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Thursday, May 2, 2013

LP Review - Take The Potion by ROMERO


ROMERO are a 3 piece hailing from Madison, WI, and with "Take the Potion", their debut LP, they come with 7 tracks packed with hugely pleasing and mightily infectious Stoner metal consisting of thick pungent riffs, low down doomy sludge, raw heavy rock energetics, passionately shouted post hardcore style vocals alongside harmonious outpourings and smart drumming played with a precision that drives the songs on here in a blazing fury of out and out Stoner metal mastership.

From the opening track of "Compliments & Cocktails" with its Torche inspired catchiness, balls-out riffage and drizzles of Hammond for good measure, ROMERO show from the outset that they are no noobz to the stoner metal game. With an entrance like this ROMERO make their presence immediately known making them impossible to ignore and I can only apologize to these 3 gents for not jumping on their brilliant album sooner.

Following is "Couch Lock" with a trad-doom nod and post hardcore vocals adding an element of freshness to their sound but soon enough the heavy rock is added to the furnace leaving this track oozing with a blend of smelted white hot metal.

"One Means Four" is a near post-metal monolith from the off but soon develops into an anthemic riff laden Stoner metal monster without losing a touch of a Neurosis tinged organic mysticism and solemn introspection that this track delivers in thick waves of spine tingling pleasure.

The album's title track of "Take the Potion" falls upon you in a fist clenched and air punching Clutch-like barrage of groovy riffs that are broken up with melodic sections that don't dwell too long before a continuous amping up of the riffs hit you full force in the chest leaving you breathless.

"Distraction Tree" brings us back to a Torche inspired sound showing that ROMERO are big fans, but they are by no means imitators. Plunging down-tuned sludge metal digs around the depths before another anthemic monster surges forward at a tearing pace to bring the track into a many levelled slice of audio art which is my favorite of the 7 tracks on offer.

"Wheeling Deervish" continues with a nod to Kyuss and a spaced out desert groove mixed with growling sludge and howled vocals. The Hammond is wheeled out again towards the end of the track adding some welcome funk to the sludge.

Last is "In the Heather" that lays on a jam that reminds me of Colour Haze at the beginning but soon turns into the baked riffs of Sleep that build to yet more anthemic and blinding Stoner metal brilliance leaving me gasping for air and desperate for more.

This is a truly epically solid debut album from ROMERO and it is available now from their bandcamp, name your price for the digital download, $6.66 \m/ for the CD and $16.66 for the vinyl.


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