2013 Chronicle (Year in review) part 8 - Best of July 2013

July 1 - Chili Cold Blood (And Now the Dawn)

July 2 - Pyres (Year of Sleep)

July 5 - GOATESS (ST) - Pure psychedelic doom.  The sum of Swedish quartet Goatess's debut was greater than its parts and made for one of the best debut records of the year.  Then again, it wasn't entirely unexpected as I can't see legendary vocalist Chritus being involved in anything that isn't great.  Original review here.  Get it here. Highlights include: "Eyes of Zamiel" and "Devil's Wind".  Rating 4/5

July 5 - TOMBSTONE (Where the Dead Belong) - Though the official release date for this one is in January, the album was available for streaming only for months, it wasn't made available to download until this date.  In the end, it was a terrific collection of stoner blues riffs in the Church of Misery mold and a light years leap forward from their 2012 debut EP.  Original review here.  Get it here. Highlights include: "Werewolf" and "No Tomorrow".  Rating 4/5

July 6 - Black Majik Acid (ST)

July 6 - Ride Into the Sun (ST mini-LP)

July 8 - Corsair (Alpha Centauri)

July 9 - DIRTY STREETS (Blades of Grass) - The long awaited follow-up to this Memphis trio's excellent 'Movements' album displayed a soulful veneration of Sam Cooke, Otis Redding and the J.B.'s while still sounding like back country cousins to the Black Keys.  Original review here.  Get it here. Highlights include: "Blades of Grass" and "Truth".  Rating 4.5/5

July 9 - EARTHEN GRAVE (ST) - What's not to love about this one?  Ex-Trouble man Ron Holzner, world-class violinist Rachel Barton Pine and a great vocalist in Mark Weiner help make Earthen Grave's debut on Ripple Music a winner.  Guitarists Jason Muxlow & Tony Spillman pile on the riffs like mashed potatoes while Barton Pine pours on the gravy.  This album would be a stand out any year in any era.  Original review here.  Get it here. Highlights include: "Earthen Grave" and "Death is Another Word".  Rating 5/5

July 9 - SHROUD EATER (Dead Ends EP) - Florida sludge metal trio Shroud Eater ripped faces on their third official release.  Power packed doom grooves and aggressive vocals set a tone that sticks to you like a sweaty t-shirt in a mosh pit.  This five song EP proves why Shroud Eater are among the leading [piercing] lights of Southern Sludge.  Get it here. Highlights include: "Tempest" and "Sudden Plague".  Rating 4.5/5

July 16 - PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS (Walk Through Exits Only) - Pantera / Down / Superjoint Ritual, etc. frontman Phil Anselmo's debut solo album was a remarkable work from a lifelong metal fan who simply wanted to add to his beloved music without repeating anything that had been done before.  No small task.  Well, the results speak for themselves as Phil Anselmo crafted a stunningly good metal album that simply defies subgenrefication.  It's all the more remarkable considering the 40-something year old had never really written music before.  That's not to downplay the contributions of his backing band, called 'The Illegals' for this particular release.  Get it here. Highlights include: "Walk Through Exits Only" and "Battalion of Zero".  Rating 4.5/5

July 16 - Trouble (The Distortion Field)

July 18 - BORRACHO (Oculus) - D.C.'s resident stoner rock kingpins crushed with their first substantial offering of new material since 2011's critical darling 'Splitting Sky'.  Reduced to a power trio, the band nevertheless delivered a free-flowing album that is not only a worthy follow-up to their debut, but arguably surpasses it.  Get it here. Highlights include: "I've Come For It All" and "Empty".  Rating 4.5/5

July 21 - Fangs of the Molossus (ST)

July 21 - Sumeru (ST EP)

July 23 - CURSE THE SON (Psychache) - 'Psychache' was up for streaming on bandcamp for as many as 7 months before it was finally made available for download to the public on this date.  It took a hot minute for the album to catch on, but when it did it wouldn't let go.  Hands down Ron Vanacore's riffs and vocals and drummer Michael Petrucci's groovy-infested syncopation made this one of the year's top notch doom records.  It was later still pressed to vinyl and released by STB Records.  Original review here.  Get it here. Highlights include: "Spider Stole the Weed" and "Goodbye Henry Anslinger".  Rating 4.5/5

July 23 - MISS LAVA (Red Supergiant) - 'Red Supergiant' was actually released late in 2012 and flew completely under the radar until Small Stone Records caught wind of it, re-mastered it for more depth and re-released it on this date.  This is where you go when you're looking for a full album's worth of relentless stoner grooves.  Original review here.  Get it here. Highlights include: "Ride" and "Desert Mind".  Rating 4.5/5

July 24 - Wicked Inquisition (Silence Thereafter)

July 26 - Dozer (Vultures EP)

July 30 - HOLLOW LEG (Abysmal) - Florida sludge metal quartet Hollow Leg upped the ante in a major way on their second album, providing some of the most memorable moments in the genre all year.  They did this with riffs, memorable lyrics and bone splintering power grooves of atomic blowback proportions.  Seriously, don't let this one fly under your radar.  Original review here.  Get it here. Highlights include: "Ride To Ruin" and "Abysmal".  Rating 4.5/5


Best Album From June 2013:
'Psychache' by CURSE THE SON

Best Song From June 2013:
"Abysmal" by HOLLOW LEG

PARANOID Thoughts:

I've prepared a Top 20 Albums on the Rise list as a companion piece to last night's Top 20 I didn't listen to enough.  Most of the albums on this list I only just caught on to recently or was too busy focused on other albums to devote an appropriate amount of attention to until just recently, and some of them are re-discoveries of albums that simply slipped past me.  Basically, I'm trying to give as many deserving albums a share of the spotlight as possible.  These are all albums on the way up my lists ...

(Deep breath...) The Top 20 Rising Albums That Probably Would Have (or at least Might Have) Made the Top 100 of 2013 List if it was Published Two Months Later (now, exhale ..!):
1). Subrosa - 'More Constant Than the Gods'
2). Arrowhead - 'Atomsmasher'
3). Motörhead - 'Aftershock'
4). Blackwitch Pudding - 'Taste the Pudding'
5). Black Majik Acid - ST
6). Sangoma - 'Diviner'
7). Gaggle of Cocks - 'Low Class Trendsetter'
8). Bayou - ST
9). Zemial - 'Nykta'
10). Eye - 'Second Sight'
11). Fuzz - ST
12). Slasher Dave - 'Spookhouse'
13). Bardo Pond - 'Peace on Venus'
14). Stoned Cobra - 'High & Mighty'
15). Cokegoat - 'Vessel'
16). Doomriders - 'Grand Blood'
17). Earth Witch - 'Earth Bound' EP
18). Foghound - 'Quick, Dirty & High'
19). Ride Into the Sun - ST mini-LP
20). Djinn & Miskatonic - 'Forever in the Realm'*

*Looks like this project may now be defunct according to bassist Jayaprakash Satyamurthy.

Hour of Power 09/21/13 (playlist)

1. The Chairman (Truckfighters / The Chairman EP) 2013
2. Hacia el 6to Sol (DemonAuta / Caminando en la Luna EP) 2013
3. Lament Code (Demon Lung / Pareidolia EP) 2012
4. The Integrity (The Rising Sun Experience / Beyond the Oblivious Abyss) 2013
5. Blood Like Cream (Red Fang / Whales and Leeches) 2013
6. Dead Friends (Doomriders / Grand Blood) 2013
7. Full Moon at Noon [live 09/14/13] (Goatess / ST) 2013
8. Spider Stole the Weed (Curse the Son / Psychache) 2013
9. Lotus Jam (Beelzefuzz / ST) 2013
10. Dead Rising (Church of Void / Dead Rising) 2013
11. Counterfeit God (Black Label Society / Stronger Than Death) 2000 'classic clip'

Hour of Power 08/10/13

1. Gods of Magnitogorsk (Kröwnn / Hyborian Age) 2013
2. Tie One On (Devil To Pay / Fate Is Your Muse) 2013
3. At Midnight (From Beyond / The Color Out of Space EP) 2012
4. The Contract (Purson / The Circle and the Blue Door) 2013
5. Reborn (Beelzefuzz / ST) 2013
6. Raices (Chinaski / Resiliencia) 2013
7. Full Moon at Noon (Goatess / ST) 2013
8. Red Death (Spirits of the Dead / Rumours of a Presence) 2013
9. Woodbine (Windhand / Soma) 2013
10. Chylde of Fire (Witchcraft / Firewood) 2005 'classic video'

Goatess - ST (album review)

Goatess formed in 2009 as Weekend Beast.  I don't know when this album began to take shape, but if it began to happen early on, it must have been torture to wait to finally release it after so long.  The patience and restraint shown by a band that waits four years to release an album goes a long way toward establishing the character of the band and the kind of ethic that went into the songs on this album.  Knowing full well that they had the "star-power" on their side in the form of Christian Linderson to release sub-par material and still make a splash, they took their time to create a work that is substantial in all dimensions.

This is workmanlike doom, manipulated by the deft hands of visionaries.  The band confidently stroll on cloven hooves through eight hard-earned tracks, most of which tip the scales at over seven minutes in length.  Coming in altogether at nearly 67 minutes, it's a lot of album to get through, but there's scope here provided by well planned out song structures and depth thanks largely to a slightly more experimental approach to side two of the album.  It's obvious that the band spent a lot of time crafting this album.

As far as individual songs go, the overall package is the key here, much like Serpent Venom's 'Carnal Altar' album, the individual tracks may not be as important as the overall sound, vibe and tone of the album taken as a whole.  This is not at all a bad thing.  In fact, it's a great thing.  It's exactly the kind of intangible element that makes for an infinitely replayable album.

That's not to say that there aren't terrific moments laced throughout 'Goatess', but without many real stand-above-the-others type tracks, the overall impression will be of moods rather than specific songs.  However, opening cut "Know Your Animal" provides that one big chorus moment that all albums should have, especially on opening tracks.  It sticks with you long after the album is finished playing, it's the one song that gets caught in my head like a bat in a belfry and continuously brings me back slavering for the next go at this album.  It's a subtle hook, one enlarged by echo and distant atmospherics but it works.  This is followed up by the percussion and wah happy "Alpha Omega".  It's this early on where the overall feeling of the album comes to the fore.  The songs don't all sound the same, but they are of equal value and they can be a bit same-y in places, especially in terms of guitar tone and of 'feel'.  Each song is as good as the last, so no matter how different they all are, no matter which distinguishing features the songs have, 'Goatess' feels less like a collected 'photo album' of various songs but a 'motion picture' that flows from scene to scene.  This happens in the most natural of ways, something that could be as easily achievable as say, using the same guitar tuning for all songs.  It's not forced, nor do I feel is it even intentional.  But once again, this overall feeling gives the album that instant classic grit.

The second part of the album beginning with the "Oracle" mini-suite reveals a more psychedelic side to the band, it shows the band has depth and proves they are willing to try different things.  Indeed the very origins of the band arise from this desire to try something different.  Without factual evidence I would guess that this is actually the point where side C of the 'Goatess' double LP begins.  The opening moments of "Oracle Part 1: The Mist" changes the complexion of the album completely but does so without violating the feel of what preceded it.  What greets the listener here is a shimmering, wavering effects-laden intro leading into a main riff soaked in reverb and an arrhythmic tom-and-crash-heavy drum riff over which Chritus croons of the slithery, slippery nature of reality.  This is heady stuff, not for the weak-minded or faint of heart.  When "Oracle Part 2" slams in, it's a bucket of ice cold water to the face (see link to video in the tracklist below).  If one were going to start the album anywhere, I would recommend starting with "Oracle Part 1".  I imagine the only reason Goatess decided not to start the album here is because "Part 1" is not representative of what the rest of the album is like.  That, and it's always good advice to put your best foot forward and start with your best song first, second best song second and so on.

Goatess swing for the fences with their debut album and I'll be darned if they don't knock it into the parking lot.  You almost need to ask yourself "what doesn't this album have?"

Highlights include: "Know Your Animal" and "Full Moon at Noon"

Rating: 4.5/5


Tracklist:
1). Know Your Animal (7:45)
2). Alpha Omega (7:10)
3). Ripe (7:55)
4). Full Moon At Noon (8:01)
5). Oracle Pt. 1: The Mist (4:40)
6). Oracle Pt. 2 (8:53)
7). King One (10:37)
8). Tentacles of Zen (11:52)
Total Run Time: 106:52

Niklas - Guitar

Findus - Bass

Kenta - Drums

Chritus - Vocals.

From: Stockholm, Sweden

Genre: Doom, Psychedelic

Reminds me of: Count Raven, Lord Vicar, Serpent Venom, Terra Firma, The Wandering Midget

Release Date: July 5, 2013

Better Reviews:
The Obelisk
Temple of Perdition

Goatess on facebook

GET IT HERE

OR HERE (digital)