…dark moods and bad vibes: Interview with Chad Remains of UZALA

Uzala’s self-titled debut was one of the highlights among the many stellar releases of 2012. Their atmospheric, downtrodden blend of doom, psychedelia, and noise carved out a niche all its own. Further separating Uzala from the pack are the haunting, seraphic vocals of Darcy Nutt who yielded an ethereal quality to six of the album’s eight tracks. The band is about to unleash ‘Tales of Blood & Fire’, the follow-up to their impressive debut. Guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter Chad Remains was kind enough to take some time from his busy schedule to shed some light on the status of the band and the highly anticipated forthcoming album.


VCA - 2012 was a killer year for doom metal and other like-minded genres and reigning at the top of my year end list was your self-titled debut which still gets spun on the regular. I tried to turn others on to Uzala and I found that the hazy, muddy production tended to polarize listeners. Personally, I found that the production enhanced the album and added atmosphere and really emphasized Darcy’s vocals. Is there going to be a noticeable shift production-wise like there was on the split that you recorded with Mala Suerte on ‘Tales of Blood & Fire’?

CR - The LP got mastered for the AWWFN release in a dark manner. It will be reissued by King of the Monsters Records later this year with Mell Dettmer mastering as well as a bonus 12" single with Cataract and Death Masque included. Essentially the entire Blake Green produced Visual Arts Collective sessions will be available in one vinyl package. Tony Roberts will be doing the LP layout/design this time and there will be slightly different photos/art, etc. It will be a deluxe release, as are all King of the Monsters releases.

Tales of Blood & Fire is different in many ways. Darcy and I wrote everything on this one, for example, and also we had a different vision for how to make the guitars sound. The drums are heavier for two reasons. One, Chuck Watkins was raised on raw meat and punk and metal. Two, Tad Doyle is a drummer and I'm pretty sure he built his entire studio to emphasize heavy drumming. The first record was made in a very big concert venue so there is more space and ambient sounds in the whole thing. Which I feel was perfect for that session. The atmosphere of the session was hazy and the record is too. It's great that Blake could capture the feeling that we were still trying to figure out how to make those songs come to life or pull them over from the other side.

VCA - What was it like recording with Tad? Did he bring anything new to the table as far as influencing your sound or altering the way that you ultimately envisioned the final product?

CR - Tad was great. Very welcoming and laid back. Just kinda "roll it and go for it" kind of style with us. We weren't smart enough to send him a demo so he didn't even have any idea what songs we were bringing him to record. He just went with the flow. He was open to my harebrained ideas for guitar stuff. He did rein me in a bit because of time limitations. If I had it my way there would be nine guitar tracks on each song. I stayed the hell out of the way when it came to drums and vocals of course. My opinions are highly valued only by myself in those situations.

When I recorded the drone/noise wall guitar parts for Tenement of the Lost he just handed me his pedal board and said "try this out for a bit". After 45 minutes or so his voice came over the headphones "I think we've got some good stuff here". I had no idea he was recording! Definitely a good way to keep thing loose and improvisational. I used my Laney gh100s Tony Iommi head for most of the guitar tracks, but there is some Fender Champ on there as well. Plenty of it, actually. Darcy used a Peavey vtm60 that we borrowed from Thomas Wilson from Black Cloud. That thing sounds MONSTROUS and Tad brought out the depth of it. Some of Darcy's guitar riffs sound like boulders rolling over villages. IMMENSE. Her clean guitars were played through a mix of a Marshall Studio 15 that we borrowed from Darren Chase of Ancient Warlocks and a super weird top secret solid state 50 watt amp with the throbbiest tremolo/vibrato sound. Both Darcy and I used Black Arts Toneworks pedals on all of the dirty guitars. I leaned heavily on the Revelation Superbass to create the basis of my dirty sound.

VCA - One of the cool things about your debut was that you and Darcy divvied up the vocal duties among the eight tracks. “Fracture” and “Wardrums” definitely stand out due to the shift in tone and aggression, yet the album still sounds balanced. I thought that those two tracks broke up the album nicely and your berserker wails tended to juxtapose with Darcy’s more ethereal approach. Is that trend going to continue on the new album?

CR - Darcy sings all of the songs on this one. The only reason is because I didn't write any songs that were for my voice. We have a new songwriting cycle starting soon. It's possible that I will sing on one or more of these. It's not really important to me whether or not I use that voice. The important thing for us is to do service to the song. It's never been about individual mastery of an instrument or voice. We only wish to craft good songs that are memorable and capture the mood of the idea behind the song.

The singing on Tales of Blood & Fire is more emotive and expressive than the s/t. With the cleaner mix the vocals sit right above the other instruments. Darcy's range on this one is quite evocative of an older era of singers. Comparisons to Grace Slick have been put forth and I can't really argue with that.

VCA - Is there anything that stands out as an influence to the making of ‘Tales of Blood & Fire’, whether it be another band’s music, a certain film, novel, artist or piece of art? Were there any significant differences in how these compositions came together compared to the last album?

CR - Each song is a story, so each song was inspired individually by the story behind it. Sometimes the initial inspiration came from the histories and myths of the Salem Witch Trials, Aubrey Beardsley's illustrations for Salomé, films, art and songs about Elisabeth Bathory, or dreams. Then the inspiration came from bands as well because we feel rooted in a tradition. You can probably hear the influences almost as clearly as we felt them. We are not here to reinvent the bloody wheel.

On the s/t album we had a long time to write and play the songs live and for the most part the band was based here in Idaho. On this one Darcy and I had many rehearsals with no drums or bass and all of the writing was done by us without much outside influence from other band members. We had a short rehearsal session and then went straight into Witch Ape Studio with Tad. So there is a tension and anxiety underlying the entire thing since it had to be done in six days. It works perfectly for many of the songs since the subject matter deals with being hunted, murder, obsession, vengeance, despair, and loss.

Nick (bass) left after day two of the recording, so that was it for his involvement. He is no longer in the band since his commitments were not with us.

VCA - Is the band still split between Boise and Portland? How does that affect the overall songwriting process and preparation for live gigs? Any plans developing to tour behind ‘Tales of Blood & Fire’?

CR - Chuck Watkins (drums) lives in Portland and we are continuing without a bassist, at least for now. Chuck also plays in Ephemeros. Their new album, All Hail Corrosion, just came out on Seventh Rule and Parasitic Records. They are destructive.

So far as preparing for gigs, recording, etc., we try to split our travels. The reality is that Chuck travels more over this way than we do over that way. We are touring the US in October with Mike Scheidt (YOB, VHÖL) doing his solo acoustic material and part of the tour will also be with Mount Salem from Chicago. The Texas dates will be with the unbelievably incredible Sabbath Assembly. We will play a couple of festivals along the way. Starting with Fall Into Darkness Fest in Portland, Oregon October 13 with Mike Scheidt, Hammers of Misfortune, and The Skull (ex - Trouble) and about mid way we will play Baltimore, Maryland's second installment of Autumn Screams Doom Festival on October 26th with Serpentine Path, Dopethrone, LOSS, Churchburn, and a bunch of others that I will regret not mentioning later. Along the way we will play gigs with new friends and old. Like fucking BONGRIPPER in Chicago?!? HELL YEAH! EAGLE TWIN in Salt Lake City?!? GOD DAMN! We will announce all of the dates soon. Still finalizing two or three towns.

VCA - Your debut was the perfect mix of doom, psychedelia, noise and despair. What’s in store for the listener this time around?

CR - Well, although that's very kind of you to say, I feel there are ways we could have done better on the s/t record and I'm sure that I would have done something differently with the split 7" and this new album given enough time and space between takes of songs. The lens of time can be clearer than the moment in time, so taking all of that into account and also the fact remains that I can't change it...

This album has heavier drumming like I mentioned before. The guitars are clearer although there is still a psychedelic feel to the recording even with the added aggression to the sound. Dorando from Lesbian mentioned to me that he thought we sound like Flower Travellin' Band more with these songs. I had never thought of it before but I reckon he's right. Something in the extension of the high end of the songs and the warble of the wah pedal. Or maybe we are secretly Japanese, from the 60's, and on loads of bad acid and speed.

VCA - I’ve been into music my whole life and I can’t imagine not owning physical copies of alums whether it’s on CD or an LP. In this day and age exceptions are made and I’ll go the digital route if an album is scarce, out-of-print, or a band doesn’t have the means to get their music out in a physical format. Your debut was one of the reasons I dusted off the turntable and sought out a new needle. How important is it for Uzala to put out a physical release?

CR - I actually don't give a fuck about digital downloads. If someone wants to help us further our band and help us to cover the costs of being on the road, in the studio, procuring vintage gear, etc then by all means they are welcome to buy a digital download from us. If someone wants to "steal" it from a download site, so fucking what? They actually "have" nothing, in my opinion. I'm sure that my age has a lot to do with the formulation of that opinion. I grew up listening to tapes and LPs, watching the needles bounce on dual vU meters on my Dad's old Pioneer and Kenwood gear, blasting my eardrums with old eggshell headphones or cranking Bose 301s and pointing them in different directions to alter the sound in the room.

We take great care in the presentation of the physical formats that we present to the world because we want to put out something that we would enjoy owning. A few of our releases have fallen short in the past, but we will correct that with reissues. Our first thirty or so copies of the demo were made in a very big hurry and they look like utter shit. We would like to reissue that someday to make up for the shoddy handiwork on that one. I think that some future releases will go even further into the realm of crazy packaging, but I reckon we will always try to have a "normal" version for those who just want a black slab and a sleeve to house it in. I don't want to do something stupid and so exclusive that only ebay assholes will buy it. We are still a small band so we do smaller editions for economic reasons.

VCA - Both Uzala and Pallbearer (on their ‘2010 Demo’)—among many artists over the past several decades—have recorded versions of “Gloomy Sunday”. Any renditions that you particularly enjoy? What was it that attracted you to that song and are there any other similar indulgences on the upcoming album?

CR - Diamanda Galas was the sole reason that we recorded Gloomy Sunday with the Desmond Carter lyrics. There was no possible way for us to even reach for what she did, but it was inspirational to us and we had to try our hand at it for our own reasons.

VCA - Any other thoughts on ‘Tales of Blood & Fire’ or life in general?

CR - We will be writing and recording more for some splits with a few other bands soon. Look for us in October and November in the US, and we hope to bring UZALA to Europe in the spring. We are talking with some folks about that.

Interview by Steve Miller
(Originally published at Temple of Perdition)

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...how strange when hallucinations die: ICE DRAGON – ‘Born a Heavy Morning’

Lo-fi vibes and orphaned transmissions are tuned-in and then rebroadcast through the aether on Ice Dragon’s seventh long-player, ‘Born a Heavy Morning.’ Seemingly content to move even further from the psych-inflected metal of the band’s peerless doom trilogy, the overall tone of ‘Born a Heavy Morning’ has more in common with last year’s tripped-out ‘Dream Dragon’, but musically lies somewhere between the melancholic folk of the “Season of Decay” single and the moody meditations of ‘The Soul’s Midnight’ EP. Add to that blend heavy and unlikely doses of jangle-pop and whimsy and you might have an inclination of what to expect this time around. AM radio channeled through busted-up, acid-damaged transistors never sounded so good.

Ice Dragon has been uncoiling and experimenting with their sound essentially since their inception, but 2012 marked a huge leap into unexplored territories for the band in regards to recorded output. It’s their collective ability to indulge whims and tread new paths all the while maintaining the semblance of cohesion and consistency that really separates Ice Dragon from the horde.

With ‘Born a Heavy Morning’ the band is seemingly preoccupied with early-to-mid 60’s psych-pop, especially on the first half of the release. The album’s sunny—by way of The Monkees or The Turtles—opener, “Wakin’ Up”, is a fleeting and fanciful tune that could easily have been released by any of the acts associated with 60’s revivalist collective the Elephant 6 Recording Co. “In Which a Man Rises, Washes, and Eats Before Work”, the first of four dreamy and hazy soundscape interludes, reinforces the idea of having a “heavy morning”. “We’ll Go on a Trip, You and I”, initially sounds like the bouncy, whimsical companion piece to the opening track, but the band filters the tune through a sheet of blotter, the results of which seem to bridge the incomprehensible gap between Syd Barrett’s ‘The Madcap Laughs’ and ‘Yerself is Steam’ era Mercury Rev.

While ‘Born a Heavy Morning’ may have its fair share of blissed-out tunes the album isn’t all incense and peppermints. “The Past Plus the Future is Present”, arguably one of the album’s highlights, is a brooding, otherworldly voyage where siren-like guitars wail and moan over a thick bassline for what remotely sounds like, musically, an unearthed Portishead demo. “We are the Hopeless’, with its Birthday Party-like guitar riff and Ron’s baritone Nick Cave croon, echoes the post-punk and goth-rock leanings of the band’s alter-ego, Slow Heart. Adding to the eclectic nature of “Born a Heavy Morning” is the melancholic blues of the outstanding ninth track, “Square Triangle”. Here Ice Dragon layers slide guitar beautifully over a morose, downtrodden groove. Closing out the album is “(I Will) Watch My Hair Grow”, a moving, somber track that captures the dysphoria of a morning comedown.

After Ice Dragon’s appearance at the Scion Rock Fest this past June I was expecting the band’s predilection for doom to be reinvigorated and for ‘Born a Heavy Morning’ to be, well…heavy as fuck. Despite the lack of “heaviness”, ‘Born a Heavy Morning’ is the band’s trippiest and most diverse album to date and the perfect way to cap off a summer. Another killer, eclectic release from the ever-evolving Ice Dragon. Also notable is that this is the band’s first release to be issued on CD courtesy of Navalorama Records.

Words: Steve Miller
(Originally published at Temple of Perdition)

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...Worship the beast in disguise: BRIMSTONE COVEN – ‘Brimstone Coven’

Warm vintage tones and a predilection for dark, occult themes—a seemingly timeless and complementary combination—unite with a groove-infused, proto-metal swing for Brimstone Coven’s hazy self-titled debut. Over the span of seven tracks Brimstone Coven ably explores the realms of hard rock, doom, and laid-back acid jams with quite a heavy nod toward the 70’s. While the band clearly have not set out to reinvent the wheel, they have succeeded in crafting a solid-as-Hell debut due to strong and varied songwriting and some spectacular retro-riffing. Layer the recordings with some catchy vocal melodies and a dose of soul and you have, in a nutshell, a good idea of what you have in store with ‘Brimstone Coven’.

Fittingly the album opens with “Intro”, a brief, melodic instrumental that sticks around just long enough to pique the listener’s interest before “We are forever” kicks in with an up-tempo, hard-rockin’ groove that would be right at home on the Pentagram compilation ‘First Daze Here’. Though the band clearly has an adoration and respect for 70’s hard rock and early metal, particularly for the bands and sounds that dwell in the shadows on the darker side of the spectrum, it would be hard to dismiss that Pentagram are a major influence. The third track, “The Ancients”, has a hard-driving, galloping rhythm that really showcases the impressive riffing and lead guitar abilities of guitarist and band founder Corey Roth.

Midway through the album the ‘ludes kick in and Brimstone Coven switches gears for “Son of the Morning”, a groovy, soporific jam that easily exudes the band’s most soulful performance, both musically and vocally, and stands out as an album highlight. While the track relies heavily on a laid-back groove, the song still revs up to a frantic pace that is punctuated by some impressive drumming and bluesy, post-comedown, leads. The following track, “LoSt in the oDyssey”, doesn’t quite reach the same heights as “Son of the Morning”, but it still effectively contributes to the change in pace and tone on the album. “Children of the Sun”, the final “proper” song of the album, reverts back to the darker doom vibes of both “We are forever” and “The Ancients”. It’s another upbeat burner that finds the band locked into some serious groove.

Brimstone Coven have released a solid, vintage-sounding record that is sure to please fans of occult hard rock and doom. While it’s unfortunate (and lazy) to simply label Brimstone Coven as a “retro” band, it’s probably also unavoidable due to the band’s influences and their debut album’s production. Apparently the band is already working on their follow-up and I, for one, can’t wait to hear the results. The band’s debut is about to get the vinyl treatment courtesy of STB records.

Words: Steve Miller
(Originally published at Temple of Perdition)

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TORTUGA – ‘Tortuga’

I have to start off by saying that I kind of feel like a dick for reviewing this album as I may be the only person in North America with access to the six tracks that comprise Tortuga’s self-titled debut album. When I found out that Julio “Ñaca” Almeida of Reino Ermitaño—a band who incidentally released one of the best albums of 2012—had teamed up with Christian Van Lacke of the now defunct psychedelic doomsters Tlön, I knew I had to investigate further. With the help of Marcos Coifman, also of Reino Ermitaño, I was able to touch base with Julio who, in turn, was kind enough to get me a copy of Tortuga’s debut. While the band only has one song available to stream via their Bandcamp page, the stunning ten minute tripped-out opus “Flores Líquidas”, it serves as a more than adequate barometer for measuring the lysergic depth and groove of the remaining five tracks of ‘Tortuga’.

The band’s overall sound isn’t too far removed from either Reino Ermitaño or Tlön as there is still an unwavering focus on both songcraft and groove, but Tortuga has more in common with vintage, psychedelic hard rock opposed to the heavier doom sound of the members’ other bands. While listening to Tortuga greats such as Cream, Blue Cheer, and The Jimi Hendrix Experience come to mind, as well as bands past and present from the desert rock scene.

The one-two punch of opening tracks “Flores Líquidas” and “Las estrellas y los planetas” is nothing short of stunning. “Flores Líquidas” opens with a seismic, nod-inducing bassline that is joined in unison with a thick guitar riff and Van Lacke’s ghostly vocals which, for a lack of a better comparison, are reminiscent of Jack Bruce’s vocals as sung on the chorus of “White Room”. The track twists, turns, and ultimately shifts from a groovy bliss-out to a sprawling, extended jam replete with blistering guitar leads and in-the-pocket rhythm section swing. “Las estrellas y los planetas” is perhaps the “heaviest” tune to be had on ‘Tortuga’, and it is the sonic equivalent of licking a sheet of blotter after imbibing a cocktail that is equal parts of funk and doom.

The rest of the album continues down a similar cosmic path where hard rock, blues, and psychedelia collide with contemporary stoner-rock. Each track is a journey in and of itself and the variety to be found on even the shortest songs is staggering. The fifth track, “Arbol, cielo, vida”, is the clear outlier on the album. It is a soothing, acoustic number that has more in common with the folk stylings of Cat Stevens than the mind-altering freak-out psychedelia of the 60’s and 70’s.

Tortuga’s debut is a killer release that is, seemingly, not widely or currently available outside of South America. Hopefully a distributor in either Europe or the US picks this up so that fans of groove-laden, blues-based hard rock can enjoy the heavy psychedelic experience of Tortuga. Perhaps more interest will encourage the band to make the entire available to stream and download via their Bandcamp page. Here’s to hoping…

Words: Steve Miller
(Originally published at Temple of Perdition)

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…Embrace the unholy mother of angels: GOATESS – ‘Goatess’

With a doom/stoner pedigree and reputation that precedes him, Chritus Linderson really needs no introduction. All of the projects that he’s been involved with—the criminally underrated ‘C.O.D.’ album with Saint Vitus, the groove-laden psychedelia of Terra Firma, and the epic doom of Lord Vicar—are easily among the finest that the genre has to offer. Enter the Goatess. The collective efforts of Chritus (vocals), Niklas (guitars), Kenta (drums), and Findus (bass), originally formed under the moniker Weekend Beast, have released arguably one of the most anticipated albums of the year. Without a doubt, it delivers.

The unifying sound of the band’s self-titled debut relies heavily on a stoned, repetitious low-end groove which is accompanied by moments of impending doom and bluesy, blissed-out otherworldly excursions. As far as Linderson’s other projects are concerned, ‘Goatess’ has an overall sound that shares more in common with his stint in Terra Firma, most notably on the first half of the album, opposed to the more straight-forward doom of Saint Vitus, Count Raven, or Lord Vicar. But fans of his more traditional doom efforts won’t be dissatisfied, particularly on the epic two-part “Oracle”. The first part, “The Mist”, is the ethereal calm-before-the-storm. It’s a melancholic, spacey introduction that is ultimately blasted into oblivion under the crushing weight of part two, “The Oracle”. Mesmerizing, heavy, and gasp-inducing, “The Oracle” is a definite album highlight that occupies the smoke-filled realms of both stoner and doom with an arch-enchanter’s precision.

While not officially a part of the two-track “Oracle” movement, “King One” acts as a companion-piece both thematically and musically and finds Chritus at his most venomous and acerbic. The track is another exercise in hypnotic heaviness that ultimately breaks down into a contemplative, spacey interlude before resuming the devastation. The Urizen-like triptych tale of the “Oracle” two-parter and “King One” are the core of the album from which the other tracks emanate. ‘Goatess’ concludes with “Tentacles of Zen”, an epic, twelve minute tune that allows the listener to catch their breath and ultimately unwind. This closing track isn’t without its surprises as rhythmic, tribal drumming and exotic riffs serves as a musical interlude suited for the Bacchanalia, or in other words, for copulation on a cosmic scale.

Those who have followed Weekend Beast and the band’s eventual metamorphosis into Goatess in anticipation of a full-length can finally revel in the sonic, doomed-out bliss that is the band’s self-titled album. While ‘Goatess’ is rooted firmly in the stoner-rock camp, there is enough heavy, be-slothed riffs to satisfy even the most discerning doom-heads. With not a weak track on the album, ‘Goatess’ is a welcome addition to the canon of heavy music and another excellent addition to Chritus’s irrefutable résumé. Drink it down, smoke it up, and bow down to the Goatess…

Words: Steve Miller
(Originally published at Temple of Perdition)

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...A ceremony for the new dark age: WOLVSERPENT – ‘Perigaea’ Demo

Meaning derived from a simple string of words cannot even come close to conveying the immersive, transcendental experience that comes with listening to the music of Wolvserpent. The Boise, Idaho duo’s 2012 demo, ‘Perigaea’—whose primeval nature will function as a seedling for a more developed and mature full-length—is the conceptual basis for the band’s forthcoming Relapse Records debut. The music of the ‘Perigaea’ demo, like most of Wolvserpent’s work, is wrought with equivocal dynamics that are often subject to the listener’s mood, where subsequent spins separated by space and time or context can elicit diametrically opposed emotions.

Composed of Brittany McConnell (drums, violin) and Blake Green (guitar, vocals, keyboards) the duo often crafts moments of sheer beauty—moments that are often violently assaulted with upheaval and unrest. Much of Wolvserpent’s music is embellished with a forlorn, achingly beautiful ambience courtesy of McConnell’s violin, though those moments often melt away to be replaced with passages of unmitigated terror. Few bands are able to proficiently attain this level of atmospheric wizardry, though Godspeed You! Black Emperor immediately comes to mind, a band that Wolvserpent shares much in common. Where Godspeed You! Black Emperor often soars with orchestral swells, Wolvserpent writhes and howls from a primitive blackened abyss.

The ‘Perigaea’ demo is a massive recording of five tracks spanning over 70 minutes. The opener, “Perigaea I”, is by far the briefest track falling just short of the four minute mark. It is dark wave of pure ambience that is underscored with the sound of a crackling fire and a murder of crows seemingly cawing from within a cavernous void. A violin tremolo introduces “Perigaea II” before Green’s cataclysmic riffing and guttural howls erupt and rend the earth asunder. “Perigaea II” is not unchanging, though for a majority of its duration the track remains in a sort of stasis—a state of perpetual climax that is wrought with malignant tension where only the closing moments offer any reprieve.

Words simply cannot do justice for Wolvserpent or their latest effort. The remaining three tracks continue to explore the dichotomy that exists between serenity and terror, harmony and discord, and beauty and the grotesque. While the 2012 incarnation of ‘Perigaea’ is tagged as a demo, the album easily stands up to the band’s earlier releases both production-wise and in terms of completeness. To think that this album is the mere suggestion of a greater, more developed vision verges on being incomprehensible. Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see how the tunes have evolved and how the duo’s ideas have unfolded with the re-envisioning of ‘Perigaea’ which should be released in the near future. While Wolvserpent doesn’t necessarily sound like any of the following, fans of Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Velvet Robe, or even the Melvins/Lustmord collaboration ‘Pigs of the Roman Empire’ should investigate further. Listen to the band’s catalogue via their Bandcamp page or download from their website. Essential listening…

Words: Steve Miller
(Originally published at Temple of Perdition)

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...In the name of Satan, I place a curse upon you: THE GRAVE – ‘Demonia’ Demo

Every year it seems a handful of promising demos enter the fray to pique the interest of discerning doomheads and sludge worshippers across the realm. When these bands finally get around to recording their debuts the results can be stunning as with Windhand’s self-titled debut and Pallbearer’s ‘Sorrow and Extinction’. Both Windhand’s ‘Practice Space Demo’ and Pallbearer’s ‘2010 Demo’ kept fans anticipating studio albums for a very long two years before proper studio albums were released. Hopefully we won’t have to wait until next year for Apostle of Solitude’s answer to their ‘Demo 2012’. While perhaps not yet in the same league as the aforementioned bands, Argentina’s traditional doom trio The Grave have thrown their wizard caps into the ring with their ‘Demonia’ EP. Needless to say, I hope it doesn’t take these guys two years to give the five tracks of their initial demo a proper studio recording.

The Grave play an infectious style of traditional doom with a few psychedelic flourishes and they don’t confine their style to a mere slug-paced plod and are just as confident with more upbeat tempos. The opening track, “Lord of Mirrors”, opens with a sample from the schlocky early seventies flick ‘Simon, King of the Witches’ before a plodding bass line is accompanied by a moody introductory riff that could have been composed by Steve Mills of The Wounded Kings. While the recording gives the entire demo a one-dimensional, monochromatic feel, “Lord of Mirrors” really hints at the potential of some serious swing courtesy of the rhythm section of bassist Ramon Araoz and drummer Facundo Correa.

If it wasn’t crystal clear before, the band makes their love of occult cinema apparent on the demo’s second track “Luciferian Woman” (and further evidenced by tracks “Psychomaniacs” and “Blind, are the Dead”) with a sample from Mario Bava’s excellent ‘Black Sunday’. Barbara Steele commands, “"Look into my eyes. Embrace me. You will die, but I can bring you pleasures mortals cannot know,” before a flanged-out guitar riff kicks off the proceedings. The majority of the tune falls comfortably into a driving, head-nodding groove accented with some blistering fretwork during the chorus.

The shortest track, “Black God of Death”, features the demo’s most discordant riffs accompanied with probably the most dynamic bass lines which makes for a stellar track. While guitarist/vocalist Diego Benedetto’s vocals are similar to Balam’s Alexander Carellas, the semblance is even more notable due to Diego’s melodies. With the title of “Psychomaniacs” I expected the fourth track to totally rip and melt my face off. While it’s not bad by any stretch of the imagination, it just doesn’t hold up against the other four tracks. The last track, “Blind…are the Dead”, has moments of classic doom crawl and up-tempo rocking in equal measures until the song’s final moments which is a slow, moody lurch layered with spacey guitar leads.

While I’m a huge fan of a lo-fi gritty production The Grave could really benefit from a fine-tuned, polished recording. There are moments on ‘Demonia’ where the bass lines are just ready to take-off into the stratosphere, but instead sound grounded or restrained. Overall ‘Demonia’ is a more than a solid first outing and hopefully signals great things to come from the Argentinian trio. All of the tracks of ‘Demonia’ have also been captured on the band’s ‘En vivo 2013’ live recording on their Bandcamp page with the addition of a sixth track entitled “Angela Blake”—all of which are worth checking out. Killer stuff…

Words: Steve Miller
(Originally published at Temple of Perdition)

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ROTE MARE – ‘The Invocation’ & ‘The Kingdom’

Frantic drumming, repetitious 80’s riffing, and a banshee-like wail opens ‘The Invocation’, the first of two simultaneous releases from Australia’s excellent doom soothsayers Rote Mare. While not technically a double album ‘The Invocation’ and ‘The Kingdom’ are irrevocably bound by a shared release date, complementary album art, and a reverence for traditional doom and heavy metal in general. My expectations were set exceptionally high for this release based on the strength of their split with Dire Fate (another Australian band worth checking out), their previous full-length ‘Serpents of the Church’, and the slew of self-released demos via the band’s Bandcamp page. Overall, ‘The Invocation’ and ‘The Kingdom’ don’t veer too far from the band’s earlier releases, but there is less of a focus on melodicism and more of a shift toward experimentation and a slightly rawer sound.

If anything, Rote Mare have proven that they are not slaves to convention. The 14 tracks that comprise the dual release of ‘The Invocation’ and ‘The Kingdom’ are irrefutably cut from the doom cloth, but the band doesn’t hesitate to play with style, tempo, atmospherics, or vocal delivery. The inclusion of cover songs ‘Holocaust’ and ‘Destroyer’ from Big Star and Twisted Sister, respectively, illuminates some of the band’s influences and helps to keep things interesting. Rote Mare—like most great bands that include cover tunes—tear apart, mix up, and reassemble the source material into something that is a reflection of the original, yet something new and intriguing, especially with their Big Star cover.

‘The Invocation’, ironically, opens with “The Kingdom”—a track that kicks off at a blistering pace before plunging into a vat of molasses. Band leader Phil Howlett alternates vocals between a hoarse, throaty snarl and a cleaner delivery that accompanies the more melodic sections of the song. “The Furthest Shore” not only is the shortest track to be found on either release, but it is probably one of Rote Mare’s most unique tracks to date and relies heavily on a bouncing bass groove and finds Howlett really belting out some soulful howls. ‘The Invocation’ highlight “The Stones of Blood” sounds like the Rote Mare of old, particularly during the latter half of the song. The weepy dual guitars of Howlett and Sean Wiskin captures the melodicism that Rote Mare does so well before the tracks speeds up to a climactic gallop.

‘The Kingdom’, alternately, isn’t the flipside to the ‘The Invocation’, but rather a continuation or sister release. Like ‘The Invocation’, though, ‘The Kingdom’ opens strong. The intro of “Shadow of the Grave” is an atmospheric mélange of creepy keyboards and guitars that begins to stagger with the inclusion of drums before the song really establishes itself. Similar to “The Furthest Shore”, “Shadow of the Grave” hearkens back to the Rote Mare of yore due to the track’s melodic sensibilities and Howlett’s vocal approach. The riffs are huge, memorable, and the prefect way to launch this second album. The second track, “Shameless”, is notable for devolving into a dischordant yet rhythmic exercise in hypnotism that wouldn’t be out of place on a Shellac album. “The Thief”, is a catchy, mid-tempo tune that is sporadically punctuated by Howlett’s cry and psychedelic leads.
Despite being in constant rotation for the past few weeks, ‘The Invocation’ and ‘The Kingdom’ are still unearthing secrets…the depths have only been plumbed on a seemingly superficial level. Rote Mare have continued to impress with their brand of traditional doom metal and their ability to navigate and include a variety of styles and influences without sacrificing cohesion. While it’s almost impossible to separate the two releases I find myself returning to ‘The Kingdom’ a bit more frequently. While it may be the stronger of the two it would now feel incomplete without its twin. Highly recommended for all doom aficionados.

Words: Steve Miller
(Originally posted at Temple of Perdition)

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