Mastodon

Pale Horseman – For Dust Thou Art Review

Pale Horseman – For Dust Thou Art Review

By Huck N Roll on July 30, 2020 in 2020, Reviews, Sludge Metal, 5 comments

“Pale Horseman have only been around for eight years, but For Dust Thou Art is the Chicago sludge quartet’s fifth album and their 2017 effort, The Fourth Seal, showed enough promise that I kept their name on my radar. I’m a fan of the (rather typical) influences I could hear on that record – early Mastodon, Neurosis, High on Fire – and thought the band was onto something good despite the overly long compositions. I’ve been looking forward to hearing how they hone their craft for the past three years now, hoping to hear them set themselves apart from what can often be considered a very homogeneous genre.” All we are is sludge in the wind.

Stonebirds – Collapse and Fail Review

Stonebirds – Collapse and Fail Review

By Saunders on July 25, 2020 in Reviews, Post-Metal, Sludge, Stoner Rock, 14 comments

“French trio Stonebirds formed back in 2008 and have three LP’s under their belt, prior to the release of their latest opus, entitled Collapse and Fail. This is my first taste of the band’s work, and based on the music contained within their fourth album, Stonebirds specialize in an atmospheric, post-metal tinged form of emotive, dark sludge and doom. Throw in some generally lengthy song structures, a heaping dose of melancholy, and mixture of heavy, grinding riffage and quieter passages of introspective post-metal, and you get a basic idea of what Stonebirds are all about.” Failure as art.

Forming The Void – Reverie Review

Forming The Void – Reverie Review

By Grymm on May 7, 2020 in Reviews, Doom Metal, 32 comments

Louisiana’s Forming The Void admirably scratched my doom metal itch back in 2018 with their third full-length, Rift. Between the sludgy riffs, the Middle-Eastern-inspired noodling, and the heft of the overall package, “Rift was a respectable, enjoyable album. But with all that’s been going on in the world, my lack of free time to even listen to music, let alone review it, and finding difficulty in locating simple pleasures like liquid hand soap or toilet paper… let’s just say that I’m itching for some quality doom metal to ease my soul.” Doom therapy.

Megatherium – God Review

Megatherium – God Review

By GardensTale on April 18, 2020 in 2020, Argonauta Records, Doom Metal, Italian Metal, Reviews, Sludge, Stoner Metal, Doom Metal, Sludge, Stoner Metal, 15 comments

“There is one reason and one reason alone why I’m reviewing this album. It’s not the passable art, or the generally nice but fairly uneven roster of sludge and sludge-adjacent bands Argonauta Records have built up. It’s the handle, because Megatherium has to be one of the coolest band names I’ve ever laid eyes on.” Mega deficit.

Hyborian – Vol. II Review

Hyborian – Vol. II Review

By Huck N Roll on March 20, 2020 in 2020, American Metal, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Season of Mist, Sludge Metal, Stoner Metal, Progressive Metal, Sludge Metal, Stoner Metal, 28 comments

“Hyborian first bored into my consciousness with their single, “Head and the Sword,” an absolutely killer song that showcased a suave combination of sludge, stoner, and prog influences. To this day it remains one of my favorite songs, and it paved the way to their debut album, Vol. I, which took that single and pushed the style into heavier territory, most notably with the vocals. Comparisons are for the lazy amongst us, and that includes me, so let me put forth that there is definitely influence from early Baroness and Mastodon buried in these riffy songs, along with no small dose of High on Fire.” CROMulent.

Psychonaut – Unfold the God Man Review

Psychonaut – Unfold the God Man Review

By Kenstrosity on March 4, 2020 in 2020, Belgian Metal, Pelagic Records, Post-metal, Psychedelic Rock, Reviews, Post-Metal, 33 comments

“I love the color purple. Such a rich palette of hues lie within this particular segment of the spectrum, all of which pair well with an extensive array of complements. Purple can convey royalty, seduction, obliteration, depression, and damn near everything else provided a competent application thereof. Of course, that holds true for most colors, but just seeing purple is more exciting to me than seeing any other color. This brings us to Belgian post-metal trio Psychonaut, whose debut album Unfold the God Man features a gorgeous cover warmly ensconced in my current color of choice.” Do not tear, fold or mutilate.

RED\\SHIFT – Grow.Decay.Transform. Review

RED\\SHIFT – Grow.Decay.Transform. Review

By Carcharodon on February 28, 2020 in 2020, American Metal, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Metalcore, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Self-released, Sludge, Metalcore, Sludge, 34 comments

“There’s a statement in the promo blurb that a “catastrophically drunk dive-bar patron” once described Minnesotan trio RED\\SHIFT as being like “Mastodon mugging King Crimson in a back alley on New Year’s Eve.” There was also mention of wolves with swords for arms.” The right to arm wolves.

Regarde les Hommes Tomber – Ascension Review

Regarde les Hommes Tomber – Ascension Review

By GardensTale on February 27, 2020 in 2020, Black Metal, French Metal, Post-metal, Reviews, Season of Mist, Sludge, Black Metal, Sludge, 14 comments

“Regarde les Hommes Tomber’s soundscape is a vertical stack of black-, post- and sludge metal. The sound is dense and relentlessly insistent, a colliding pile of tremolo rhythms supporting ominous, towering riffs. The vocals are one part black metal screams, two parts hoarse shouts filled with desperation. The effect is like getting caught in a mudslide: unexpected speed, suffocating darkness and crushing weight, surrounded by the screams of the other unfortunate souls dragged to their deaths by the unflinching flow.” It’s the rise and fall.