“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.
“Infusing the traditional Black Sabbath-style doom with smoky desert vigor, El Camino de la Serpiente (The Path of the Snake) rocks and rumbles rambunctiously. There’s a pleasing looseness to the music, a cool devil-may-care swagger that makes it impossible not to move along to the many, many riffs packed into the 46-minute running time.” On this rock, they will build their doom.
“U.K. old school doomers, Iron Void have been kicking around in one form or another since 1998. Their style is a no-nonsense mash-up of classic 70s and 80s doom sounds and trends with all the expected names referenced. There’s a core of Black Sabbath worship with nods to Pentagram and Saint Vitus accounted for. There’s also a mix of biker and epic doom influences dotting the landscape for extra punch. On their smartly-titled fourth album, this well-traveled three-piece demonstrate that they posses the knowledge and ability to deliver the doom thrills when their songwriting holds up.” Doom troopers in the lost void.
“Siberian Tusk’s sound certainly owes much to stoner rock progenitors like Kyuss / Queens of the Stone Age, but even more so to Audioslave. While Siberian Tusk’s promo material emphasizes a punk aesthetic, it doesn’t translate to the band’s sound. No, this cocktail is an alternative base with several dashes of butt rock bitters.” Tusken raiders.
“Anyone else ever find themselves forgetting that they like a genre of music? Doom metal is probably the most-often-forgotten stepchild of my psyche, and I rarely give the style a moment’s notice. But whenever I find myself exposed to those big, lumbering riffs, and haunted vocals, I’m always reminded just how awesome classic doom metal can be—emphasis on the classic.” Mountains full of doom.
“I was hoping that Sarcator would be short for something cool like “Sarcastic Alligator” or “Sarcophagus Emasculator.” Sadly, it’s just an unforgivable portmanteau of Sarcófago and Kreator. I trudged on undeterred, enticed by the description of Sarcator’s Alkahest. These Swedes bill themselves as blackened thrashers inspired by ’80s German thrash, a shortcut to my listening queue. And it’s exciting to review albums by teenagers; they may be hit-or-miss, but nothing warms my shriveled heart like hearing youngsters trying to drive metal onward.” Young, dumb, full of Sodom.
“Once known as Priestess, this power trio of Brooklyn musicians recently reinvented themselves as Reverend Mother and released a self-titled EP. Led by frontwoman and guitarist Jackie Green, the band’s sound on debut full-length Damned Blessing is a testament to their love of classic rock and metal like Black Sabbath, Jimi Hendrix, and The Doors.” Stone matriarch.
“When one of the founding fathers of death metal wanders out of the cemetery with a new album, the dead heads of the world take notice. Autopsy is right there with Massacre and Death as a progenitor of this gruesome genre, and on 9th full-length, Morbidity Triumphant they remind you that this is their grave and you just play tourist within its rancid confines. And this new splatter scrapbook finds Autopsy shockingly vibrant, agitated and more rabid than on 2015s Skull Grinder.” Mess with bull, get the gore.
“In the darkness I lurk, watching from a distance for that first glimpse of what I know must eventually arrive. But how long must I languish in this grim limbo? My hunger grows exponentially as weeks stretch into months without succor. In anguish, I raise my fists to the Heavens and cry out. Where oh where are the great doom albums of 2022? Where are the classic doom-inspired platters designed to crush me ‘neath oceans of despair and mammoth riffs? Aside from the winning debut by Early Moods (God, I hate that name), there’s been little to slake my unhealthy doom desires. Thus I pinned a great deal of miserable hope on the return of Finland’s Spiritus Mortis.” High spirits.
“Splintered Throne hails from Portland, Oregon, and while The Greater Good of Man is their third full-length album, it’s something of a fresh start for the band. After founding member and longtime vocalist Brian Garrison left, the band brought celebrated blues singer Lisa Mann into the fold, and it doesn’t take long for her to prove that she’s more than a match for Splintered Throne’s heavy/power/hard rock formula.” Chairkiller.
