“71TonMan is roughly equal to ten adult tyrannosaurus rex; seven minke whales; moving to my own favored species, two megalodons; or one Leopard 2 tank, of the type recently pledged by Poland, Germany and others to Ukraine. And this seems appropriate, as a sizeable, if ponderous, battle tank is a pretty good comparator for this doom/sludge outfit.” Weights and pleasures.
“The dissolution of Davide Tiso’s flagship project, Ephal Duath has left a scar, a gloom, that has festered in memory and stained the landscape that Red Rot oozes forth. Though not usually steeped in this depth of emotion, Tiso (also of Howling Sycamore) has a knack for writing music that challenges, even aiming to frustrate the listener, and, quite frankly, doesn’t always land—but that’s precisely why I’m excited to at least try what this Italian expat has to offer.” The rot inside a sad heart,
“Back in the early 90s, Louisiana wasn’t the only locale with conditions ripe for the development of sludge metal. Congealing in 1991, Boston, Massachusetts’ Grief were similarly influential in forging a template for how sludge, especially sludge doom, would develop in the subsequent decades. original Grief members Chuck Conlon (drums) and Terry Savastano (guitar) kept a candle burning for their former band until 2017 saw them resurrect the project, this time as Come to Grief. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect considering world events since then, and 2022 sees the full-length debut of their current iteration, the aptly named When the World Dies.” Come to silver, come to sludge.
“When it comes to the types of metal we cover on this site, it’s rare to find bands openly drawing from grunge, even though it was the dominant rock style of the 90s. Bluesy hard rock and prog from the 70s, 80s guitar heroics; scroll through the reviews on our homepage and you’ll find a band or five still mining those veins. Sure, there’s sludge, grunge’s fugly big brother, but love that genre as I do, it rarely trips the dormant teenage Cherd nostalgia centers of my brain that flare up when something 90s alt rock radio adjacent passes over my earballs. Di’Aul, on the other hand, crashes into the ol’ cortex like an atomic elbow off the top rope.” Alice in pains.
“For over 30 years, Louisiana’s own Crowbar have been an institution, with guitarist/vocalist/main man Kirk Windstein helping redefine how downtrodden doom can be, and creating a pathway for future sludge worshippers to follow in his sizeable footsteps. During those years and eleven albums, Windstein and his crew of (forlorn) merry men provided a wealth of classics, with the likes of “All I Had (I Gave),” “Time Heals Nothing,” and “Planets Collide” (among a slew of others) laying the groundwork for many purges and cathartic sludgery. That said, with the exception of an occasional curveball, you pretty much know what to expect from Crowbar at this point.” Welcome to the Iron Bar.
“Hailing from Russia, Without God formed back in 2008 and have released a pair of full-lengths, the last coming out in 2014. Reemerging in 2021, the band have already released a nice little EP entitled Siberian Tunes: The Green Light and have made the interesting choice to immediately follow it with related LP Siberian Tunes: Purple Clouds. Without God play a big, burly style of doom metal that manages to include a pretty large range of influences.” From Russian with RIFFS!
“Steel Druhm recently announced loudly to the writers that someone should review some sludgy doom record that was probably pretty good. I fell over my desk and several trash cans reaching from the promo. Turns out, I was duped. First of all, Sweden’s Heathen Rites are not sludge.” Sludge misjudge.
“Hailing from Italy, Neker is the brainchild of… Wait a second. Neker? That’s… You’re sure that’s what you want to go with? Okay, so if any of you want to recommend this band to any friends or family, say it slowly and enunciate clearly. Maybe over-pronounce the K a little, just for safety’s sake. Neker is the brainchild of vocalist/bassist Nicola Amadori, with help from Daniele Alessi on drums and Alessandro Eusebi on guitars. The rest is all Amadori, and his passions lie with the roots of southern metal and sludge, speaking loftily of such renowned acts as Down, Pantera, Crowbar and Melvins.” Let’s get Neker!
“Legendary sludge metallers Eyehategod is another high profile and revered NOLA band from the wrong side of the tracks, carving out a punishing career of ugly, hateful, feedback drenched sludge, including genre classics, Take as Needed for Pain and Dopesick. Built upon foundations of immense hardship, personal pain, resilience, and rocky turbulence, particularly those of troubled frontman Mike IX Williams, Eyehategod returned with a self-titled comeback album in 2014, their first LP since 2000’s Confederacy of Ruined Lives. It was a solid return, staying true to the band’s gnarled roots. The passage of time and age shall not weary Eyehategod.” Transient ugliness.
“Supergroups. That exciting moment when you learn that members of two or more bands you love are coming together to create … well, if we’re honest with ourselves, usually disappointment. It’s rare that supergroups come close to fulfilling that promise and that’s probably because they can’t. That’s not their fault – expectations are always sky high as a new group coalesces but different fans want different aspects of their favorites to be front and center in the new entity. A rare example, however, of a supergroup not just living up to the hype but downright crushing – at least for this fan – is DOWN.” OLDEA
