Hag - "Fear of Man" (Album Review)

By: Charlie Butler

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 08/01/2016

Label: DNAWOT

The title track opens proceedings with a succinct distillation of Hag’s sound. The band take their weighty brand of Melvins-indebted stoner rock and blur the edges with a shot of blown-out psychedelia. If the idea of latter day Kylesa covering “Houdini” sounds like your idea of fun, this is a record for you.  This is a great collection from Hag which should earn them a formidable reputation as exponents of high quality riffcraft

“Fear of Man” DD//LP track listing:

1). Fear of Man

2). Kingdom O

3). Rainbow Dust

4). Trauma Yauma

5). Low

6). Metal Detector Man

7). White Lion

8). Beaten At Your Own Game

9). Wrong Bar

The Review:

Sometimes the best things come to those who wait, and in this case those things are riffs. “Fear of Man” is the debut album from London trio, Hag following a 6 year gap after the release of their debut EP. Anyone who has been waiting is not going to be disappointed as the 9 tracks here make a solid case for elevating the band to the upper echelons of the UK’s heaviest.

The title track opens proceedings with a succinct distillation of Hag’s sound. The band take their weighty brand of Melvins-indebted stoner rock and blur the edges with a shot of blown-out psychedelia. If the idea of latter day Kylesa covering “Houdini” sounds like your idea of fun, this is a record for you.

The highlights of “Fear of Man” come when Hag stretch their songs out past the 5 minute mark. “Rainbow Dust” begins with a huge, sweeping, slide-enhanced riff, evoking a widescreen, dustbowl panorama. The band alternate between this sound and restless, noise rock, crafting a captivating, epic desert voyage. “Trauma Yauma” opens with Hag at their most aggressive, frantic drums pummel the listener before the band calm into a nagging, insistent, one-note groove. This eventually erupts into a searing acid-drenched solo, showing what Hag are capable of when they cut loose and reach for the skies.

This is a great collection from Hag which should earn them a formidable reputation as exponents of high quality riffcraft. “Fear of Man” is currently only available digitally via bandcamp but hopefully a vinyl release is on the way, it would be great to see the awesome cover art on a 12” if nothing else.

“Fear of Man” is available here, with vinyl due imminently

Band info: Facebook | Bandcamp