Onegodless/Mourner/2017 Full Length Review

  Onegodless  are  a  band  from t he  Netherlands  that  plays  a  mixture  of  blues,  stoner,  groove  and  sludge  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2017  album  "Mourner"  which  will  be  released  in  June.

  A  brief  intro  starts  off  the  album  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  and  melodic  southern  groove  metal  styles  along  with  some  sludge  style  screams  a  few  seconds  later  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording  and  spoken  word  parts  are  also  used  at  times.

  When  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  add  in  touches  of  blues rock  while  some  of  the  music  also adds  in a  more  modern  stoner  style  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  either  a  slow  mid  paced  musical  direction  while  always  remaining  heavy  and  having  influences  that  start  in  the  70's  up  to  the  modern  era.

  Onegodless  plays  a  musical style   that  takes  groove,  stoner  and  sludge  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  very  heavy  recording,  the  production  sounds  very  professional while  the  lyrics  cover  dark and  real  life  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Onegodless  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  groove,  stoner  and  sludge  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Calm"  "Unstable"  "Salvation"  and  "From  The  Ashes".  8  out  of  10.   

     

 

 

Harvestman/Music For Megaliths/Neurot Recordings/2017 CD Review

  Harvestman  is  another  solo  project  from  Neurosis's  Steve  Von  Till  that  plays  a  mixture  of  psychedelic,  folk  and  drone  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  2017  album  "Music  For  Megaliths"  which  will  be  released  in  My  by  Neurot  Recordings.

  Acoustic  guitars  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  atmospheric  soundscapes  which  also  gives  the  recording  a  neo  folk  feeling  as  well  as  synths,  psychedelic  and  avant  garde  elements  and  at  times  the  music  brings  in  a  very  shamanistic  and  ritualistic  atmosphere  along  with  some  drones.

  A  great  portion  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  while  also  mixing  in  elements  of  krautrock  and  noise  at  times  and  after  awhile  electric  guitars  are added  into  certain sections  of  the  recording  along  with  a  few  melodic  leads  and  some  tracks  also  add  in touches  of  ambient  and  electronic  music  and  some  songs  also  add  in  guitar  slides  and  after  plenty  of  instrumentals,  vocals  long  with  spoken  word  parts  are  finally  added  onto  the  recording  briefly.

  Harvestman  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  post  metal,  neo  folk,  noise,  drone,  and  psychedelic  music  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  something  very  original,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  song  themes  focus  on  ruins,  monuments  and  ancient  sites  of  worship. 

  In  my  opinion  Harvestman  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  post  metal,  krautrock,  psychedelic,  noise  and  neo  folk  and  if  you a re  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  solo  project.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Forest  Is  Our  Temple"  "Cromlech"  and  "White  Horse".  8 out  of  10.

Monobrow Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?
Right now we are finishing up the inserts that will be included with the vinyl release and trying to organize some shows in and around our region (Ontario and Quebec) for the summer and fall.

2.In May you have a new album coming out, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
I think this is the most focused album of ours.  It is a bit of a concept album so we really tried to make sure the entire album flows together really well.  Overall this is probably our darkest/angriest sounding record both in composition and production.  The main difference when compared to our previous albums is the addition of lyrics.   While we remain an instrumental band we had Ryan Kjrr, a friend of ours, come up with a story to go along with the music.  Those that are familiar with our previous recordings may also notice the the synthesizers play a more prominent role than in the past.  The album really acts as a soundtrack to the story Ryan came up with.  It's the first time we try anything like this so it will be interesting to hear people's reactions and thoughts.  Overall we are extremely happy with how everything turned out, from the music, production, artwork and of course the lyrics.

3.So far all of the music has been instrumental, are you open to using any vocals in the future?
We have been doing this since 2009 and have established ourselves as an instrumental band.  I can't see us ever adding a vocalist to the mix but that's not to say that we would not be open to maybe adding vocals to a track or two a future release.  If we feel that a song can use vocals then we would certainly be open to it, after all vocals are just another instrument.

4.I know that the bands name means 'knitted brows' in Russian, how does this time fit in with the musical style you play?
It really doesn't other than maybe it shows that we don't take ourselves too seriously.  And in the past people have commented that they can hear our sense of humour in our songs, although this album may not be as humorous as some of the previous records. 

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
We've had our share of good shows and bad shows.  It seems the more the audience is into it the better we play and come out feeling really good about our performance.  One of the most fun shows we've played was in our hometown of Ottawa in 2012 as part of the All That is Heavy festival that was headlined by Blood Ceremony and Iron Man.  Great crowd, great bands and everything went really smoothly.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?
We don't consider ourselves a touring band.  Our personal lives and work commitments don't really allow for any extended touring.  We will try and support the new release with shows within a few hours drive from Ottawa and if all goes well we may head out to the east coast of Canada to play in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.  We'll see what happens.  In general we rely on the internet to spread our music and attract new listeners.  Blogs and sites such as yours are essential for us as is YouTube, Facebook, Instagram etc.

7.The new album is coming out on 'Trill Or Be Trilled Records', can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
There isn't much to tell.  It's our own label that we are using to release Monobrow records.  We've discussed potentially adding other bands and turning it into a collaborative effort to support each other and increase our network but it's still very early right now and we'll see where it takes us.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of stoner and doom metal?
People that take the time to get into our music generally like it.  We get lots of positive feedback and album reviews indicate that people do like what they hear.  We struggle a little bit because we are instrumental and I think we're likely losing a large percentage of the metal/doom/stoner audience because of that.  It's unfortunate because we really feel the music speaks for itself and if people would give it more of a chance they may find that they really do like it and won't miss the vocal element.

9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We're already working on new material and hopefully we can get back to the studio and have another album out in the next 24 months.  We're talking among ourselves as to whether or not we want to write a "sequel" to The Nacarat or if we should move on to a whole new idea or even not do the concept album thing again.  So far the new material sounds like the logical next step after The Nacarat.  The key for us is to keep writing and being creative, we really don't like repetition (i think our songs and albums showcase that) and we like to keep things fresh and moving.  It''s a big part of why we have been able to get to where we are.  4 LPs and an EP in the span of about 8 years is decent catalog of songs.  We would have never thought as an non-touring instrumental band from Ottawa we would be where we are today.  Musically we keep evolving if you listen to our first record and then listen to this latest one I think you would hear a significant difference.  We have definitely grown and we have a lot more attention to detail without losing the energy of our younger selves.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
So many to name.  We are all huge music nerds and listen to all styles of music.  I think the obvious influences can be heard in our music like Black Sabbath, Kyuss, Pentagram and any of Wino's bands, Funkadelic.  But on a more subtle level there are tons of bands and artists that influence and inspire us. 

11.What are some of your non musical interests?
Similar to our musical tastes, our non musical interests are varied.  Movies, books, basketball, tennis, beer, food, beer, food, beer, food.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thank you for taking the time to check us out and for sharing our work.  We hope that those who hear it enjoy it as much as we enjoyed making it!

Monobrow/The Nacarat/Trill Or Be Trilled Reocrds/2017 Full Length Review

  Monobrow  are  a  band  from  Ottawa,  Ontario,  Canada  that  plays  an  instrumental  mixture  of  psychedelic,  stoner  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "The  Nacarat"  which  will  be  released  in  May  by  Trill  Or  Be  Trilled  Records.

  Audience  noise  and  drum  beats  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  heavy  riffs  a  few  seconds  later  that  also  mix  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  70's  rock  influences  and  you can  also  hear  all  of t he  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on t he  recording  and  the  solos  and  leads  bring  in  a  very  retro  and  melodic  style.

  A  lot  of  the  riffs  bring  in  the  heaviness  of  doom  metal  and  a  great  portion  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  after  awhile  psychedelic  and  stoner  rock  elements  start  making  their  presence  known  and  acoustic  guitars  are  also  added  into  certain  sections  of  the recording  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  either  a  slow  or  mid  paced  direction.

  Monobrow  plays  a  musical  style  that  mixes  psychedelic,  stoner,  doom  metal  and  impov  together  along  with  no  vocals  to  create  something  different  and  very  original  and  the  production  also  sounds  very  professional.

  In  my  opinion  Monobrow  are  a  very  great  sounding  instrumental mixture  of  psychedelic,  stoner,  and  doom  metal  and  if  you a re  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should c heck  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Capes  And  Monocles"  and  "Twin  Sheiks".  8  out  of  10.

 

Contra/Deny Everything/Robustfellow Productions/Shifty Records/2017 CD Review

  Contra  are  a  band f rom  Cleveland,  Ohio  that  plays  a  mixture  of  stoner,  sludge  and doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Deny  Everything"  which  was  released  as  a  joint  effort  between  Robustfellow  Productions  and  Shifty  Records.

  Distorted  amp  sounds  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  heavy  and  melodic  retro  metal  style  riffing  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  add  in  a  touch  of  blues  and  stoner  rock  while  the  vocals  are  done  in  an  aggressive  hardcore  and  sludge  mixture  style  and  a  great  amount  of  doom  metal  elements  can  be  heard.

  While  the  music  does  have  a  lot  of  old  school  influences  it  still  sounds  very  modern  at  the  same  time  while  the  riffs  and  leads  also  utilize  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  a  couple  of  tracks  are  all  instrumental  and  a  couple  of  the  songs  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  all  of  the  music  stick  to  either  a  slow  or  mid  paced  direction.

  Contra  plays  a  musical  style  that takes  70's  blues  rock  and  proto  metal  and  mixes  it  in  with  the  heaviness  of  modern  stoner,  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  mythological  themes. 

  In  my  opinion  Contra  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  stoner,  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Human  Buzzsaw"  "The  Gorgon"  "Son  Of  Beast"  and  "Shrimp  Cocktail".  8  out  of  10.

 

 

When The Sun Comes Down/Welcome/Minotauro Records/2017 CD Review

  When  The  Sun  Comes  Down  are  a  band  from  Italy  that  consists  of  former  members  from  Death  SS  and  Violet  Theatre  and  plays  a  musical  style  they  refer  to  as  doom  rock  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Welcome"  which  was  released  by  Minotauro  Records.

  Heavy  guitar  riffs  start  off  the  album  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sounding  very  powerful  and  after  awhile  clean  singing  yet  aggressive  vocals a re  added  onto  the  recording  and  the  music  brings  in  the  heaviness  of  doom  metal  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  adding  in  a  70's  hard  rock/metal  style.

  Psychedelic  elements  can  be  heard  at  times  along  with  some  horror  music  style  keyboards  and  while  the  music  is  rooted  in  the  past  the  production  gives  the  songs  a  more  modern  feeling  and  a  brief  use  of  saxophones  can  also  be  heard  and  a  couple  of  the  tracks  are  long  and  epic  in  length  and  one  song  also  introduces  acoustic  guitars  onto  the  recording  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  either  a  slow  or  mid  paced  direction.

  When  The  Sun  Comes  Down  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  old  school  doom  metal  and  psychedelic  rock  and  mixes  them  together  as  well  updating  the  genre  for  the  modern  era,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  real  life  themes.

  In  my  opinion  When  the  Sun  Comes  Down  are  a  very  great  sounding  doom  rock  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Mister  Lie"  "Myself"  and  "Because  We  Where  Fools".  8  out  of  10.

Demon Head/Thunder On The Fields/Caligari Records/2017 Cassette Review

  Denmark's  Demon  Head  have  returned  with  a  new  recording  that  continues  the  retro  mixture  of  occult  rock  and  doom  metal  from  previous  releases  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Thunder  On  The  Fields"  which  was  released  on  cassette  by  Caligari  Records.

  Melodic  70's  influenced  guitar  leads  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  drum  beats  a  few  seconds  later  and  bass  guitar  leads  are  a  very  huge  part  of  the  recording  along  with  the  riffs  also  adding  in  elements  of  proto  metal  while  also  having  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  the  vocals  are  mostly  clean  singing.

  A  great  amount  of  70's  doom  metal  elements  can  be  heard  throughout  the  recording  while  the  guitar  solos  and  leads  bring  in  a  retro  style  of  70's  meal  and  hard  rock  and  clean  and  acoustic  guitars  are  also  utilized  at  times  along  with  the  songs  also  sounding  like  they  could  of  easily  been  recorded  and  released  more  than  40  years  ago  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  while  either  sticking  to  a  slow  of  mid  paced  musical  direction.

  Demon  Head  creates  another  recording  that  remains  true  to  their  70's  mixture  of  occult  rock  and  doom  metal  from  previous  releases,  the  production  sounds  very  old  school  while  the  lyrics  cover  Occultism  and  Dark  Fantasy  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Demon  Head  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  occult  rock  and  doom  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  cassette.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "We  Are  Burning"  "Older  Now"  and  "Untune  the  Sky".  8  out  of  10.