Rote Mare - The Invocation & The Kingdom (album reviews)

Cover artwork by Sean Wiskin (guitars)

I don't know how or where Phil Howlett, the original member and leader of the band came up with the name Rote Mare, but it sounds to me like a recurring nightmare, committed to memory, beat for beat, moment for moment.  That's as good a description of the band's spot-on traditional doom sound as one could come up with.  Moody, downtuned devil's third riffs and plodding drums with pleading, hopeless vocals just about sum it up and hit the nail right on the head of this beloved genre.  If slow, monumental doom is your bag, then say hello to 'The Invocation'.  If galloping and graceful doom, powerful and sleek like a panther is more your bag, shake hands with 'The Kingdom'.  Either way, you won't be disappointed, but I warn you, if you listen to them both at once ... it's almost too big a dose for the system to take and you'll get addicted right away.

The Invocation and The Kingdom are albums that are available separately but go together like green eggs and ham.  The covers connect and they were both recorded and released at once so, for all intents and purposes, this is a double album and that's how I'll be referring to it from now on.  All told this ostensible double album provides over two full hours of darkness.  Even then, played back to back, it's still not enough.  I crave more and more from this band due to my recently acquired drowning addiction.  Turning over pillows and couch cushions digging for loose change so that I can hear more.  Checking the dumpsters.  You hear a deep wail in the background and seek its source hoping to find the Rote Mare only to discover it's electrical and ambient hum from a neighboring building generator.  Shaking out the toaster, running in circles, pulling my hair out until it's all I can think about, more, MORE!  Luckily, Rote Mare does have more.  In fact, they have hours and hours of music available on their bandcamp page (see player below) and their own website with which to feed yours and my new found addiction.

Officially, these two albums represent the band's second and third full-length efforts, respectively, but as I touched on, Phil Howlett has been writing and recording voraciously for the better part of a decade as Rote Mare and the full line-up has been recording with him for nearly half that time so the band may be new to many, but they already have an established and mature sound which is explored brilliantly in two parts with 'The Invocation' covering the Rote Mare's slower more menacing side and 'The Kingdom' running on some more quick-firing cylinders, but also exploring the slower territory as well.

'The Invocation' begins with opening track "The Kingdom", just as 'The Kingdom' album ends with album closer "The Invocation", a tongue in cheek reference to the ambitious nature of this project that is neither a true double album nor features a concept or narrative thread in any way.  Nor in fact did Rote Mare intend on releasing this overwhelming helping of doom all in one sitting.  The material was recorded while the band had the opportunity with the intention of releasing a single album and having a glut of material at the ready for any single and / or split releases that might crop up in the future.  Enthusiasm and conviction took care of those plans however as the decision was made to just get it all out at once.  Well, those feelings are well founded.  As was touched upon earlier, by far the slowest songs or more accurately, more somber moods of the bunch are found on 'The Invocation'. Songs like "The Stones of Blood" and especially "Nothing" grind listeners down like pepper in a shaker within their often morose vibes.  The latter track establishes its presence as the album's centerpiece with its 14 minute dirge which brings out the often discussed "goth-tinge" in Howlett's vocals.  It suits the mood of the song hand in glove.

'The Kingdom' is mostly made up of six tracks cut from the cloth of classic traditional doom in all its greasy riff chugging glory.  The album is perhaps exemplified by "The Thief" with its stalker's pace although "Shameless" sticks in the mind also with its memorably pleading refrain, "Suffers no guilt!".  "Suicidal Slayer" springs across the speakers like an annihilation wave and gallops all over the listener, a relatively quick burst at six minutes in length that just may be the best song of the whole bunch.

The main crux of the two albums comprises 11 songs altogether, but there are 14 tracks here with a pair of covers, one for each album.  'The Invocation' features "Holocaust" by 70s "should-have-been-huge-stars-but-were-criminally-ignored" legends Big Star while 'The Kingdom' has "Destroyer" by "tore-congress-a-new-one-when-they-were-supposed-to-be-just-dumb-rockers-who-couldn't-think-and-couldn't-speak" Twisted Sister.  Due to permission issues the songs are available on the CD versions of these albums only and are not available on the bandcamp download.  Both CDs can be purchased as a combo for 15 Australian dollars from the band's website.  Some confusion enters the mix by the inclusion of a bonus track at the end of 'The Invocation' called "Eternal Winter".  It's an older song, originally recorded by the newly minted Rote Mare lineup back in 2009 (Rote Mare started as Phil Howlett's solo project back in 2005 or thereabouts).  It's not clear whether this is a download only bonus track or if it's available on the CD version of the album as well.  It's also not clear whether or not this is a brand new recording, but it is of excellent sound quality as is everything else on this double album.

I can already tell that this is something that I'll be going back to for a long, long time to come.  Rote Mare also has a recent split with Dire Fate which I have coming in the mail along with the two albums featured here today.  It was released just a couple months before these two.  The download of Rote Mare's half of the split from the band's own bandcamp page has a bonus three demos as well.  This is the band that keeps on giving.

Highlights include: "The Serpent" and "The Thief"

Rating: 4.5/5

Total Run Time: 1:06:07

Phil Howlett - Guitar, Vocals
Ben Dodunski - Drums
Sean Wiskin - Guitar
Jess Erceg - Bass

From: Adelaide, Australia

Genre: Traditional Doom Metal

Reminds me of: Cathedral, Echo and the Bunnymen (vocals), The Gates of Slumber, Paradise Lost

Release Date: May 21, 2013

Suggested listening activity for fellow non-stoners: Hook up an old portable TV to a tombstone with jumper cables ...

Rote Mare facebook

Total Run Time: 1:04:58

** Very special thanks to Steph LS from Temple of Perdition for recommending Rote Mare.

The Alchemical Mixture - Naga & Zodiac (album reviews)

From: Naples, Italy.  Rating: 5/5.  Total Run Time: 22:50.
Release Date: January 17, 2013

Italian doom band Naga have unleashed their demo upon the unsuspecting masses on bandcamp as a 'pay what you want' deal.  The demo's made up of two lengthier tracks, rather on the razor edged distortion side of the doom ledger.  The band is made up of two thirds of the sludge doom band Kill the Easter Rabbit (KTER), who haven't been heard from since 2010's 'Apokatastasis' full-length album.  Like Spinal Tap before them, they have gone through their share of drummers, Naga's charter beat-basher, Dario, is a twelve year plus veteran of the band Nameless Crime.  One other roster move to report, they have switched from a twin guitar attack to a guitar and bass lineup with Emanuele Schember moving to bass.

Okay, with that all out of the way as an introduction, now it's time to dig into the music.  "The Path" opens things up with a sludgy doom riff and strong dynamics.  It doesn't take long for Dario to prove himself a powerful, dynamic drummer and a perfect fit with Emanuele and Lorenzo.  Straight off, the vocals are more brutal, more angry and less melodic than those of KTER, the last gasps of a dying wretch.  It's a great song that leaves nothing on the table, tempos are explored, dynamics exploited and that old feeling emerges of when doom was brand new (at least to the listener) matte black and dangerous.

"Vitriol" also explores inter-song dynamics, using major-minor chord variation to create an emotionally devastating effect.  If being chewed up and swallowed by some prehistoric monster was music, this is what it would sound like: chomping rhythms, crushing riffs, ringing splashes of light and saliva followed by a long journey down a very dark tunnel as the song changes and the band explores new tracts of sonic territory.

I'll be perfectly honest with you, this is exactly what I'm looking for in my doom.  Give me riffs, draw them out, change them up, take them to the burial chamber and make them suffer.  You don't always know what you're looking for until you hear it and Naga's two song demo may not make you sit up and take instant notice, but once the band begins exploring dynamics and different textures it all comes together.  It's only then that you realize: "I've been needing to hear this for a long time and didn't even know it".

From: Brisbane, Australia.  Rating: 5/5.  Total Run Time: 24:13.

Release Date: February 17, 2013

Another band that gives me that sweet and sour doomed feeling is Brisbane, Australia trio Zodiac.  While info on the band is sparse, I do know that the band features three fifths of hardcore punk band Last Chaos and I suppose it was time for these guys to embrace the doom and worship the riff.  So mote it be.

The big seventies-style doom riff plays a huge part of their sound.  Distinctive and melodic vocals and drums that add textures and layers to the storytelling rather than simply keep time weave a powerful spell over the listener.  Zodiac is a great band with a powerful and genuine traditional doom / paleo-metal sound.  A band whose tape can honestly be said to sound as though it actually was written and recorded during the late seventies or early eighties is a rare find.  They don't do it by copying and pasting their favorite sounds of the era into 'scrapbook songs', it's something achieved by production values, a refined ear and intuition.  Oh yeah, did I mentioned they released this three song demo on cassette tape?
The tape has sold out but it's still available from Nuclear Blood and No Patience in Australia, along with Shadow Kingdom, Hells Headbangers, I Hate Records & At War With False Noise.  I've got mine!

Riffs plunge down a Bermuda's triangle vortex of the classic devil's third tritone on opener "Vertigo" and spill off from there.  "Somnium" is another strong example of the band's ability to build an epic soundscape from a slow, tritonal riff and do so within a traditional doom framework that is both respectful to its origins and unique unto itself.  Towards the end of the latter song a haunting banshee wail from vocalist Ben Peters signals the band to finally cut loose and up the tempo.  It must feel great to do so, considering the band's pedigree.

I've no doubt Zodiac will end up on the radar of many and receive tons more press, and if they already are on your radar, give Naga a try, I'm sure you'll like it, and vice versa.  While Naga adds handfuls of filth to their sound, both bands are coming from very much the same place, the pond of primordial slime from which all doom bands have arisen.  The monumental tritone riff, which each of these two powerful bands put their own unique spin on to.  You can listen and download each of these great releases on the players below.

Genre: Sludge, Doom

Naga is:                                                                    Zodiac is:

Emanuele Schember - bass, effects                             Mikel Elborne - bass

Dario Graziano – drums                                              Will Learmonth - Drums

Lorenzo De Stefano - guitar, vocals                             Leo Price – guitar

                                                                                 Ryan Cooper – guitar

                                                                                 Ben Peters - vocals

Better Review:
Sludgelord on Naga
Too Late to Pray on Naga
Astral Doom on Zodiac

Naga facebook
Zodiac facebook

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The Alchemical Mixture - Dead River & The Valley (album reviews)

LET THE FUZZ FLOW

Dead River - ST

Highlights include: "Wash His Bones" and "Burn Alive".

From: Melbourne, Australia.  Rating: 4/5

DEAD RIVER - ST

Dead River's self-titled EP is one of the toughest psychedelic rock records I've heard in a long, long time.  It's the burnt out and slightly strung out toughness of an all-nite diner with blues-inflected slide riffs and the ambience of the neon glow of disinterested guitars ringing and wailing in the background.  'Dead River' is loaded with leather jacketed and puke stained band t-shirt attitude that lets one know that these three ladies (Bindi Masterson - Vocals & guitar; Bonnie Mercer - Guitar and Shaunagh Furlong - Drums) have been through the wars and come back with a few missing teeth but a few stories to tell as well.

As a general thing, the Dead River flows with fuzz, providing said toughness.  A thick froth of fuzz like the skin that grows on old beer that's been left out for a little too long in an open container.  From there the cacophanous drums crash and bang continuously, relentlessly until all that's left along the shore is bloody pulp.  The lead guitar can then play the role of the disembodied ghost, possessing a riff every now and then but mostly content to be a truly free spirit, floating atop the Dead River like smog, haunting each of the four tracks with that strung out and burnt out vibe.

Dead River carry on the tradition of the drugged out side of Spacemen 3 and the rougher and readier side of early Black Rebel Motorcycle Club while showing signs of maturing into their own sound with "Burn Alive".

The Valley - ST

Highlights include: "Rad Dungeons" and "Royal City".

From: Seattle, Washington.  Rating: 4/5

THE VALLEY - ST EP

And if the fuzz comes down from the Mountain and flows down the Dead River, it certainly does so cutting a swathe through The Valley.

This Seattle quartet (Dan Beloit - Guitar / vocals / songwriting duties; Doug Manis - guitar; Colin Faddis: drums; Tim Basaraba - bass/vocals) play a driving style of melodic fuzz rock, somewhat along the lines of a stoner band like Red Desert through the lens of a band like Sloan.  They've been around for over ten years now and even though I live in the general area this is the first I've heard of the band.  It's a fine introduction to a band, it feels like hitting them mid-stride.

Fuzz and flange characterize this eponymous EP with some nice big, meaty riffs, smothered in fuzz gravy, especially on the first and last tracks, and a generous helping of rock and roll pop sensibilities.

They say opposites attract and stylistically, The Valley's glossy melodies couldn't be further from the dirt-encrusted assault of Dead River.  But where the twain meet is in the muddy groves of fuzztown.  "Rad Dungeons" and "Royal City" are satisfyingly fuzzy and heavy tracks with just enough aggression to match the driving rhythm and convince the listener that The Valley mean serious rock n roll business.  "Northern Cascades" and "Blue Sonic" feature plenty of drive of their own, but shows the band in a more spaced-out psychedelic light.  These latter two tracks have slightly less howl to them than the former and are more rock oriented with catchy melodies on the vocals all the way through, especially "Blue Sonic".  When The Valley plays around with psychedelia, it's usually in a textural context with wide-open spaces of staccato riffing with flange that 'suggests' more it 'tells'.  As subtle as this band gets though, they're still  not above bludgeoning the listener over the head when need be.

Genre: Psychedelic, Stoner, Fuzz Rock

Release Date: February 13, 2013 (Dead River); October 30, 2012 (The Valley)

Suggested listening activity for fellow non-stoners: Digging for fuzz clams on the bloody banks of the river.

Dead River facebook
The Valley facebook





Thanks to The Soda Shop for introducing this author to The Valley.

Motherslug - ST (album review)

Melbourne, Australia's five-piece stoner doom band Motherslug's self-titled debut four song EP is a damn fine introduction to a damn fine band.  Motherslug play a slimy brand of doom that sits on a meteorite drifting just past the edge of vision, beyond the reaches of darkness blazing the sky up upon entry into the atmosphere of the listener's skull to slam into the brain.

There's some familiar sounds here and one might be tempted to fault the band for not disguising their influences enough, or some other such argument, but that wouldn't be listening, that would only be hearing.

While there's no denying that second track, "Rollin'", has some similarities to "Hole in the Sky", I'd say it owes more in parentage to Kyuss than Black Sabbath.  Cam's vocals and lyrical content are more akin to John Garcia than anything Ozzy ever did, but that's more an accident of birth than anything.  What makes this comparison tick are the fuzz tone and walloping drums which have more in common with the cadence of Homme and Bjork.  Motherslug's spaced out explorations are Desert Rock almost by definition imbibing Arizona's finest, while even at their most lysergic, Black Sabbath never took off on flights of improvisational fancy.  Black Sabbath are one of the most highly, one might even say, severely structured bands on the planet.

Similarly, the beginning of "Devils Rise" might sound, on the surface, like it owes a kind of creative debt to Led Zeppelin, it more accurately reflects the influence of Electric Wizard.  The way the song is structured around the the Big Slow Riff speaks heavily to Jus and co.  But really, I'm setting up straw man arguments left right and center here in a lame attempt to introduce Motherslug's musical heritage, you know, 'this is where they're coming from'.  There are also glimmers of Black Sabbath and Kyuss in "Devils Rise" as well, but it's all academic really, what I'm trying to say here is that Motherslug build from a solid foundation and take up the mantle of hard rock and metal gurus for a new day and age.  Magi of the wicked, the fuzzy, the doomed.

All four songs here are great, I like all of them, but the better of the four are the two in which Motherslug shows more of a unique identity, where they venture out into that dense fog without so much as a familiar-sounding riff.  The first and last tracks are where the band really starts to come together and forge its own sound, catapulting their profile from a band that understands their chosen genre and exhibits tastes of the highest standard, to one that forces it into new and unconquered territory.

"Symptoms (of the Human Race)" is a pulsating storm of static-y fuzz and gigantic swaying hooks.  The song starts off innocently enough with a chunking fuzz riff and noises broadcast from some otherworldly swirling void but soon blows the listener's head off like a model house in an atomic blast test.  It becomes harder and harder to resist the rushing currents of explosive power, swaying dizzily from the rampaging juggernaut and before long one is swept up in the maelstrom, "Symptoms of the HU-MAN".  "Space Man" explodes from a worm hole just above the spinning blue marble of the earth to seed the clouds with spores of doom.  After a short fuzz solo, the band crashes back in to "crush ... it ... DOWN!"  When that confrontation takes place, the heavens tremble and the sky cracks in twain.  Thus stands revealed the stunning onslaught of Motherslug in all its slimy glory.

Highlights include: "Symptoms [of the Human Race]" and "Space Man"

Rating: 4.5/5

Total Run Time: 26:03

From: Melbourne, Australia

Genre: Doom, Stoner, Desert Rock, Space Rock, Psychedelic

Reminds me of: Black Sabbath, Electric Wizard, Kyuss, Lord of the Grave, Mage

Release Date: November 1, 2012

Suggested listening activity for fellow non-stoners: Watch from the back bedroom window of the farm house as spores rain death upon the landscape.