Album
Type:
Full
Length
Date
Released:
May 20th 2015
Label:
This
Charming Man Records
Ride
The Wilderness - Track Listing:
1.Undertaker 05:47
2.Winterland 04:25
3.Revelations of
April 04:35
4.Ride The
Wilderness 06:53
5.Book Of Changes
04:44
6.Demon Head 06:29
7.The Greatest Lie
04:51
8.Worthless 07:20
Members:
J.W. - Drums
M.S.F. - Bass
B.G.N. - Guitar
T.G.N. - Guitar
M.F.L. - Vocals
Review:
Demon
Head’s “Ride the Wilderness” is proof of the old adage, “it
isn’t what you say, it’s how you say it.” While Demon Head
doesn’t overwhelm you with complex or intricate instrumentation or
song structure, they just know how to play their damn instruments
extremely well with the kind of conviction, confidence, and emotion
rarely seen now a days. A lot of bands substitute for digital
recording to more easily smooth over parts or correct mistakes. The
whole album is a time machine back to 1970. It’s a bunch of guys
who set up in a studio with analog equipment and let everything just
flow.
Marcus,
the vocalist, has a very Bobby Leibling quality with a little Glen
Danzing sprinkled in with his voice which suites the style perfectly.
Blending wailing, moaning, and gritty growls, an eerie and almost
surreal The vocals also seem to be double tracked and panned to each
to each ear to give a false chorus effect. It just adds to creepiness
of the album. The drums are a throwback and super clear. The bass has
enough bit but isn’t drowned in distortion. The quality of the
guitar tones is something to behold as well. This is all because the
band recorded on a 16 track tape recorder. The retro style of
recording really calmed down any clipping you may hear in a digital
recording resulting in a smoother product. With bands like Demon
Head, you are getting a sound similar to Witchcraft, Pentagram, and
November, which get their heaviness from their riffs, emphasis on
time, song structure, and lyrics rather than their distortion pedals.
The
opening track, “Undertaker” begins with a twangy guitar that
introduces the listener to the primary riff that they’ll hear for
the next five and half minutes. Once the queue for the rest of bands
comes in, it’s clear these guys are a huge fans of proto-doom bands
and music from the 1970s. Crash heavy drums, lightly fuzzed guitars,
walking bass, all complemented by a constantly humming organ. The
rest of the album follows a similar style in song structure. Taking a
blues sounding riff, mixing in the typical European time-breaks and
false stops with wondering solos through bridges and chorus parts.
To
some people this may sound tiresome but like many good things, you
can’t have enough of it. The song “Demon Head” is probably my
favorite off the album because it takes their formula for song
writing and takes it to the next level. Adding in a dissonant sound
while remaining true to the blues sound, the songs is what I image
the Devil would sound like. Smooth yet disgusting, sweet yet bitter.
“Worthless” which ends the album is in a similar fashion where
dissonances is used heavily in their riffs but keeps the perfect
trance inducing tempo the rest of the eight track album carries
through most of the songs.
This
is probably the best new album I’ve heard. This is what a band like
Witchcraft should have become after their debut album. If there needs
to be anything negative to say about the album, it would probably be
the volume of the bass preventing it from being more defined and the
guitar solos lacking crystal clear clarity that I prefer. Even
writing those two minor complaints feels a bit blasphemous.
The
album just kicks ass on a biblical level. In the bands own words,
“Over the course of the following months, the winds took us to a
small country home at the infamous Heather Hills where we finished
what was already too alive to be buried.” If something unseen in
the universe guided them to make this album, I hope that same thing
speaks to the band again because this was just such a good piece of
art.
You
WON’T regret buying this and it may work a way into your daily
listening playlist. Prepare to get addicted.
Words
by Jim Eccles
Thanks
To Chris at This Charming Man Records and Demon Head for the album
promo. Ride The Wilderness will be released on CD/Vinyl from This
Charming Man Records from May 20th
2015.
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