Agatha - Gravis Atque Gravior (Album Review)

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 30/05/2014

Label: Wallace Records, Il Verso del Cinghiale, 

Sangue Dischi, Cheap Satanism, Panda Panda, 

Overdrive Records, Cheap Satanism, 

No Work Record, Chaos Rural Records

‘Gravis Atque Gravior’ CD//DD//CS//LP track listing:

1. 1981

2. Right is not Right

3. Black Owl

4. A Song for the Different

5. Planets Conspiracy

6. Not About Who Rules

7. Keep Breathing Please

Agatha is

Claudia | drums

Pamela | bass/vocals

Review:

Agatha is an Italian sludge/doom duo, led by Claudia (drummer) and Pamela (bass + vocals). Though originally a three-piece, the band now operates as a bass and drum duo in live settings. Whether their new material will still have guitar tracks on the record remains to be seen. A cursory listen to ‘Gravis Atque Gravior’ reveals a strong appreciation of the Savannah, GA heavy music scene, with more than a few Kylesa and Baroness moments throughout the album. This album is the group's first output on Canadian label Chaos Rural Records. 

Opener "1981" lumbers forward with a rather straightforward stomp, only to erupt in a frenzy of tribal drum beats and a more driving finish to the track. This is a solid opener because it is brief and powerful, but also lets the listener know what's in store for the rest of the album. One would be forgiven for thinking that the riffs on this track all sound fairly similar. Whether that is in the album's favor or not is entirely up to the listener, but it is an observation worth noting as this pattern continues throughout the rest of the album. "Right is not Right’ opens with a very Kylesa feel with hi-hat-and-bass-drum beats accentuating the introductory riff. 

However, it's "A Song for the Different" wherein the band finally finds themselves. The more pronounced bass guitar and tom-heavy drumming gives a glimpse into what Agatha might sound like live in the current duo format. Pamela's half-shouted-half-sung vocals recall early Kylesa and even a bit of Black Tusk (RIP Athon) as she attempts to navigate the boundaries between full-on screaming and the shouted vocals that are more common in Southern-style sludge and doom (see: Rwake, Eyehategod, Black Tusk, early Baroness). This track features some more melodic interplay between the instruments and more dynamic songwriting than the first two tracks. When the bass break comes in around 3 minutes, I dare you to not bang your head. This is just the right amount of heavy and catchy.

"Planets Conspiracy" continues in the vein of the previous song, and at this point it becomes clear that the last half of the album is stronger and more varied than the opening tracks might have led you to believe. The layered vocal attack that begins at 2:37 introduces a new level of heaviness that had only been alluded to in earlier songs. At this point I found myself wishing one of these songs had opened the record; "1981" is a strong opener but is far from the standout of the record, and by the time the drone-y uptempo clamor of "Keep Breathing Please" fades out, Agatha has taken you to a number of different places in a relatively short amount of time.

This album will grow on you. That is not to say it isn't an excellent record, but rather that it is at times unfocused and sometimes falls into the trap of sounding repetitive as have some of the Savannah-area bands who have influenced Agatha (Zoroaster, for one). Agatha wear their influences on their sleeves, and the moments when they push through to something new are frequent enough that I know they are capable of something truly striking. 

Words by: Ben Hutcherson

You can pick up a copy here

For more information:

Listen to Agatha here: https://agatha.bandcamp.com/

Like them on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Agatha/25665007637

Follow their label here: https://www.facebook.com/chaosruralrecords

Siege Mentality - Arrest Days (Album Review)

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 12/12/2014

Label: Witch Hunter Records

‘Arrest Days’ Cassette/DD track Listing:

1. Intro [01:16]
2. Episode 2 [02:00]
3. Dying Right [01:22]
4. See It There [02:32]
5. Serious Threat Display [01:29]
6. Mind Kicked Open [01:07]
7. That Taste Again [01:45]
8. Keep The Bracelets [03:06] 

Siege Mentality is:

Dave Mould | Vocals 

Rick Owen | Bass 

Chris Fane | Guitar 

Will Adams | Drums

Review:

Siege Mentality
n
1. (Psychology) A shared feeling of victimisation and defensiveness - a term derived from the actual experience of military defences of real sieges. It is a collective state of mind whereby one believes that one is being constantly attacked, oppressed, or isolated in the face of the negative intentions of the rest of the world.

Though people often head over to the Sludgelord for new reviews on all that is detuned and fuzz-drenched, we like lots of other kinds of heaviness as well. Siege Mentality's ‘Arrest Days’ is not in the "low-n-slow" category, but goddamn is it a crusher. A lo-fi release for fans of His Hero is Gone, Mind Eraser, Cursed, and Eyehategod's crustier tracks, this record is fourteen minutes of pissed-off grind, crust, and sludge. The Liverpool quartet wear their influences on their sleeves in the best possible way -- you may have heard these elements before, but you aren't at all bummed to hear them put together in such a convincing blast of nihilistic fury. From "Dying Right" to "Serious Threat Display," Siege Mentality pull no punches as they drag you through the streets and kick your teeth in.

Closer "Keep the Bracelets" is a glimpse into what this group is capable of when they let off the gas a little bit. Discordant, downtempo breaks highlight the fury of the d-beat madness that characterizes the rest of the album. They don't go so far as to enter ‘Seizures in Barren Praise’esque moments of atmosphere and dread, but one gets the idea that this group is capable of exploring this realm further without sacrificing the raw aggression that makes this album so convincing. Grab this release and keep an eye out for their next album.

Words by: Ben Hutcherson

You can pick up a name your price DD here.  Tapes are long since sold out. 

For more information:

Bandcamp | Facebook

Holly Hunt/Slomatics - Split 7" (Review)

Album Type: Split 7Inch

Date Released: 1/12/2014

Label: Black Bow Records, 

Other Electricities

Holly Hunt/Slomatics Split 7 Inch track Listing:

1. Holly Hunt - "Bill Ward" (04:12)

2. Slomatics - "Ulysses, My Father" (04:27)

Holly Hunt is:

Beatriz Monteavaro | Drums

Gavin Perry | Guitars

Slomatics are:

Chris | Guitars

David | Guitars

Marty | Drums, Vocals

Review:

Though they may be separated by an ocean, Holly Hunt and Slomatics both reach deep into the abyss and pull out an excellent split 7 inch stuffed with fuzz-soaked riff bombs, crash cymbal abuse, and, interestingly, absolutely zero bass players. (NB. Chris Fielding plays bass on "Ulysses, My Father")

Holly Hunt wastes no time tapping into the Iommian ether. Beatriz Monteavaro (of Floor/Cavity fame) grabs you with tasty, understated fills and busy snare patterns while Gavin Perry clobbers you over the head with riff after riff of saturated heaviness. These two fill up the space in a way that doesn't leave you wishing they had more members for even a second. Instrumental music can often feel aimless and/or self-indulgent -- this track avoids both pitfalls by keeping everything short and to the point. That is the marker of good song writing, one of the many positive characteristics of this release. At just over four minutes, the excellently-titled "Bill Ward" can't be listened to just once. It's that damn good.

Somehow Slomatics manage to sound even heavier with "Ulysses, My Father," albeit in a more traditional fashion. While Holly Hunt's offering is a bombastic, catchy slice of Floridian sludge (who would expect Miami to produce so much heaviness?), the B-side's tone and overall pacing are flat-out suffocating. This outfit get back to their roots here, slowing the pace and cranking the gain on their Dunwich Amplification-made fuzz pedals. The first note kicks you in the stomach, and the next four and a half minutes are no less devastating. The brief appearance of synths mid-song coincides with the tom-fueled respite; you have just enough time to catch your breath before being thrown right back into the thick of it. Though this cut harkens back to their earlier sounds, fans of their latest release ‘Estron’ will not be disappointed in the least.

You need this release. If you know these bands, then you know I'm stating the obvious. If you aren't familiar with either of these bands, take 8 and a half minutes of your time, turn your speakers up, grab a cold beer, and bang your goddamn head.

Words by: Ben Hutcherson

You can pick up a digital version at their respective bandcamp sites and the vinyl can be purchased here and here

For more information:

Slomatics – Bandcamp | Facebook | Official | Twitter

Holly Hunt – Bandcamp | Facebook | Twitter

Atriarch - An Unending Pathway (Album Review)

Album Type: Full-Length

Date Released: 24/10/2014

Label: Relapse Records

‘An Unending Pathway’CD//LP//DD track listing:

1). Entropy
2). Collapse
3). Revenant
4). Bereavement
5). Rot
6). Allfather
7). Veil

Atriarch is:

Lenny | Vocals
Brooks | Guitars
Maxamillion | Drums
Joe | Bass

Review:

“Atriarch is a living entity comprised of four parts, offering catharsis through sonic ritual. Our aim is to tear a hole in the veil that blinds us from our true selves." 

‘An Unending Pathway’, Atriarch's first release on Relapse Records, is a challenging, harrowing record. In just over forty minutes, the group lurches and reels along a path of death rock, psych doom, and blast-laden fury. "Entropy" starts things off slowly and deliberately -- ambient sounds, whispers, chants, and bassist Joe Wickstrom's unsettling melody line all make it clear that this is not your usual doom metal fare. The opening line of the song, "we have a tendency to perceive time as a straight line," is as prophetic as it is cryptic. This record is anything but straight forward. As the track continues to build with more complex guitar lines, the band launches into a chaotic round of blast beats and double-bass lines, accented by Lenny Smith's increasingly intense vocal deliveries. Suddenly the song ends, and there is a sense of uneasy relief as "Collapse" begins with its own dramatic crescendo. 

However, Atriarch avoids returning to the clean, sparse instrumentation and chants of the previous track; this is part of an intentional ebb and flow, a sort of doomed-out sine wave whose peaks and valleys are both narrowing and intensifying as the record progresses.  Admittedly, the shouts and chants may turn off those who prefer a more traditional sung or screamed vocal delivery, but there is something urgent, compelling, even manic, to Smith's proclamations. As those warnings give way to harsh, distorted screams, one cannot help but feel the walls closing in during the closing movement of "Collapse" before it gives way to the snare drum intro of "Revenant."

The song titles and lyrics outline the trajectory of the album, an exploration of mortality, death, and the nature of existence. This record is a thematic whole, in spite of (or because of) the unique moments of each song. From the atmosphere of tracks like "Entropy" and "Rot" to the furious opening of "Bereavement", Atriarch know when to pull back on their sonic assault and when to steamroll the listener. 

"We try to comprehend life without an end/ there’s no ego, there's no self in the end/ no face, no name/ you are not you/ you are the ending." With the closing lines of "Veil," the theme of nonlinearity is brought full circle. As the track fades out with the contrasting Tibetan-style throat chanting and reverb-drenched singing of Jessica Way (Worm Ouroboros), the ending is reminiscent of, yet miles away from, the calm opening moments of ‘An Unending Pathway’.

This is not an album for easy listening. Much like the story contained within the lyrics, the album itself is a non-traditional journey. For those willing to commit themselves, the result is an unsettling-yet-rewarding arrival at a glorious cosmic awareness.

Words by: Ben Hutcherson

You can pick up a digital copy here and a CD/LP copy here.

For more information:

Facebook | Bandcamp

The Sleer - S/T (Album Review)

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 22/08/2014

Label: Self Release

‘The Sleer’ DD track listing:

1). Intro/The Water (10:25)

2). Death is Life (09:31)

3). We Are The Sleer (07:07)

4). The Raven Never Sleeps (11:26)

The Band:

Timothy Smith | Bass, vocals

Robby Marshall | Guitars, vocals

Review:

Over a crackling bit of static, minor key violin swells gradually building a sense of tension and fear that finally give way to a crawling series of distorted arpeggios over minimalist drums. One look at the song lengths on this release, and you might assume you're in for redundant, fuzzed-out stoner doom explorations of the universe. The Sleer knock that misconception away the moment the layered death roars rip through the speakers, proclaiming that this is an outfit much more interested in dragging you through abyssal darkness, rather than taking you for a cosmic ride. Hailing from Denver, CO, The Sleer are a new doom outfit who take their cues from the darker, grimier, death-and-black-influenced school of slow-and-low heaviness. From the intense vocal assault, to the sporadic bursts of blastbeat madness and the unsettling chord progressions, they take cues from USBM's sense of grimy melody and a wide array of doom and sludge riff styles to produce a debut album that is truly impressive.

"Intro/Water" sets the tone for the album, moving effortlessly from gnarly, lumbering bent notes to black metal bursts and back. The Sleer covers a lot of ground without sounding like they're shoehorning in different styles. One particular point of interest is the song writing. Within the context of long, slow songs, bands can often string together a series of interesting but ultimately unrelated ideas that lack a satisfying resolution. Despite being a young band, The Sleer showcase their song writing chops throughout the release, with recurring themes in each song that bring the listener full circle over the course of each seven to eleven minute journey. 

The mixture of raspy vocals and harmonized cleans in "Death is Life" add a nice ethereal dimension, and a much-needed breather, amidst the pissed-off trudge of the rest of the track. The leads in this track, as well as the others, are the icing on the cake. The brief yet tasteful leads in the tracks on the release offer a satisfying counterpoint to the unsettling heaviness of the riffs. This release manages to incorporate catchy melodic phrasing alongside filthy riffs, balancing both elements masterfully.

The last half of the album is somehow even stronger than the first. "We are the Sleer" has a heavy, swinging groove and a tasty series of pentatonic, doomed-out riffs with the relentless dual vocal attack. "The Raven Never Sleeps" is massive and sprawling, as though YOB, Esoteric, and Ahab were trapped in burning tar while collaborating on the soundtrack to the end time. At this point, it is obvious that these three Coloradans are onto something powerful, evil, and unique.

You can buy the album for a mere $2, and that is a bargain for an album with this level of song writing and production. I, for one, am excited to see where The Sleer heads with future releases, as this one is an absolute crusher.

Words by: Ben Hutcherson

You can pick up a copy here

For more information:

https://thesleer.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/TheSleer

Live Review: "None Heavier". Crowbar, Gothic Theater Denver, CO. 23/9/2014

"NONE HEAVIER." Written across the back of one of the many Crowbar shirts for sale Wednesday night at the Gothic Theater in Denver, CO and this sentence sums up the sonic heft of the long-running NOLA doom legends rather nicely. It takes a certain level of confidence in your band's power to make that sort of claim at all, much less back it up. If anything, the phrase is an understatement of what Crowbar is.

I arrived at the venue just after 9:30 with every intention of showing up just in time for Crowbar. I mean no disrespect to their tourmates, but deathcore and technical thrash/death just aren't my bag -- if you're reading this piece at the Sludgelord, there's a decent chance the same is true for you. That said, I wound up seeing the entire set from Revocation, and the juxtaposition of their lightning-fast, highly-technical approach to metal with Crowbar's skull-crushing, melodic simplicity really highlighted how strange the entire tour package was. To be clear, I'm a huge fan of diverse line-ups, and I'm sure there were people there who were thrilled by all five bands. That said, something about it all struck me as strange (more on that later). Those thoughts were pushed from my mind the moment that Kirk and company fired up their rigs.

"This is Crowbahhh from fackin' New Orleans!" and with that, they launched into "Cemetery Angels," a powerful opener whose chug-heavy ending got the small-but-excitable crowd violently slamming into each other. I've seen lots of bands live, but the ones who have consistently had the rowdiest crowd reactions have been the NOLA vanguard: EHG, Crowbar, Soilent Green, and even Goatwhore. Their set list spanned their entire discography, including new tracks "Walk with Knowledge Wisely" and "Symmetry in White" alongside classics like "High Rate Extinction" and "Planets Collide." The two highlights for me were Tommy Buckley's rendition of the intro to "Hot for Teacher" while technical issues were being sorted out, and the ultra-slow rendition of my personal favorite "The Lasting Dose." Something about the reduced tempo made the song feel heavy in a way that no amount of palm-muting or vocal-chord-destroying hollering could accomplish on its own.

From the catchy-yet-punishing riffs, rather than any sort of guitar pyrotechnics, to Kirk's friendly banter with the crowd -- ragging on the Seattle Seahawks, got the crowd as fired up as the intro to "High Rate Extinction" -- to hanging out and taking pictures with fans rather than retreating backstage after the set, Crowbar oozes a workingman's ethos that is approachable and comforting while also capable of bringing out impressive violence in the pit area. When Kirk thanked the crowd between songs, it was impossible not to feel that it was genuine in a way that isn't true for all metal bands. There were no strobe lights, no synchronized stage moves, no calls to "fuck shit up in the pit," no ambient samples between songs. Crowbar is a doom metal band for the people.

It's that point that leaves me wondering, then, why Crowbar's crowd was so much smaller than one would expect in a venue the size of the Gothic (~1,100). By my estimation, there were no more than 2-300 people at the show. That's not a laughable number, but there was a noticeable amount of unfilled space in the venue. Maybe it was the tour package. Maybe it was the weekday show, though in my years living in Colorado, I've seen a ton of weekday shows with seemingly-less popular bands have a bigger draw. Maybe it was a combination of all of these factors and more. I do know that something feels wrong about a band with this sort of legacy, one that now includes being cited as a direct influence to metal/hardcore bands like Xibalba and Twitching Tongues, playing to anything shy of a packed house.

In a just world, Crowbar sells that all-ages venue out on a Wednesday, and all of the teenagers who dragged their parents along for a taste of something heavy would catch a glimpse of the bearded riff wizard Kirk Windstein as he offers a clinic on heaviness. All the same, I like to think that a few of those youngins woke up today, put on their brand new band shirt, and went to school announcing to the world that when it comes to sludge and doom, there are NONE HEAVIER than Crowbar from fuckin' New Orleans.

Words by: Ben Hutcherson