Things You Might Have Missed 2012: Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats – Blood Lust

It’s that time of year again, kiddies! The time when we at AMG admit we couldn’t be all things to all people and we may have missed a few nuggets of metallic joy along the highway of music. First up in the shooting gallery is Blood Lust, the second splatter platter by Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats (Metal Blade/Rise Above Records). These UK wingnuts play a VERY strange, off-kilter amalgam of 70’s retro doom, psychedelic stoner doom and just plain good times rock. The guitars are huge and impossibly fuzzed out, the bass is rafter shaking and the mood is often butt shakin. However, the lyrics largely revolve around serial killers, stalkers and sundry horrors. It ends up sounding something like Vol. 4-era Black Sabbath mixed with tons of Ghost (hell, even the cover is Ghost-like). Its being mentioned here because it’s just a gosh-darn fun, rollicking good time of an album and it will almost certainly fly under many radars. Steel Druhm cannot countenance such flagrant metal abuse!

When lead track “I’ll Cut You Down” swings to life, you’ll know you’re onto something a bit special. It instantly bludgeons you with an insanely vintage, impossibly fuzzy and ridiculously over amped guitar sound that you just have to love. Add to that a huge bottom end and the odd falsetto vocals of Uncle Acid himself and it’s quite the heady mix. The song itself is pure doom rock and it’s hooky as all hell, even if they are singing about killing folks. Song after song keeps the hit train rolling and I defy you to spin “Death’s Door,” “13 Candles” and “Ritual Knife” and not be hooked in bigtime. The songs are so simple, but so likeable and catchy, it’s like aural crack. In fact, “13 Candles” may be one of the most indomitable ear worms of the year and only a highly skilled surgeon is getting that bitch out your head in time for the New Year (assuming we get one).

The focus on Blood Lust is the huge riffing and doom-tastic soloing of Mr. Uncle Acid and rightly so. The man knows how to tear off mega-infectious riffs and damn, that guitar sound is awesome! He employs a pretty minimalist approach, but his style will bring to mind plenty of the more rocked out Sabbath moments as well as Pentagram and Witchfinder General and even Kyuss. When paired with Acid’s vocals however, it becomes really hard to escape Ghost comparisons and you’ll find the same variety of addictive choruses you’ll want to sing endlessly, but the lyrics make it less advisable when in public.

This album is a winner and you should make sure you hear it, especially if you love the whole retro-doom thing or have a Ghost fetish. Don’t let this be one of the things you missed in 2012 or the Mayans will judge you and find you extremely lame.

Editor’s Correction: This album was actually released in 2011 and is being re-released in 2012. Regardless, check it out ASAP!

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