did but  with added weight, ferocity and that much needed hook laden fuzz they’re know for. 

So with Canada Day a mere 24 hours away, not only can you check out a brand new sonic demonstration in the form of “Now I See You” but we have given free reign to Olde guttermouth and bassist Cory McCallum to choose the best underground riffs from the Canadian underground.  Check it oot below to find oot what is all aboot.   (my Canadian naturalisation is complete)

By: Cory McCallum

It is almost Canada Day, by golly, and what better way to celebrate 150 years as a nation than to strap on your toques, fire up the bacon and crank some crushing and under-appreciated Canadian bands.

AYAHUASCA 

Luke Roberts (of Thantifaxath and Pale Mare, also metal heavyweights) stretches out in his band Ayahuasca. "Yin" is a beast of an album; a conceptual trip through the dark regions of Roberts' psyche. The delightfully-complex guitars and rhythm section set the scene for the incredible vocals (the harmony work on this record is second-to-none). 

RIYL progressive sludge with a real focus on smarts, with a smattering of 90s grunge, punk rock and traditional heavy metal to boot. Coincidentally mixed by our own Greg Dawson (which is how I found oot aboot them).

HAWKEYES

Hawkeyes are a six-piece instrumental psychedelic doom band out of the Kitchener-Waterloo area, but they might as well be from space. These dudes are in no hurry to get anywhere, and their patience is a welcomed-virtue. For fans of Floyd, Mogwai or virtually anything loud and droney, Hawkeyes consistently brings the goods with songs that are sonically rich and textured and pay close attention to dynamic and movement. Strap in and launch off. 

SONS OF OTIS

Full disclosure: OLDE would not exist without Sons of Otis.  It's not that long a story, but it boils down to our Greg recording Sons of Otis and having a "holy-shit-I-gotta-do-that" epiphany.

Are Sons of Otis underappreciated?  Arguable.  Does everyone who digs heavy music know who they are?  No, and they should.  SOO are by far Canada's crown princes of Sludge or Stoner Metal or Heavy Psych, or whatever the hell else you want to call them.  They do it all and they do it all tremendously well.

I would hazard that there hasn't ever been a heavy band that can "lock into" a riff or a groove the way Otis can.  When all three (very capable) musicians get on that same page (and sometimes, by design, it takes a while to get there), things get REAL in a hurry.  Fat fat fat bottom end, a rhythm section that operates like a two-brained octopus (hunh?), guitar tones that make your toes curl and possibly the most inconsequential lyrics of all time (note: I am not taking a swipe at Sons of Otis' lyrics.  I am saying that the sounds and the songs are so goddamned heavy and hypnotic that Ken Baluke could be singing out a recipe for butter tarts {awash in reverb and echo and whatever else tickles his fancy}, and I would be pleased as punch).  A modern-day legend, still going strong.  Hail Otis!

SHALLOW NORTH DAKOTA

Unfortunately, many of us probably have a story about seeing a great band play to almost no one.  Mine involves Shallow North Dakota, Hamilton's finest purveyors of noisy, progressive sludge rock (humour me; they kind of defy easy categorization) playing in my shit hometown to about ten people in a Mediterranean restaurant.  SND existed in a bit of a vacuum; they were heavier and more daring than anyone else in the Southern Ontario scene at the time and were making brilliant records and demolishing live audiences years ahead of their time (or at least half a continent away from where they would have been huge).  Canada's Melvins, in a way, but even calling them that with complete respect and admiration is unfair and reductive.  Regardless...when you want a bit more edge, something a bit more fierce, punishing and unrelenting, turn to Shallow North Dakota.  A fave amongst many Ontario metal heads over the age of 30 or so.

FRIENDLY RICH

In the spirit of breaking rules, I conclude with Friendly Rich, perhaps Canada's hardest-working weirdo and a truly underappreciated force hacking his way through the wilderness of the Canadian music scene.  If you are ONLY down with hearing me blather about metal bands, well...tough.  "Heavy" is relative, anyway. Friendly Rich (and, most often, his assorted Lollipop People) have been recording and releasing some of the most innovative and interesting (and yes, often the heaviest) music here in the Great White North.  If you have ever wondered what would happen if a travelling freak show crashed their caravan into a Hell's Angels clubhouse which just happened to be rented that night to, say, an Italian lounge lizard doing an interpretive presentation on the respective folk music traditions of various Eastern Bloc countries....and who hasn't wondered that....well, here you go.  Friendly Rich requires investment; your time, attention and, most importantly, your open mind.  It is an investment that, should you make it in good faith, will pay off in spades.

Plus....”Sausage Samba” is easily the greatest video of all time.

Honourable mentions- Seas, Sierra, Ol' Time Moonshine, Hammerhands, Godstopper, Yeti on Horseback, Algoma, Culted, Razor, Mutank, Sacrifice, Haitian Knife Fight, Kabal, The Shanks, Low Orbit....shit.  I'm putting my name in right now to come back and do this next year. 

Get crushed.  Happy birthday, Canada.

Sincerely,

Olde Cory

Olde Band info: bandcamp || facebook

THE SLUDGELORD PRESENTS: The Sour 16 for September 2016

By: Aaron Pickford

 

 

It is that time once again people to cast our minds back, and digest the 16 albums that would become September’s most viewed albums and form the basis for our sacrilegious ‘Sour 16’, the finest and most profane riffs around bundled together into a premium sized sonic soufflé.

 

You know the drill, each month; you the reader are unwittingly compiling a list of the top 16 records that we featured in September, covering all genres of metal.  Is it not a chart, in which reviewers or contributors extol their opinion about their favourite music.  The ‘Sour 16’ are the records that have been trending the most at Sludgelord Headquarters.

 

The results are compiled based on page views alone and calibrated into the list below. All reviews can be viewed by clicking the artwork and we have included album streams wherever possible. (Total views since their publication are highlighted in red). 



16). Worshipper - "Shadow Hymns (475) 

Musically, with this being somewhere between Black Sabbath (Dio era in particular), Monster Magnet and anything from Witchfinder General to Angel Witch I feel that there is something for most metal fans to enjoy here. Throughout the eights tracks there are lots of ideas, lots of riffs and uniformly great performances from the band. This album surprised me with its scope and approach, so please lend your support and check Worshipper out as this is a rewarding and well crafted album.

 

15). Thou - "Peasant" (2016) (536)

 

14) Usurpress - "The Regal Tribe" (651)

This album is an album, in a profound, coherent and meaningfWorshiul way. It is heavy, dripping with dynamic and interesting, organic changes. The sound is warm but never suffocating, and it is brutal both when holding back (“The Mortal Tribes”) and unleashing (“Behold the Forsaken”). I hate to use the word genre-defying, but whatever fusion of death, doom, stoner and black metal Usurpress have evolved into, it is their voice, it is seamless and mature, and displays no sense of affectation.

 

13) Lesbian – “Hallucinogensis (656)

“Pyramidal Existinctualism” sounds like Mastodon after their drinks have been spiked with LSD and “Kosmoceratops” is epic fist-pumping thrash that takes a left turn into weird, uncharted territory. “Labrea Borealis” and“Aquilibrium” contain more melodic passages that expand the band’s horizons further into cinematic grandeur before crashing back to Earth for further, wild fretboard explorations. Overall “Hallucinogenesis”sees Lesbian achieve a perfect balance of labyrinthine complexity and headbanging simplicity.

 

12). Tardive Dyskinesia - “Harmonic Confusion” (677)

From cellos to righteous crescendos, this song album plumbs the depths of heavy prog and, weirdly, allows the listener to reach new heights as a result. Paradoxical? Sure. Bloody invigorating? You better believe it, buddy. 10 tracks of heavy, expressive, expansive music, just waiting to show you just how mythical Greek metal can be. Pray to the Old Gods, and seek salvation in‘Harmonic Confusion’.

 

11). Brant Bjork - "Tao of the Devil" (703)

In short, “Tao of the Devil” isn’t much different than Brant’s other albums in that it’s both a look back and a step forward. And like his other solo albums, this one can stand alone as a prime example of what Brant Bjork does best.

10). Asatta - "Spiralling Into Oblivion" (768)

This is cracking stuff and a worthy addition to the ever expanding doom canon, "Three Dials”is Crushingly heavy and really fucking noisy, "Lapse” features some swinging grooves to go with the slothful doom sounds, “She Died Long Ago” is a slow trudge through the darkest of doom- and echoes Candlemass rather than Conan in its approach. A fine debut then and an indication that there are great things to come from Asatta, who have positioned themselves up there with modern doom's elite.

 

09). Mouth of the Architect - "Gates of Flesh" (815)

“Path Of Eight”is a fine demonstration of a band evolving their sound without losing sight of what made them great in the first place. Mouth of the Architect have come into their own with this record and hopefully it will gain them some much deserved attention.

 

08). Khemmis – “Hunted” (891)

Overall, ‘Hunted’ is an extremely solid follow-up to their critically acclaimed first album. It is a melting pot of some hugely powerful styles of heavy metal music and the flawless coalescence between cataclysmic doom and melodic prog is a truly impressive feat. Khemmis are a band on a mission and so far, they’re doing it all right.

07). Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard - "Y Proffwyd Dwyll" (928)

“Y Proffwyd Dwyll” is a celestial voyage of crushing density. “Valmasque” sets the tone for the album, establishing a towering wall of sound built from huge lumbering riffs, set against a backdrop of swirling space noise and sci-fi synths that enhance their attack and swell their sound to a galactic scale. Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard have struck gold here with their distinct brand of spaced-out carnage.

 

06). Trap Them - "Crown Feral" (1035)

...the tracks that are strong, like “Hellionaires” and “Revival Spines” in particular, really need to be considered the best stuff Trap Them has ever written. And while opening track “Kindred Dirt” didn't immerse me in the album in the way I'd hoped, by the time we reach “Twitching in the Auras”,there can be no doubt that Trap Them have made a definitive and impressive move forward on all fronts. The sound is overall excellent. Lyrics are angry and powerful and riffs are deep and plentiful. Strongly recommend, and an excellent reason to continue to follow this excellent band closely.

 

05). Giraffe Tongue Orchestra - "Broken Line" (1362)

Giraffe Tongue Orchestra have forged a sound that is unlike any other and more than just the sum of all its parts. “Broken Lines” is, in all, diverse and thrilling and one of the most unpredictable records you’ll hear all year.

04). Meshuggah - "The Violent Sleep of Reason" (1529)

Trying to describe Meshuggah’s sound is a challenge. The only way I can put it is that they’re a musical cascade: a never-ending barrage of sound and heaviness pounding down upon you. Don’t expect or ballad or moments of levity here, this is a relentless tide which you will not escape from. Tracks like ‘MonstoCity’and ‘Our Rage Won’t Die’ are pummelling tracks of new material which can easily be slotted in to their live setlist and not seem out of place. In fact, the same could be said for any of those songs on display here: like a chain forged by Vulcan, there’s not a weak link present. It all hits, and hits hard.

 

03). Ayahuasca – “YIN” (1631)

Throughout, nothing ever quite sits right, like a jigsaw with a few missing pieces: The spasmodic guitar work of ‘Dark Matter God’ is a fitting example of this. Yet they find, upon that uncomfortable platform, a way to drill into your psyche excellently. It may be weird, but it has an uncanny way of selling itself to you.

 

02). Neurosis - "Fires Within Fires" (1674)

 

1). Suicdial Tendencies - "World Gone Mad" (2363)

It flows in a virtually flawless manner and I do believe “World Gone Mad” will be remembered as one of their best records, ever. This one’s a home run with a bullet.

 

A big thank you as always to our amazing writers, your dedication knows no boundaries and for that I am truly grateful.  September’s “Sour 16” features reviews by:  Richard Maw, Theron Moore, Charlie Butler, Chris Bull, Victor Van Ommen, Philip Weller, Conor O’Dea, Jake Wallace, Chris Markwell & Jay Hampshire

ALBUM REVIEW + FULL ALBUM STREAM: Ayahuasca - "YIN"

By: Phil Weller

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 09/09/2016

Label: Independent

Throughout, nothing ever quite sits right, like a jigsaw with a few missing pieces: The spasmodic guitar work of ‘Dark Matter God’ is a fitting example of this. Yet they find, upon that uncomfortable platform, a way to drill into your psyche excellently. It may be weird, but it has an uncanny way of selling itself to you.

YIN” DD track listing:

1). The Dodged Now

2). Born Into A Sadness Machine

3). YIN

4). Dark Matter God

5). Dinosaurs

6). Mange

7). Carbon

8). Left Skull Prison

9). Collapse Of A Lifelong Lie

10). You, The Siren And The Endless Void

11). Mountain Of Snakes

12). White Ship

The Review:

Paradoxically, Ayahuasca, through the channelling of dark and beguiled grunge dirges and the booming sonic intensity of doom, conjure a sound that is as depressing as it is uplifting. Major tones, specifically through a vocal intonation reminiscent of the late Layne Stayley, are haunted with dread and despair, minor tones meanwhile peppered with hope. On ‘YIN’ they have birthed the bastard child of two emotions to one that isn’t explicitly either, but its circus freak upbringing – its replication of some many familiar sounds pieced together in an unfamiliar way – is what makes it such an engrossing listen.   

Named after an entheogenic brew used in a religious, shamanic, or even spiritual context, such a choice of moniker is telling of the Canadian band’s mindset. So it is no surprise that acid trip atmospherics – whirling sound effects and disjointed, prickling textures – float through the record like a chilling breeze, the slow, deadly thump of ‘The Dodged Now’ introducing the band to great avail. Berserk Lout's huge, Layne Stayley like falsetto instantly makes its mark upon a song that, musically, does little else. But where they are minimalist there, the fast paced attack of ‘Born Into A Sadness Machine’, which evokes on-form Screaming Trees in parts, and the ghastly title-track, which fluctuates between a jarring riff and crippled grooves, go on to reveal a band that keeps you guessing.

Here, along with the monstrous stomp of ‘Dinosaurs’ they are at their most straight forward. Still feisty and gritty, but in their Sunday Best. The best/worst (their true self) is yet to come.  

And that’s the thing. At a glance, it would be so easy to cast this as a dirty, denim clad throwback to an era where grunge, and the working class underdogs that created it, was king. The chorus of ‘Dinosaurs’, for instance, would sound right at home on ‘Dirt’. But, while indeed it masterfully reminds the listener of so many of the world beating aesthetics that those bands crafted as their own all them years ago – hints Pearl Jam and Soundgarden sneaking through the cracks of the bombastic ‘Mange’ – there is something unique nestling within their dingy product.

"There's no time, in her eyes, look inside," yelps Lout in a Mike Patton fashioned way on 'You, The Siren And The Endless Void'. He does so atop the usual throbbing drone of guitars and drums, but with the inclusion of a mandolin – sounding so out-of-place yet brilliantly eccentric for it – here is yet another twist in this record's tale. And one, it must be said, that keeps your attention firmly focussed on what’s around the next crooked corner. 

Throughout, nothing ever quite sits right, like a jigsaw with a few missing pieces: The spasmodic guitar work of ‘Dark Matter God’ is a fitting example of this. Yet they find, upon that uncomfortable platform, a way to drill into your psyche excellently. It may be weird, but it has an uncanny way of selling itself to you.

‘Left Skull Prison’, perhaps where the Layne Stayley comparisons become most obviously beside grinding guitars and an almost spiritual countenance, and the “Blood Mountain” era Mastadon dynamic attack of ‘Mountain of Snakes’, could so easily be two bands. They’d be stark contrasts of each other were it not for that chilling breeze, and that paradoxical depressing/uplifting effect it has upon you. By doing so, they have sewn together a diverse and engaging album that is so much more than ‘grunge revived’

‘YIN’ is available here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook