ALBUM REVIEW: War Brides - "Regrets" & their Top 5 hardcore records of all time

By: Charlie Butler

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 28/04/2017

Label: Triple Eye Industries

Chicago bruisers War Brides raid the vaults of the noise rock greats to create a compellingly ugly debut LP in the shape of “Regrets”. It is a quick and dirty shot of addictive mayhem, channelling the nastiness of its influences to fine effect and offers hints of evolution into a stranger beast over the course of future releases.

“Regrets” DD//LP track listing:

 

1). Clean

2). Day Drinking

3). Designer Life

4). Halitosis

5). Ode to an old man

6). Cubano

7). Human Cow

8). Thyme

9). Marrow

The Review:

Chicago bruisers War Brides raid the vaults of the noise rock greats to create a compellingly ugly debut LP in the shape of “Regrets”.

“Clean” opens proceedings in urgent fashion, ripping straight into restless wiry guitar, filthy bass and threatening, slurred vocals. The band take the sleazy rumble of the Jesus Lizard and beef it up with a complexity and heaviness reminiscent of Harkonen. “Designer Life” throws in some more straightforward, dumb riffage that recalls the queasy attack of Pissed Jeans. The centrepiece of the album is “Cubano” a lurching 6 minute dirge based on a minimal groove that erupts into a punishing climax.

War Brides delivery is a good balance between hard, tight playing with a messy, shambolic edge that adds a sense of immediacy. They demonstrate a little more restraint on the musical front on “Ode To An Old Man” but the lyrics maintain an impressive level of bile, with the sign off “You’re a piece of shit, someone’s bound to murder you” leaving an indelible impression on the listener.  Parting shot “Marrow” sees the band take a slight left turn. The guitar parts are more spidery and border on the mathematical mania of Botch and the addition of backing vocals add a weird eerie feel to the track.

“Regrets” is a quick and dirty shot of addictive mayhem from War Brides. It channels the nastiness of its influences to fine effect and offers hints of evolution into a stranger beast over the course of future releases.   

“Regrets” is available here

In addition to the review, we have a double helping of Bride love, as we welcome War Brides to take us through their top 5 hardcore records.  So prepare to worship at the altar of volume, as we take our weekly trip into the extreme and turn the volume all the way up to 11.  Why do we go to 11,  because “It’s one louder, isn’t it?”

Deadguy – “Fixation on a Coworker” (1995) chosen by Justin

I bought this album randomly at Crow’s Nest record store in Joliet when I was 14 years old.  I had no idea who Deadguy was or what they sounded like but something compelled me to buy “Fixation On a Coworker”.  When I got home and put it on I couldn’t handle it.  I never heard something so aggressive and earnestly angry in my life and, at the time, it made me so uncomfortable that I shelved it for several years.  It wasn’t until I was in my early twenties, working as an office clerk at an insurance agency, that I finally “got” this album.  The irony was I was working the typical nine-to-five that Tim Singer irreverently remonstrates and detests on songs like “Pins and Needles”.  To this very day, “Fixation On a Coworker holds” up in every facet possible. It transcends the myriad hardcore sub-genres that Deadguy helped inspire and will always be a “desert island” record for me. 

These Arms Are Snakes – “Tail Swallower and Dove” (2008) chosen by Ritchie

Seattle based bands are commonly found on our list of influences and TAAS is near the top of that list for me. “Tail Swallower and Dove” shows that the band is much more than Brian Cook’s bass or Steve Snere’s vocals, it is a beautiful melange, an ideal cohesiveness where each member adds equally to the musical intensity without overshadowing the rest of the band.  At points I find myself focused on the drums and Chris Common’s syncopated verses and bombastic choruses, but when I step back I realize that the sum is much larger than the parts. While each member is a great musician in his own right, there isn’t a single member that stands out as the focal point; not even Snere who always seems possessed while on stage. A great song allows each member’s talents to be showcased but more for their ability to play as a collective than as a solo performer. A band should be more than individuals that can play a song, they should feed off each other until the music becomes something beyond measure.

Daughters – “Daughters” (2010) chosen by Tristan

2010s self-titled “Daughters” is nothing short of perfection. The lads from Providence carved out a sound that is distinctly their own. The opening floor tom hits that lead into the hammer-ons and tremolo guitars in “The Hit” are badass.  And if you can find me a better song from start to finish than “The Unattractive”, “Portable Head”, I’ll cut you into my will. The transition that occurs around 2:17, marked by what sounds like keys with an organ effect, followed shortly thereafter by the vocal line “I want to cast off the wings of desire. I want be buried in a field of fire. I want to stand up and be twenty feet tall. I want to reach out and feel nothing at all” with the last line repeated over and over again. That line coupled with Alexis’ distinct eerie delivery and the intermingled gang vocal “whoa, yeah” does it for me every time. Fucking amazing. If you don’t know of this band or own this album, right that ship as soon as humanly possible.

Retox – “Beneath California” (2015) chosen by Grant

I’m a Justin Pearson superfan. I’ve been really into most of his other projects, but the “Beneath California” record stands out as Retox’s best. The record is the perfect blend of hardcore, noise and surf with 12 songs clocking in around 23 minutes, never allowing for anything to become stale. 

The standout track is “Let’s Not Keep in Touch”, the longest track on the record at 3:14. The drums, bass and raspy vocals drive the beat into your skull while the guitar squeals above it to create the most amazing tension. That tension proceeds to lock in tighter when the guitar joins the syncopated hard-hitting beat and then releases when breaking into one of their signature surf rock riffs. It’s that kind of furious emotion that I latch onto.

Botch – “We are the Romans” (2000) chosen by Grant

 

I’m doing two bands for the list, but truth is, Botch is one of the bands we all completely agree on. The obvious choice for their Botch’s best album would be “We are the Romans”. Brutal and mathematical most of the time, and when a song goes full caveman, it goes 110% into a huge hook. Every bit intense and gripping. 

The last song I saw them perform was “Transitions from Persona to Object On “(what turned out to be) their final tour alongside Murder City Devils. “Transitions…” is pretty close to a perfect song. Riffs slowly mutate into the next riff, yet the song only feels to me like there’s 2 real riffs — absolute economical song writing, and it mostly revolves around the riff you hear from the beginning. 

TRACK PREMIERE: Swamp master generals Morass of Molasses make a blistering statement with "My Leviathan"

Self-described "swamp master generals" Morass of Molasses will release their new album “These Paths We Tread” on May 19th 2017 via HeviSike Records.  The album's 7 tracks blend fuzz, sludge and doom and will undoubtedly be remembered as one of the best records of 2017.

Morass of Molasses create the kind of lumbering heavy blues riffs which induce involuntary head nodding and a deep stirring of the loins. The band's short life so far has also seen them sharing stages with such luminaries of the scene as Orange Goblin, Ohhms, Vodun, Elephant Tree, Desert Storm, Space Witch, Sea Bastard, Limb, Gurt and many more. Their gutsy Jagermiester stage performance at Bloodstock helped propel them into a relentless schedule of touring during which they released their debut EP ‘So Flows Our Fate’.  

The new album, “These Paths We Tread” is a veritable melting pot of ideas, blended together, forming a thick stew of heavy blues with side of doom for good measure. As in the EP before, the band uses the album as a vehicle to explore concepts of mythic sin and ancient archetypes. The Journey we take through life as humans is ever at the forefront, and drives the songwriting. 

Without resorting to speed runs, tapping, or other flashy distractions, Morass of Molasses focuses on a basic formula of riff, tone, a massive backbone of rhythm supplied from bass and drumming, and catchy, rock-laden lyrics and delivery, creating a sinfully sweet ride through the slightly hazy and humid land they call their soul. Gaze into it, and let the wind whistle a neat little tune into your ear as we premiere the opening track from their monstrous new album.  We give you “My Leviathan”

“These Paths We Tread” DD//LP track Listing: 

1. My Leviathan

2. So They Walk

3. Serpentine

4. The Ritual

5. Centralia

6. Maenads

7. Wrath Of Aphrodite

Band info: facebook || bandcamp

ALBUM REVIEW: Earth Witch - "Out of the Shallow"

By: Richard Maw

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 10/03/2017

Label: Independent

Every track is a winner. Every riff is massive. The production is raw and warm. Everything sounds big. Everything sounds heavy. This is surely exactly the record that Earth Witch set out to create and I applaud them highly for it. Fantastic and heavy stuff and one of the best albums I have heard so far this year.

“Out of the Shallow” CS//CD//DD track listing:

1). Guts

2). Starfighter

3). Lovecraft

4). Butterfly

5). Riff Rider

6). Green Torch

7). Mermaid

8). Pilgrim

9). Earth Witch

The Review:

A stoner/doom trio from Illinois is how these guys are described- very accurate! This is most definitely for fans of Sleep, High on Fire and The Sword (early period, naturally). There are massive riffs on offer here. The tracks have quite a range to them, too. You get mellow and bluesy (“Butterfly”) swaggering muscular grooves (the band's theme song) and psychedelic Sabbath goodness elsewhere.

Opener “Guts” reminded me of when The Sword were really good and employs similar weighty riffage and tone. “Lovecraft” is a rampaging beast (appropriate), “Starfighter” is an up-tempo headbanger- with a mellow breakdown, of course. These songs are just relentless: riff after riff after riff!

The title “Riff Rider” is a clue as to what the song contains- and it swings mightily. “Green Torch” is a more restrained track- but still romps all over your stereo. “Mermaid” is in the up-tempo bracket... Honestly, there are so many riffs on offer here. The album is, simply put, very strong throughout. The vocals perfectly suit proceedings (not singing exactly, but not intelligible either- ideal for this type of blunt force trauma).

Every track is a winner. Every riff is massive. The production is raw and warm. Everything sounds big. Everything sounds heavy. This is surely exactly the record that Earth Witch set out to create and I applaud them highly for it. Fantastic and heavy stuff and one of the best albums I have heard so far this year.

“Out of the Shallow” is available here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Mage - "Green"

By: Richard Maw

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 18/03/2017

Label: Independent

No fuss, no messing about, just good quality stoner/doom of the finest order. Check this album out and check the band out live: I guarantee that you won't be disappointed.

“Green” CD//DD track listing:

1). No Where to Nothing

2). Heroic Elegy

3). Primitive Drive

4). Green

5). Eclipse King

6). The Wheel

7). Vultures Mass

The Review:

Mage, hailing from the East Midlands, are one of those bands that can appeal to lots of different metal heads. There are lots of elements here- stoner, doom, sludge, rock n roll- with vocals more akin to Ben Ward of Orange Goblin than, say, Phil Anselmo. All this makes for an accessible yet still weighty sound.

The album sounds great- nice and thick with big sounds that suit the groove laden material. “Nowhere To Nothing” kicks things off in groove-some style- a statement of intent. “Heroic Elegy” is much slower, veering closer to sludge type territory (Crowbar, not EHG) while “Primitive Drive” does what it says in the title: crushing, relentless, dinosaur-slow stuff.

The title track takes the listener over the half way mark, with a murky main riff and a swinging but slow feel. Nice wah on the verses, too. The faster section down the back stretch is a treat as well- cracking track. The doomier vibe of “Eclipse King” works nicely in heralding in the latter part of the album and brings with it great imagery in the lyrics (great chess references amongst others).

“The Wheel” puts the pedal to the metal (in the realms of stoner/doom anyway!) and sets up a ripping track with a  chugging and shuffling riff; four and a half minutes of joyous head banging fare- well, with some slow stuff in there too. The closing monolith if “Vultures Mass” is a ten minute epic of slow burning moods (and fuzz bass!) which ends the album on a high note. My favourite on the record, in fact. Seven tracks is just the right length for an album of this type- all songs are uniformly strong and hang cohesively together well. There is nothing here under four minutes except one exceptionally epic track. No fuss, no messing about, just good quality stoner/doom of the finest order. Check this album out and check the band out live: I guarantee that you won't be disappointed.

“Green” is available here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Ohhms - "The Fool"

By: Stephen Murray

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 31/03/2017

Label: Holy Roar Records

“The Fool” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1). Shuffle, Cut and Reveal

2). The Magician

3). The Hanged Man

4). The World

5). The Lovers

6). The Hierophant

The Review:

This is not doom. Even less is it sludge. The influence of those genres can be felt, but to understand Ohhms under those terms is misleading.

Three years on since Ohhms' first appearance outside the rehearsal room, it is still unclear who first applied these labels to the band, though there's no doubt that these are labels the group have done nothing to eschew. Speaking outside Camden's Black Heart in 2014 before their second ever gig, the deal with Holy Roar not yet in the bag, vocalist Paul had admitted as much. "To be quite honest I would be happy to be lumped in with the doom thing just because it's different and there [are] elements of doom in [our music]," he had said. And yet, out of the then 30 minute set they had, only eight minutes were described by Paul as doom. He'd timed it. So what are they? "Classic rock, if anything," he'd said then.

'The Fool' is the band's third release and the first that they consider to be a full-length, and the description 'classic rock' still sounds fairer than what is more usually thrown at them. There are definite hints of Pink Floyd’s more reflective moments, along with some guitar work that would not upset the 80s hard rock applecart. Though there is more going on here, and not just Dan working his way through his extensive pedal board of boutique guitar effects, or indeed anything particularly progladytic. Where Ohhms skirt the sludgey-doomy influence, it is filtered through post-something-or-other and is akin to grunge.

There they are in good company; though rather different, Germany’s Aleph Null also came in on a stoner tip but sound like the debt is actually made out in the name of grunge and psych rock, and that is no bad thing. To anyone who has been following Ohhms these last few years, this record will feel a very natural and subtle mutation. Paul still has his self-professed “singy and shouty, never screamy” vocals pushed through echo. Not psych rock meltiness, but a big room-feel. Chainy’s restless and nomadic bass still wanders widely in search of home. Max still offers a lyrical range of punctuation and backbone, though has stepped it up on the faster moments in “The Fool”. But despite the ready familiarity of the sound, the word that fell from my lips as the first listen came to a close was “surprising.”

One of the most striking things about this album is not the penultimate track, 'The Lovers,' (which, on first hearing, you would be forgiven for thinking a song penned by Phil Collins for a Disney soundtrack had somehow snuck its way in -- that may read as though it is intended to be a slur. It isn't.) Rather, it is most striking for its echoes of the band four fifths of Ohhms emerged from: The Babies Three.

Before taking on this review I had decided not to wake the dead; to allow Ohhms to be judged independently of that past. But not only do some of the guitar lines seem to recall that heritage, but the lyrics to the album’s closer, ‘The Hierophant,’ are lifted wholesale from File Under Retaliation’s ‘Rotten Apples’. As the lyric says: “Recurring themes throughout my life.”

The original mission statement may have been Swans circa “1984”, but it was never quite to be. Instead there’s something more organic. Ohhms shoot new blooms from deep roots, laying out their generational history as they evolve as musicians.

“The Fool” is available here

 Band info: bandcamp || facebook

AL BUM REVIEW: Spidergawd - "IV"

By: Victor Van Ommen

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 24/02/2017

Label: Crispin Glover Records |

Stickman Records

“IV” is eight tracks that follow the verse-chorus-verse-chorus formula and does so with licks, vocals, lyrics and melodies that are sharp, fast, and poignant. As far as that’s concerned, there’s absolutely nothing to complain about.

“IV” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1). Is This Love?

2). I Am the Night

3). LouCille

4). Ballad of a Millionaire (Song for Elina)

5). What Have You Become

6). The Inevitable

7). Heaven Comes Tomorrow

8). Stranglehold

The Review:

Spidergawd descends upon us from the northern heights of Norway with their most focused work, “IV.” As the name suggests, this is the band’s 4th album. It should also be mentioned that at this point, the band has only been around for four years. Impressive? Quite!

Their roots lay deep in the world of Motorpsycho but Spidergawd is a much different animal. “IV” jumps out of the speakers as a rollicking, gritty, intense rock album that brings as much Van Halen to mind as it does Foo Fighters. Yeah, you read that right, Foo Fighters. But I’m referring to their ’95-’97 period. The good years. So, as you’d expect, “IV” is pretty much just eight tracks that follow the verse-chorus-verse-chorus formula and does so with licks, vocals, lyrics and melodies that are sharp, fast, and poignant. As far as that’s concerned, there’s absolutely nothing to complain about.

The double kick gas pedal keeps the pistons moving in “Is This Love?” Singer Per Borten belts his way through an emotional chorus, “You don’t think I don’t know by now / I realize that you’re in love again / as you walk out of my door…I see that I’m out of time, out of time to make you mine,” and does so with such gusto that the song sounds more of a celebration than a breakup.

“IV’s midsection is that meat and potatoes riff-rock. “We Must Come to Pass” runs a tight vocal melody before diving into a sly guitar solo accented by the baritone tones of the saxophone. This is Spidergawd’s way of saying that they can also handle subtlety, which, thanks to the control they have over their songs, works very much to the band’s advantage. Take “What Have You Become,” for example, which shows Spidergawd at their most lean and mean. A hearty don’t-bore-us-get-to-the-chorus start moves its way effortlessly into a set of verses that falls very much in line with the Nordic Rock scene. An absolute blast, that’s for sure. This is a song that’s going to sound great once we can start driving around town with the windows down and the breeze in our hair.

“IV” is available here & here

Band info: Official|| Facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Oceanwake - "Earthen"

By: Ben Fitts

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 10/03/2017

Label: ViciSolum Productions

The result is forty-five minutes of meticulous songcraft and dramatically contrasting passages. “Earthen” is a journey through the duality of nature itself; it builds from a calm wind to a devastating hurricane, from a tranquil beach to a tsunami. Three albums into their career, Oceanwake is a band that has finally realized and executed the full expanse of their vision, and the result in breathtaking.

“Earthen” CD//DD track listing:  

1). A Storm Serpent

2). In Amidst the Silent Thrones

The Review:

The usage of classical element imagery in Oceanwake’s LP “Earthen” is appropriate; “Earthen” brews like a storm, rumbles like an earthquake and eventually crashes into you like a tidal wave. “Earthen” is the third full-length album from Oceanwake, a Finnish quartet who defy any sort of neat categorization (progressive post-death doom might the closest label one can invent for them, but even that fails to capture everything they encompass). While Oceanwake have always favored extreme song-lengths, they outdo themselves on “Earthen”, which consist of only two tracks: the twenty-one minute long “A Storm Sermon”, and the twenty-four minute long “In Amidst the Silent Thrones”.

As its name implies, “A Storm Sermon” is where “Earthen”’s most celestial energy lives. After a breezy, two and half minute build up, the album’s first crack of thunder is heard as Eero’s Haula’s growling vocals enter. When Haula arrives, so does the titular storm. The mood turns bleak and the patch of sunlight that shone through the track’s beginning struggles through thick, dissonant guitars and a voltaic sense of anxiety. The anxiety builds, even as the tracks tones soften, and cryptic clean vocals hijack  the melody. The celestial energy continues throughout the twenty-one minutes of “A Storm Sermon”, manifesting itself as gentle breezes in a chiming clean section, as brewing, distant thunder builds ups and finally as the very eye of the storm itself in the track’s unrelenting climax. But if “A Storm Sermon” is air, then “In Amidst the Silent Thrones” is water.

Everything about “In Amidst the Silent Thrones” is as massive as the ocean, from its quiet, beckoning moments to its most intense, pulverising riffs. The heavier of “Earthen”’s two tracks, “In Amidst the Silent Thrones” also begins with a sweet, somewhat understated passage. But while “A Storm Sermon” steadily builds until its full force is upon you, “In Amidst the Silent Thrones” gets there suddenly and mercilessly. And, just as quickly as the full-weight of the track’s heaviest moment is upon you, it fades back away, giving you time to  recuperate before it strikes again.

This coming-and-going of intensity has long been a calling card of Oceanwake’s music, but on “Earthen”, and particularly on “In Amidst the Silent Thrones”, the band perfects this trick. The result is forty-five minutes of meticulous songcraft and dramatically contrasting passages. “Earthen” is a journey through the duality of nature itself; it builds from a calm wind to a devastating hurricane, from a tranquil beach to a tsunami. Three albums into their career, Oceanwake is a band that has finally realized and executed the full expanse of their vision, and the result in breathtaking. 

“Earthen” is available here

Band info: facebook || official