“After vocalist and guitarist, songwriter and mastermind Nate Garrett arranged the merch and order some fish tacos, he was kind enough to sit down for a chat on everything from doom in Arizona to his time in the Arkansas scene and his love and respect for Jimi Hendrix and Sanford Parker. With the help of my partner-in-crime, Grymm, I bring you a special night with one of this year’s most popular dudes in metal.” Spirits were had.
“Scott “Wino” Weinrich is a living legend. In a way he’s the American version of Lemmy and shares many traits with the late, much beloved metal icon. He’s always been a rebel, loner and an outsider in an outsider scene, pursuing his music without regard for popularity or acceptance. In the process he came to be considered one of the early pioneers of American doom. All of this began when he founded The Obsessed back in the 70s.” Obsessed, thirsty and miserable.
“You know all about our stance on so called “supergroups” at his establishment. The whole concept of a group of superlative (or at least well known) musicians coming together to form an exciting new project invites heightened expectations, and all too often the end product is a let down. Of course there are exceptions to the rule like Arch/Matheos and of course, that awesome Metallica / Lou Reed collaboration, but as a rule it’s best to approach these things guardedly. That brings us to today’s subject – a project by former Fates Warning guitarist Victor Arduini and Argus vocalist Brian Balich.” Big doom for big men and women.
“Though it’s difficult to put into words exactly why, this was one of my most anticipated releases of 2015. As a long time admirer of Scott “Wino” Weinrich’s musical career (The Obsessed, Saint Vitus, Spirit Caravan, etc.), I’ve really taken to his acoustic folk projects over the past few years. Be it his acoustic solo material, his work on The Songs of Townes Van Zandt cover album or his collaboration with German folk artist Conny Ochs, Wino’s voice seems tailor-made for bare bones, stripped-down American folk rock.” Who’s ready for something dark, different and real?
“The month of January is always a difficult one for us writers here at Angry Metal Guy. As evidenced by the staggering amount of Things You Might Have Missed articles that are still coming in, the sheer sparsity of new music is leaving us parched with thirst for thrilling material, and even more so when said thrilling material is at an absolute premium.” Can some heavy sludge shake off Grymm’s early year doldrums? And why are we already have doldrums?
“There was a huge weight on Alunah’s shoulders at the advent of their career. Hailing from Birmingham, the illustrious home to heavy metal, it would have been all to easy to fly under the radar. Fortunately, their début captivated doomsters with its crushing riffs and entrancing female vocals, and the follow-up White Hoarhound miraculously eluded the sophomore slump by boldly expanding their sound to epic levels and progressing their song-writing prowess. Now, Awakening The Forest has arrived and blows them out of the water.” The year of quality doom keeps a rolling!
“In a month where Pallbearer dropped an irresistible doom monstrosity on us, an unheralded act is quietly sneaking out a release that could easily slip through the cracks and escape notice unfairly. The Order of Israfel is a project put together by Tom Sutton (Church of Misery) and Patrik Andersson Winberg (Doomdogs) and their Wisdom debut is a surprisingly addictive fusion of classic Sabbathian doom, 70s hard rock, The Obsessed and the Cathedral school of mega heavy riffs.” Hey, Pallbearer isn’t the only doom crew out there. Sheesh!
“‘There.’ That one word can describe a place of interest. It could be a home you grew up in, a pub you frequent, or a restaurant you and your family or friends enjoy eating at. ‘There’ can also be used as a point of indication in a role, such as ‘I was there to purchase cat food while making evil grimaces and throwing up invisible oranges at the cashier lady.’ What is the point of all this, you may ask?” Oh shit, ain’t that a cliffhanger!?
“Nostalgia. Unfinished business. Hearing your work translated by younger, more established bands. There are many, many reasons for long-dormant groups to give it a second go-around. Detroit’s doom metallers Coven had only one album, 1987’s Worship New Gods, before changing their name to Coven 13 and calling it a day in 1991. Twenty years later, the original members decided to give it the ol’ college try, regrouped with an extra guitarist, and put together their first album in 26 years, Destiny of the Gods.” Ya gotta love long delayed reunions by super marginal acts who made virtually no impression in their heyday. What? You DON’T have to love that? My bad….
“As a long time fan of American doom pioneers Pentagram, I’ve been an admirer of Victor Griffin’s playing and his bluesy, but street tough style. Sure, he borrowed a lot of his sound from Tony Iommi, but he made it his own by mixing it with the sound of Cream-era Clapton and a touch of Hendrix. When he left Pentagram, their stock dropped precipitously, and when he returned for their Last Rites opus, everything was right in the doom world again. I enjoyed most of the material from his Place of Skulls outing, so when I heard of the new Victor Griffin’s In-Graved project, I expected solid results, which this delivered, along with a few surprises.” Doomy biker rock? Does Steel Druhm need to say more? Well, he will anyway because he’s wordy!
