Archons/Lords Of Light And Thunder/2017 Full Length Review

  Archons  are  a  band  from  San  Diego,  California  that  plays  a  mixture  of  stoner,  doom  and  sludge  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2017  album  "Lords  Of  Light  And  Thunder"  which  will  be  released  in  October.

  Distorted  drones  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  powerful  sounding  bass  guitars  and  psychedelic  elements  a  few  seconds  later  which  also  leads  up  to  a  heavier  sludge  and  doom  metal  style  along  with  some  vocals  that  are  in  between  being  aggressive  and  melodic  and they  also  mix  the  heavy  and  psychedelic  elements  together.

  A  great  amount  of  stoner  rock  elements  can  be  heard  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  also  done  in  a  very  dark  and  melodic  fashion  along  with  clean  playing  also  being  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording,  as  the  album  a  brief  instrumental  can  be  heard  before  returning  back  to  a  heavier direction  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  either  a  slow  or  mid  tempo  direction.

  Archons  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  psychedelic,  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  science  fiction  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Archons  are  a  very  great  sounding  psychedelic  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  "Galaxians"  "Dr.  Pain"  and  "Creature".  8  out  of  10.  

BongCauldron/Binge/APF Records/2017 CD Review

  BongCauldron  are  a  band  from  the  United  Kingdom  that  plays  a mixture  of  stoner,  sludge,  doom  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Binge"  which  will  be  released  in  November  by  APF  Records.

  Sludge  style  screams  and  heavy  doom  metal  riffs  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  touches  of  stoner  metal  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to t hem  while  the  vocals  also  add  in  a  touch  of  groove  metal  at  times  and  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody.

  Elements  of  first  wave  black  metal  can  be  heard  at  times  but  mixed  in  with  a  more  modern  stoner/doom  style  while  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  briefly  and  when  the  music  music  speeds  up  it  also  adds  in  the  energy  of  punk  rock  and  thrash  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  the  music  always  remaining  very  heavy.

  BongCauldron  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  stoner,  sludge,  doom  and  thrash  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  BongCauldron  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  stoner.  sludge,  doom  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Devil"  "Bigfoot  Reigns"  and  "Yorkshire  Born".  8  out  of  10.  

Cut The Navel String/The Black Box Session By Peter Deimel/Atypeek Music/2017 LP Review

  Cut  The  Navel  String  are  a  band  from  France  that  plays  a  mixture  of  industrial  metal,  hardcore,  noise  rock  and  darkwave  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "The  Black  Box  Session  By  Peter  Deimel"  which  was  released  by  Atypeek  Music.

  Distorted  drones  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  leads  bass  guitars  a  few  seconds  later   which  also  leads  up  to  a  heavier  musical  direction  along  with  some  industrial  style  vocals  while  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's.

  Elements  of  noise  rock  can  also  be  heard  at  times  while  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  along  with  the  faster  sections  of t he  songs  mixing  in  blast  beats  and  hardcore  influences,  one  track  also  adds  in  a  small  amount  of  acoustic  guitars  and  melodic  vocals  and  when  guitar  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  distorted  fashion.

  Cut  The  Navel  String  plays  a  music  style  that  takes  industrial  metal,  noise  rock,  hardcore  and  a  touch  of  darkwave  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  real  life  and  angry  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Cut  The  Navel  String  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  industrial  metal,  noise  rock  and  hardcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "You're  No  Fun  Anymore"  and  "The  Last".  8  out  of  10.   

Monolord/Rust/RidingEasy/2017 CD Review

  Monolord  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  mixture  of  stoner  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Rust"  which  will  be  released  on  September  29th  by  RidingEasy.

  A  very  hard  and  heavy  stoner  rock  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sounding  very  powerful  while  the  riffing  also  mixes  in  the  heaviness  of  doom  metal  and  the  vocals  are  done  in  a  clean singing  style  as  well  as  some  clean  playing  also  being  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording.

  A  decent  amount  of  melody  can  be  heard  in  the  guitar  riffing  while  the  music  makes  a  style  that  has  its  roots  in  the  70's  have  a  more  modern  feeling  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length,  when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  dark  and  melodic  fashion.

  As  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  psychedelic  sounding  organs  can  be  heard  briefly  while  one  of  the  tracks  is  an  instrumental  along  with  all  of  the  songs  sticking  to  a  very slow musical  direction  and  the  closing  track  acoustic  guitars  are  also  utilized  briefly  for  a  few  minutes.

  Monolord  plays  a  musical  style  that  mixes  stoner  and  doom  metal  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  evil,  horror  and  supernatural  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Monolord  are  a  very  great sounding  mixture  of  stoner  and  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Dear  Lucifer"  and  "Forgotten  Lands".  8  out  of  10.

Pale Horseman/The Fourth Seal/2017 FUll Length Review

  Pale  Horseman  are  a  band  from  Chicago, Illinois  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  plays  a  mixture  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  and   and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2017  album  "The  Fourth  Seal"  which  will  be  released  in  November.

  A  very  heavy  doom  metal  sound  starts  off  the  album  and  after  awhile  aggressive  vocals  which  also  have  a  melodic  edge  at  times are  added  onto  the  recording  while  the  music  also  mixes  in  the  heaviness  of  sludge  along  with  the  riffs  also  bringing  in  a  great  amount  of  groove  and  melody.

  Elements  of  southern  and  stoner  metal  can  be  heard  in  some  of  the  guitar  riffing  while  the  music  also  incorporates  a  lot  of  90's  era  industrial and  death  metal  influences  along  with  the  solos  and  leads being  done  in  a  very  dark  yet  melodic  fashion,  some  songs  also  add  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  all  of  the  music  sticks  to  either  a  slow  or  mid  tempo  direction.

  Pale  Horseman  creates  another  recording  that remains  true  to  the  sludge  and  doom  metal  mixture  of  previous  releases,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  apocalypse,  depression,  sorrow,  drugs  and  misanthropy  themes.

  On  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Pale  Horseman  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  sludge  and  doom  metal,   you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Final  War"  "Bereavement"  "Pale  Rider"  and  "Phantasmal  Voice".  8  out  of  10.

  

Sapata Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

We are Sapata, the dancing dead from Tampere, Finland, formed in 2014.

Saara Šamane vocals, Felix Voltti guitar, TT Suosalo bass, Anttu Puutio drums.

2.In June you had released an album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?

Deep, sanguine, melancholic sound but still warm, strong and full of energy.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

Saara:  You might say that I write lyrics from a two different aspect. Some of the lyrics are very intimate and earthly. They are stories about love, depression, stories about dreams and nightmares and my fear of death. For example 'I the Messenger' is a song that I wrote when I had this bad time span of mania and depression dominating my life.

I have a quite romantic relationship to writing. I see stories in my head; landscapes, colours, sounds, and I must write them down. Like 'Gobi'. When I started to write it I saw the song in my head. I saw this bare desert and black night sky full of stars, and this young man who wanted to be fearless and ride through the desert that is full of danger but the story doesn’t tell what is his destiny. I use a lot of metaphors, to me it's very natural way to write. Metaphors are beautiful and interesting way to write about your life without telling the whole story of your lunatic mind. They are poems which every listener can feel and see in their own way. I like to use mysticism in my texts so I have taken influences from old mythologies, religions, myths and believes, things that I’m interested in. In June I made a sequence of photos based on the album lyrics, you can check those in our facebook page. Every photo opens more of the world and stories behind the lyrics.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Sapata'?

Sapata means a dancing bear in native Miwok's language. Coming up with the name was a quite long process with everybody spit ideas back and forth and eventually when we came up with it the name suited our music well.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and slo how would you describe your stage performance?

Every show can be quite different ‘cause is all about the place and the energy between the band and the audience. Our shows are very strong, energic, sometimes dramatic but always honest. Music can create a strong bond between players and the audience and they can feed each others energy in a very hypnotic and therapeutic way. Our best shows have been like this, we’ve been in a trance with the audience.  It’s all about this magnetic, hypnotic energy between everybody.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

Now we are writing our second album called ‘Reflections’ and it will be recorded this year. We have also some shows in Finland and we are open to have more. Touring starts next spring when the album will be released. We don’t know yet is the album going to be a self release or via some label.

7.The new album was released on 'Inverse Records', are you happy with the support that they have given you so far?

To a rising band like us, label Inverse has been good move, they promote us through their contacts and keep us informed about reviews and sales, while letting us own the rights to our music.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of heavy and doom metal?

‘Satanibator’ has received lot of positive feedback and we are happy to see how people around the world have liked the album. ‘Satanibator’ is musically quite open-minded album and we have noticed that almost all kind of people can find something catchy from it. And it’s great ‘cause our music is meant for everyone.

9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

Our music and lyrics are getting more rough and intimate and will take the listener deeper to our world. The theme of the second album is the death’s reflections and it’s called ‘Reflections’. On the new album the theme will be more clearly present on lyrics and graphics that on ‘Satanibator’.

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?

Everyone’s individual influences and musical roots are very different and that creates our sound. We listen bands like Dead Can Dance, Sielun Veljet, Goat, Emma Acs, Oranssi Pazuzu, Monolord, Type o Negative, Devin Townsend, Boston, the Hellacopters, Leprous..

11.How would you describe your views on Occultism?

We don't have a mutual view on occultism. Everyone has their own or doesn't have it at all. 'Sex Magik' is the only occultic love song in the album. Some of us might have some kind of interest on occultism but it's not present in our music.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

Saara: Woodworking, diy, graphic designing and art

Felix: Sports, scifi-movies and assisting surgeries

TT: Nature, aircrafts and food

Anttu: Baking

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts/

Live life with full power love and lunatic groove

Loincloth Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?

This new album marks the final chapter for Loincloth. Our mission is complete. We are extremely excited that Southern Lord will be bringing this slab of sickness to the hands and ears of our fellow riff mongers out there in the world!!

2.You have a new album coming out during the end of September, 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?

 Loincloth first and foremost is about density of HEAVY and twisting rhythmical concepts into knots. On the new record we created a little more breathing space as opposed to our first record "Iron Balls of Steel", which is non-stop claustrophobia. Fear not though, "Psalm Of the Morbid Whore" is still quite twisted!

3.This is your first album in 5 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time span?

 We were writing and playing shows during this time.

4.So far all of the albums have been instrumental, what was the decision behind going into this direction instead of using vocals?

We had flirted with the idea of having a track or two with sparse vocals, but the idea behind Loincloth has always been about instrumental music. The drums are our vocals.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Loincloth'?

 Primitive, HEAVY and absurd!!

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Although Loincloth didn't perform a ton, we were lucky to get to be a part of a lot of of great shows and festivals from The Day Of Doom Barcelona, Power Of The Riff in LA , GWAR-BQ in Richmond, VA to shows with Dysrhythmia, El Drugstore, Demon Eye and Dead in the Dirt, just to name a few. A personal highlight for me was doing a string of Dates with Sunn O))). I'm huge fan, so it was nothing short of sublime pleasure to be crushed by their unholy power several nights in a row. As far as stage performance, we keep it dark and let the riffs be the show!

7.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?

No, we will have no final live performances.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of extreme and progressive metal?

 Very good! The metal community has always been a global tribe and I'm honored to be a part of it. Loincloth's music is not easy to digest, but I'm thrilled that their are people out there that crave the kind of weird meal we offer. The support for this band has been incredible.

9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

 We all have things we are currently working on. Steve, who is also the long time drummer for the Doom Metal band Confessor is working on a new record with them. Loincloth's bass player Tomas, and I have a heavy/ambient project named Gauchiste and are working on our second record. Besides that I have another twisted riff project forming named PRIZELIE.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

 Loincloth is a strange beast. There are wide ranging influences in this band. VoiVod, Trouble, Celtic Frost, King Diamond, Melvins, Mekong Delta, Sabbath, Halen and Rush are regular reference points when in rehearsal. For me, other bands like Ruins (from Japan) or Univers Zero and NOMEANSNO (just to name a few) can creep into the mix as an influence in one way or another. These influences might be hard to detect, but they are in there, at least abstractly. We might reference something, but for the most part we allow a riff to take its own course, relying on the language we have created for ourselves.
As far as what I'm listening to, that could be a long list as I'm always listening to a ton of stuff.  I love the new Circle record. Looking forward to new records by Krisiun, VoiVod, Unsane and Dead Rider. I've been having a great time with old Scorpions, Accept and Priest lately!!

11.What are some of your non musical interests?

 I spend a lot of time with my brain in various arts from the visual to the written. I've loved poetry since I was a kid. I commit a lot of time to exploring various poets of the world.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Thanks for the interview and thanks to all that have been with us for so many years!!

May Satan be Yours!!

Stay Heavy!!