Song of the Day-Erudite Stoner-"Roads To Somewhere"

"Roads To Somewhere" is taken off of the band's latest self-titled release. As I perused the bandcamp site today I was looking for something maybe a little different. I came across this band with a unique name of Erudite (meaning: having or showing great knowledge or learning) Stoner. I was looking for something that I could chill out to but was still "heavy" in it's own certain way. I for one love acoustic guitar and this was perfect. The song's heaviness lies in it's somber mood and opens up a vast world of emotion and fascinating beauty. For more information, please check out the following links: Bandcamp

New Band To Burn One To: Goryl

 

A rather different beast to many of the bands we cover here at Heavy Planet, but one none-the-less that falls directly into our musical category. Solo musician Goryl offers us a chance to explore the far reaches of our darkest souls with his heavy ambient drone project, and having recently released an acoustic take on his work, it’s about time that we divulged these dark lonely winter nights shadowing his drawn out growling riffs.

  

His previous two EPs The Father Of Witches and The Father Of Evil Witches offer mesmerizing droned riffs that only his outpouring soul could decipher as he sits hunched over his bass-heavy guitar shredding out cursed, devastating drawn-out riffs that feel like the hand of death upon your shoulder, encompassing and frightening in alliance.  

  

Describing his sound as “A line of poetry written with a splash of blood - a sonic reminder that you will suffer many hardships and adversities, but you will not die until the day appointed for you doom”, Goryl is not to be taken on board without fair warning. His latest release, Snakes, an acoustic EP, offers as much bleak, droning respite as his previous work, which is an impressive feat. The final track on the EP 'Lovely Witches' even offers some hushed whispered vocals which is a welcome respite from his otherwise instrumental music.

  

Goryl’s musical work so far is utterly transfixing, from each lonely desolate pluck of the guitar string to the next downturned soul wrenching note, you find yourself totally overcome with a sense of being, it’s not a sound which uplifts or necessarily makes you think, but rather a sound which keeps you static, aware of the darkness and decay around you, embracing death as much as life itself. 

Goryl is heavy, other-worldly, and vital. 

 

Facebook|Bandcamp

Album Review "Wood & Wire" split with Coma Wall and Undersmile

This latest release from the Shaman Recordings camp brings together Oxford UK's Undersmile and their acoustic alter-ego Coma Wall on one release.

Although this is Coma Wall’s debut, they’ve already gained fans after playing sets at Desertfest 2012 and supporting Dylan Carlson (of Earth) on his first ever solo show.The 3 songs, "Summer", "You Are My Death" and "Cutter's Choice" that are offered here are fine examples of stripped down and bare acoustic doom folk jams that are very down tempo with moody riffs, plodding percussion and solemn but transcendental vocals full of earthly and wet forest atmosphere. With elements of dark and bleak folk in the same vein as dark folk bands such as Fearthainne and the desolate and lost driftings of Earth, Coma Wall create a sumptuous sound that is laid back and introspective and is as close to true acoustic doom that you will hear, with this particular genre being somewhat rare, unless I'm missing all the good stuff.

The next 3 songs are from the mother band of Coma Wall; Undersmile. Having enlisted the engineering skills of Justin Greaves (Iron Monkey, Electric Wizard, Crippled Black Phoenix), Undersmile deliver 3 songs of slow and low doom that come in the form of "Soil", "Killer Bob" and "Hives". Each track is just as bleak as the songs from their Coma Wall persona but with a much heavier blackness. The vocals are dark but transcendent and are delivered in a monotone like chant over monolithic and crushing riffs that take their time to pulverize. The drums are sloth like and sparse but when hit they are as earth shaking as the riffs are crushing. Mixing some of their influences such as Swans and Babes in Toyland, Undersmile produce a cold bleakness drawn from the well spring of atmospheric doom that is all at once depressing and invigorating, a paradox that works very well for Undersmile.

"Wood & Wire" can be heard and purchased now from the Shaman Recordings Bandcamp where you can also hear their previous release from UK doomers Black Magician.

SHAMAN RECORDINGS // UNDERSMILE // COMA WALL

Zac's "Double Dose": ALTARUS / Inter Arma

 

ALTARUS: As Above, So Below 

This week's Double Dose bands have a few things in common: A. They both have Latin themed names. B. Their compositions run approximately one hour in length. And finally, C. they are both loud enough to wake the sleeping dead. ALTARUS, our first shot, are a Canadian trio of metal'rs adepts in doom and what happens when its tampered with. Forming as a live band in late 2009 ALTARUS have seen many line-up changes. Since that definitive date the band has fossilized as the leviathan three-piece you hear today on debut As Above, So Below. ALTARUS channel a tectonic sized immensity through crushing doom RIFFS. The three-some don't simply stop at doom though, implementing a chuggin' sensation through their guitars and some artsy, Danny Carey, Tool-esque timing ALTARUS unleash a mountain of sound-waves sure to pulverize the measly flesh that surrounds your psyche. Need a wake up call? Spin Unleash Leviathan or check out ALTARUS's latest propaganda below, a video for Lazarus.  Don't bother making yourself comfortable though, because these monstrous waves, whether sonic or visual, are sure to leave you in spiritual turmoil.

ALTARUS - LAZARUS

Members: 

J.P. Contois - Drums 

Karol Orzechowski - Bass // Vocals 

Tyler Martin - Guitar // Vocals

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Inter Arma: Sky Burial 

Sometimes the inter-breeding of genres we so called writers use to describe the sounds of rock and metal can get a little out of control. There are bands out there mating styles so extremely diverse in the name of progress that they are losing their souls and the very soul of their creation, a.k.a. the music itself. Well, today is going to be one of those days that I, the poor excuse for a writer that I am, have to string together an endless amount of genres and descriptions to attempt to explain this not so typical archetype... except here our example have done something many musicians pursue and rarely accomplished. That example, Inter Arma have created a new sound from many old sounds, which brings the past forty to fifty years of heavy music full circle.  In the end this leaves me describing Inter Arma's sound as authentic heavy metal. So, enough of my rambling and ranting... let's get to what we came here for... the tunes!

Inter Arma is a Richmond, Virginia based five piece who with the precision, strength, and patience of an artisan stone mason have assembled together a bedrock of doom, psychedelia, and sludge with southern rock, acoustic, and black metal. As much of a mind-job and cluster that sounds as you read it Inter Arma, with a little courage and a strapping intelligence, have composed the mess fluidly and entitled it Sky Burial. Sky Burial is enormous and running over sixty minutes will definitely put a dent in your time today. So, you might as well pick up a case of your favorite brew (might I suggest the Sierra Nevada Porter). That's okay though, the alcohol will help you float along with Inter Arma's cloudy atmosphere. The progressive mentality of combining the likes of doom and sludge with black metal and finally acoustic are brought to your attention within the first fifteen minutes, which is really only two songs. Causing convulsions and an immediate back flip, I thought, "Did they just do that?" and with a psychotic grin answered myself, "Yes, yes they did!" in sheer reverence. My favorite track The Long Road Home is a lengthy psychedelic-acoustic piece that is constructed further with electric guitars lacing in and out of the brilliant percussion, all very 70's Pink Floyd feeling. The final two to three minutes become intense, where black metal characteristics dominate the sound. The drumming becomes blast beat-like taking the precedent position over the guitars and vocals, only this percussion is not like the blind chaos I tend to hear in blast beats. This is more like a functional and calculated freight train with some serious cargo. T.J. [Childers] drumming and percussion are phenomenal. Period. Throughout Sky Burial this particular instrument is the mortar that adheres the intriguing vocals, guitars, and bass together in a cohesive chemistry. Sky Burial is out now and can be streamed at bandcamp and ordered from Relapse Records.

Members: 

Joe Kerkes - Bass 

Mike Paparo - Vocals 

Steven Russell - Guitars 

T.J. Childers - Drums 

Trey Dalton - Guitars

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LP Review- Deathlike by Ancient VVisdom

     By now you've probably heard of Ancient VVisdom. Since they released A God Like Inferno a couple years ago, their cult has been growing steadily, through old school road dog touring (they've opened for Ghost and Enslaved) and impressive word of mouth (my buddy at the record store raves about 'em). They are a big deal. All that said it took this album for me to really appreciate them.

     But now that I've heard Deathlike, I wish I'd gotten into them sooner. And I don't know why I didn't. I blame the buzz. If some buddy, even a friend, gushes about some bit of art or culture and tells me "I'll love it" I generally shy away from it. I've got a whole shelf of books that were given to me that I'll never open because of this reluctance. It's my own fault for not trusting those friends and giving these guys a chance years ago. But just because my pals were on the mark with Ancient VVisdom that ain't gonna make me crack open that copy of Cloud Atlas just yet. Anyway, now that I'm an Ancient VVisdom convert I wanna convince you to give them a chance as well. That is if you haven't already.

    I suppose if you had to classify them they'd be Occult Rock, that new/old sub-genre that is pretty damn popular these days. Bands of this ilk are a bit more musically adventurous than most stoner rock bands, bringing flutes to the stage and in VVisdom's case acoustic guitars, Jacob Marley chains, and machetes. They make a beautiful noise and I dig the heavy acoustic bit (there are hints of Alice in Chains' Sap) but I also appreciate the heavy psychedelic 60's vibe, though VVisdom might be more at home at Altamont than in some day-glo hippie hole on Haight-Ashbury. I get a Jim Morrison vibe from these cats. His ghost is lurking between the strums and shaking chains. The spirit of Mr. Mojo Risin, leader of the darkest of those sunny California bands, is alive and well and living in these tunes. So turn on, tune in and crank up the sophomore album from Ancient VVisdom. Highlights include Deathlike, Far Beyond Good and Evil, and Let the End Begin.

Facebook/Band

Mini-Review: Wino - Adrift

As seen on The Klepto's Guide:

Simply amazing. Best way to describe the legendary Wino's second solo release, as it has become one of my favorites for all year. It's a far change from what the master of all thing doom has ever previously released, coming off as more classic rock than doom or heavy metal. Adrift is a mostly acoustic album, with only the occasional electric guitar solo stopping it from being fully acoustic. These songs are not really metal, and the disc comes off with a very classic rock (circa-1975) feel. Think some good ol' Deep Purple or perhaps some Zeppelin to get what I mean. There are a couple of covers thrown in (Motorhead and Savoy Brown), something I was not expecting, but for the most part it is Wino at his core. I love his gruff voice, his abrupt singing style, and of course his amazing guitar-work. It's amazing what the man can do with an acoustic guitar, usually not something that one would expect to hear truly amazing work from, but Wino delivers! This album is another that I wish I hadn't waited so long in hearing, and it makes me want to go back through this amazing musician's history and re-listen (or listen for the first time) to his entire discography. It is that good.

MySpace

Totimoshi Goes Campfire

Totimoshi recently recorded an acoustic version of “Milgrosa” (from the album of the same name) for Altitude TV. It can be viewed at blip.tv or at YouTube.

The band was so pleased with the results that they may do additional acoustic performances going forward.


Milgrosa was released this year on Volcom Entertainment. It was produced by Helmet`s Page Hamilton.

SWALLOW THE SUN Schedules Acoustic Show

Finnish doom metallers SWALLOW THE SUN will play a very special gig at Levykauppa Äx in Helsinki on September 19. According to the band, Mikko Kotamäki (vocals), Juha Raivio (guitar) and Aleksi Munter (keyboards) will perform a rare acoustic set comprising of its new and old material arranged for guitar, piano and vocals.

Acoustic Witchcraft Track Now Online

Witchcraft has recorded a special acoustic version of "No Angel or Demon." The clip can be viewed here.

"No Angel or Demon" was taken from the band`s self titled debut. The band`s most recent album, The Alchemist, was released last year on Candlelight Records.

HOLE IN THE SKY: Acoustic Tribute To BLACK SABBATH To Open For BIG NOIZE

The one and only BLACK SABBATH acoustic tribute band HOLE IN THE SKY has been confirmed as the opening act for BIG NOIZE (featuring Joe Lynn Turner, Vinny Appice, Phil Soussan and Carlos Cavazo) at Crocodile Rock in Allentown, Pennsylvania on March 28.

HOLE IN THE SKY's unique take on the Ozzy-era SABBATH tunes has been gaining popularity among SABBATH fans as well as acoustic rock connoisseurs.

Live recordings and more information can be found on the band's MySpace page.

Watch fan-filmed video footage of HOLE IN THE SKY performing "Behind The Wall of Sleep" on February 17, 2008 at the Crocodile Rock in Allentown, Pennsylvania: