EP Review - POHL II by POHL

The former 2 piece POHL (pronounced "pole" but the band say you can pronounce it however the fuck you like) from Bristol UK, follow up their debut "POHLSMOKER" with "POHL II" and this time they have a third member on board. Original members Will Pearce (guitar/vocals) and Jamie Thompson (drums) are joined by Hugo Morgan (bass) of The Heads and the fruits of this new alliance come in 3 blazing slabs of big fuzzed and low toned jams driven along by quick fire drumming with expertly crafted songs that show some surprising twists and turns.

First track "Cute Guy Alert" is a more straight forward jam than POHL's previous output. With a thick but very catchy riff, tumbling drums and memorable lyrics, this is the kind of song that gets stuck in your head for weeks after hearing it. This opening track could almost be classed as 'stoner-pop' but its the weight and grime of the riff that gives this track just the right amount of dirt to cause a screw-face while head nodding along to this brilliant opener.

"Eraser" follows with the same big bass and guitar crunch as before but with a distinctly more 'desert' style groove that takes a big leaf from early QOTSA or even Kyuss' "..And the Circus Leaves Town." The dreamy, floaty style of lyrics drift hauntingly over a chunky riff and some pleasing guitar lickery gives this song a welcome psychedelic edge about half way.

Final song "God Save The Queen (High On Death)" opens with the British national anthem played softly, I assume with tongues in cheeks, much as when The Melvins would be apt to play the American national anthem during their live shows. The Brit anthem soon turns to POHL's own words almost whispered until a big hit of throbbing fuzz hits you and those quiet words are now called out loudly. The song is a slow burner that simmers with sparse moments of plucked bass and stepping drums that set the tone for a guitar solo that adds colorful psychedelia to an introspective mood to this slow mover. The Brit anthem then returns but with POHL's own version of the words which list a few popular knock out prescription drugs until a solo bass gently leads this track to its end.

"POHL II" is yet more great stuff from POHL and now with an added bass player their sound takes on a thicker dimension but the song writing and delivery is still as brilliant as was shown on their well received debut. I've heard POLH play live a few times and they always slay with a very tightly played set of grimy and low fuzzed 'stoner-pop' and contemporary heavy grunge/alternative metal. Donate generously and receive POHL's great work from their Bandcamp right now.

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LP Review - "Concrescence" by Gonga

Gonga have been around a long time and like any ancient druidic kings, they have appeared in several different incarnations over the aeons but brothers George (guitar) and Thomas (drums) Elgie, have always been the stomp and riff that makes up the meat and potato of Gonga.

I became a huge fan of Gonga when their first S/T album was released back in 2003 and since then have looked forward to hearing what these Bristolian riff masters would release next. It has been a long wait since 2008's "II:Transmigration" and during that time they have evolved from a lyric and riff based outfit with the now solo singer/songwriter Joe Volk providing solemn and harmonious words to crushing doom and bluesy stoner riffs, to an instrumental band that focus primarily on further explorations of their musickal Hermeticism and a learned masterful weaving of their adept riffcraft. Now settled with bassist Latch Manghat, Gonga have been locked away in the low vaults until the world was heavy enough for their third full length release that has come with the name "Concrescence." It has been worth the wait.

From approaching gritty feedback comes the first crush of lowend that opens the album and first track "Miasma", a 10 minute 17 second traverse through the mountains and valleys of Riffdome. The first section has some catchy trad doom exaltations that come right out of Blood Ceremony's grimoire of 70's inspired occult metal until things take a decidedly heavy psychedelic and chugging crunch turn with an acid drenched and thick fuzzed riff that has the smell of Gonga all over it. "Miasma" evolves into a blazing sun dazed freak out with an involving riff that keeps your attention throughout and which reminds me a little of some of Colour Haze's best work.

"Calumet Alter" has an aire of the medieval as it rides effortlessly over deep dark plains towards celebratory guitar licks and riffs that fly the Gonga flag for all to see and hear. Slimy dirt is added to the triumph with a thick and crunchy bass line driven onwards by warring drums that power the charging hordes of Gonga, aiding them in their righteous battle for the flawless riffstone.

What comes next is "Another Day Gone" which comes in immediate waves of warm vibed riffs and finely sharpened and energetic smacks and stomps that lead to a gradually thickening pool of exploratory stonerismses and an eventual darkening of the vibe to paranoid jazz metal that would be right at home as a sound track to a 70's occult detective horror movie with a be-flared and bearded professor and investigator of esoteric cults hot on the robe tails of the local aristocratic satanists.

"Mount Gonga" opens with a talking mountain that grabs your attention with bursts of fiery percussion and crunchy guitar thrummings and a stop and start Melvins style, until the track is unleashed and the riffs fly in columns of thick crunch punched along by Brother Thomas's laser tight and incendiary drumming. The riffs soon begin to descend and decay into grimy mycological ooze and a dark bluesy atmosphere that portents of a dreaded time ahead. Effects are laid on thick for an acid bathed growl of guitar that takes the tone to a nightmare trip where you're wandering alone in the woods at night, you're naked and you have blood coming out of your head and you have no idea how you got there. Doom is a surety and Gonga deliver it with pounding and destructive black waves of lowend and explosive drums that end this track in crushed devastation.

Excited muted guitar twangings open "Tungsten Gold" with a quick drop into classic Gonga riffs full of earth and moss and pine needles that morph and evolve and expand into shrilling bass effects and airy guitar licks that pave the way to a psychedelic rock out with finger work from Brother George that writes GONGA throughout the track in massive letters that can be seen and heard from the other side of space. The track ends in a thunderous tumbling of riffs and drums that sound out abruptly leaving only the sound of your own rapidly beating heart and the auditory ghosts of Brother George's finely crafted riffs drifting into your subconscious mind to be imprinted there forevermore.

To complete the hexagram is "Solar Maximum" that begins with a layering of gently building desert-ness that builds to a wind blown atmosphere of encroaching psychedelia bulked up with the thick fuzzy crunch of Gonga's guitar and bass-men. The track climbs higher and higher as it goes on with a blustery riff that takes us to a summit and onto a high bright tundra shining with dazzling riffs and hooks driven along by nifty bass work and the ever impressive beats of the Gonga drums-man. Razor sharp licks herald an ecstatic psychedelic rock freak out and a surprising twist to Gonga's sound that ends their third album and me hoping we don't have to wait so long for our next jaunt around Gonga's riff heavy world of doom/stoner/psyche rock.

"Concrescence" with its mystically captivating art work has been worth the wait for this patient and hopeful Gonga fan. If you are aware of their music and their previous releases you will not be disappointed in the slightest by this latest offering or if you happen to be a new Gonga convert then I must insist you go and listen to tracks from a large chunk of their previous work, which you can do at their Bandcamp right now.

                          BANDCAMP // FACEBOOK

Live review - Loserpalooza 13 with Sonance, Spider Kitten, Ghast, Atomck, Pohl, Homoh.

Here's something a little different from me today. I was lucky enough to attend a show last Saturday put on by one of the fine gentleman from the mighty Spider Kitten, a band that is fast rising in the UK heavy scene and who have previously received a very favorable review here on Heavy Planet for their album "Cougar Club."

This was the third annual Loserpalooza event held in Cardiff, the capitol city of Wales, put on to showcase some of the cream of the crop of doom, sludge and black metal bands hailing from the South West of the UK and the line up of bands on the night chosen by the event organizer and guitarist Chi from Spider Kitten was of a highly impressive standard with each band playing excellent sets to a venue packed full of appreciative doom metal heads.    

                             

Things kicked off fairly early with HOMOH taking the stage with an already busy venue of adoring fans and new converts. Complete with singer/guitarist Gareth with his faced daubed in black face paint, HOMOH tore through a disgustingly filthy set of sludge in a similar style as EYEHATEGOD. They played some older tracks from their "DEMOH EP" with a few new ones played which showed an interesting development in their sound which seemed more raw and stripped down than their previous work but was no less eye gouging and brain fucking. Despite the guitarist having problems with his guitar strap he fared very well indeed and proceeded to bash out riffs with his axe raised aloft in true black sludge heroisms. I was very impressed with HOMOH's live set as they are a band with a great stage presence and with new recordings in the pipe line and reworkings of tracks from their DEMOH EP, HOMOH are sure to be a band that will make a lasting mark on the sludge metal scene everywhere.

HOMOH

HOMOH BANDCAMP

After a short break for toots and refills of ale it was time for Pohl from Bristol UK to impress the rapidly growing crowd of hungry doom and sludge lovers. Previously a 2 piece they now have a bassist which, although they were already heavy with a gargantuan sound, he is a welcome addition to the band. Pohl's set was tight and full of fast paced and incendiary drumming with fat riffs and song structures that brought to my mind Big Business and The Melvins. Pohl never fail to impress and by the end of their set everyone in attendance was fully fired up and eager for the next priests of heavy to step up and preach the gospel of riff.

POHL BANDCAMP

Atomck were up next and this 3 piece ripped through a set of fierce and face melting grindcore and powerful noise with a very energetic vocalist utilizing much of the venue and even climbing onto the bar to shout harsh howls and guttural screams into the mic. Atomck are firm favorites in the South West metal scene and have played numerous gigs over the years and it shows. They are fast, noisy, aggressive, heavy and down right fucking balls kicking loud. I felt pretty exhausted by the end of their set but there was no way I was going to bail half way through the night so after a couple more ales and a few tokes I was feeling well enough oiled to hang around to witness the inevitable storm of doom lined up for the rest of the evening.

ATOMCK BANDCAMP

Ghast soon followed with a set of the doomiest of doom and furiously blistering black metal. It was a blend that worked very well and had everyone present nodding their heads in metal appreciation. This 3 piece from Swansea, Wales, know black metal as well as they do doom and blend the 2 genres seamlessly. Ghast looked very at home on stage and played a range of tracks that kept me interested and wanting to hear more by the time their slot was up. The crowd loved every second and showed their appreciation with loud roars, claps and whistles, satisfied that Ghast's chapter in the Loserpalooza book was firmly scribed and will not be forgotten any time soon.

GHAST FACEBOOK

Another short break for booze, buds and banter and then it was time for Spider Kitten to blast out their pleasingly heavy and slow and low doom with a set consisting of tracks that I have not heard from them before and none that appeared on their previous release "Cougar Club" so it was an honor to hear the tracks before they are put to record. Spider Kitten's sound has moved on somewhat from their last release with some tracks having long atmospheric and minimal moments of experimental doom that reminded me a little of Harvey Milk's work and sometimes The Melvins but the inimitable Spider Kitten sound and their dark bluesy vibes were still very much there. Their set was ground shaking and brain crushingly heavy and their riffs mouth watering and mesmerizing and had everyone, myself especially, captivated by the vast waves of low end and the high precision drumming from drummer Chris West (ex bassist of Taint). With nearly every member of the band taking their turn to sing vocals, Spider Kitten are a band that work together in an almost darkly spiritual unison with doom riffs so expertly executed it is no wonder that Spider Kitten are turning many heads in the UK doom scene their way right now. Big things are coming for this band and I and many others are very excited to hear what they have in store for us next.

SPIDER KITTEN

SPIDER KITTEN BANDCAMP

Finally it was time for Bristol born Sonance to step up to the wood and they proceeded to lay everyone flat on their backs with a set that was blinding in its creativity and mind blowing in its execution. Their doom is as heart felt as any of the bands that played on the night and with members on the floor and level with the tightly gathered crowd of maniacal doom brains it was like a 60's happening but with more hair and more black and more swearing. One guitarist at the end of their set crouched down with his guitar on the floor while he teased out beautifully chaotic noise and the rest of the band joined him in evoking a monolithic wall of doom that caused red eyes and tears of heavy joy in all. There is a post metal tinge to their sound but for the most part they were doom and sludge all the way with the doom surge only being broken by moments of deeply atmospheric and introspective drone wanderings until the spine folding explosion of doom and sludge lay a final waste to an already wasted crowd.

SONANCE

SONANCE

SONANCE BANDCAMP

Loserpalooza is a truly brilliant one day annual banquet of heavy music which any of our readers would appreciate and enjoy and with such a high quality of bands chosen for the show, the south west of the UK proves itself to be a veritable hotbed of amazing doom/sludge/post and black metal bands made up from many of the metal warriors that dwell in this particular corner of England and Wales.

Here, wrap you ears around this compilation put together by Spider Kitten guitar and vocalist and Loserpalooza organizer Chi to hear what I'm talking about.

Thanks and hails to all bands and all those involved in putting on an unforgettable night of true doom worship.

UPDATE!! Temples Festival line-up announcement.

Following the announcement that the mighty Neurosis are to be headlining the Saturday event, the fine folks at Temples Festival have recently announced more bands added to the line up for their first festival of heavy music to be held in the city of Bristol, UK in May 2014.

If you love heavy music in all its morphing and splintering genres then just one glance at the line up so far is sure to get your mouth watering. Doom, Conan, Moss, Blood Ceremony, Winterfylleth; with this level of bands added to the bill and another 30 more artists to be announced in October, Temples is sure going to shake Bristol, if not the whole of the UK, into tiny little pieces.

Tickets are on sale now.


     FACEBOOK // OFFICIAL WEBSITE

FESTIVAL ANNOUNCEMENT - TEMPLES UK

Instead of a band review from me today I have the great pleasure to announce a new festival of heavy music taking place in Bristol, UK in May 2014 called Temples.

Here is some info from the Temples Festival website:

Welcome!

We’ve been expecting you......

Temples is an independent music festival, taking place in May 2014, at Bristol’s famed MOTION venue. Set within the heart of Bristol’s industrial Temple Quarter (directly behind Temple Meads train station), Temples is set to bolster and further contribute to the city’s world-renowned history of musical, artistic and cultural diversity.

As a festival, our agenda is simply to bring a well programmed heavy music event to the South West of England, covering a broad range of genres within the heavy music spectrum. Featuring both international and domestic artists, we hope to have curated an event unlike any other in the history of Bristol’s thriving alternative music scene

With over 40 artists, multiple stages, live art, local food vendors & brewers – and a number of other interactive attractions, Temples Festival 2014 will mark the beginning of an annual event which we hope will attract music lovers from all walks of life to Bristol for one Bank Holiday weekend every year.

We hope that you’re as excited as we are, and can’t wait to reveal more of what we assure you will be an impeccable lineup of artists, over the coming months. Thanks!

Temples HQ

With their recent announcement that the mighty, god-like men that are Neurosis are to be headlining the event on Saturday 5th May 2014, and with many more lineup announcements to be made over the coming weeks, Temples is fast shaping up to be a festival not to be missed. The festival is being organized by a promoter from Bristol who has put on quality shows consistently over the years, and with the organizers vast knowledge of all things heavy Temples is guaranteed to be chocked full of some of the very best stoner, doom, sludge, post metal and hardcore etc bands that the UK and indeed the rest of the world has to offer.

I for one can hardly contain my excitement about this festival, which is being held practically on my doorstep (lucky me!) and I will be giving in-depth reviews of Temples Festival for Heavy Planet when the time comes around. I will also be updating line-up announcements as they are announced by Temples so keep an eye out for those.

Tickets are now on sale at various prices so head on over to the Temples official website where more information is available.

FACEBOOK // TEMPLES FESTIVAL OFFICIAL WEBSITE

New Band To Burn One To: POHL

HEAVY PLANET presents...POHL!

BAND BIO:

First joining forces in 2011, Bristol-based POHL are a power duo comprised of Will Pearce and Jamie Thompson. They combine tortured vocals, octave driven guitars and breakneck drumming with a genre-melding songwriting approach that has earned them comparisons to Big Business, Sleep, Melvins and early QOTSA.

With a penchant for alcohol and all things heavy, the duo draw on a wide range of influences from the schools of grunge, stoner, doom, noise rock and hardcore, whilst remaining uncompromisingly experimental and original.

2012 has seen them earn a reputation for their intense live shows and gain critical praise for debut EP ‘POHLSMOKER’ which is available now from Future Noise. Plans for 2013 include a full length LP, a European tour with fellow Bristolian noise-mongers Sonance, and a plethora of dates throughout the UK. In case you were wondering, the band pronounce it ‘pole’. You can pronounce it however the fuck you like.

Will Pearce - Guitars/Vox/Octave
Jamie Thompson (Sonance) - Drums

THOUGHTS:
"If you were a fan of grunge back in the early nineties and were left hanging because groups like Creed, Nickelback and Matchbox Twenty stole the airways, then you are in for a sonic revelation. I was always in search of the less radio-friendly offerings from acts such as Mudhoney, Gruntruck and Tad to name a few. The latest EP "Pohlsmoker" from Bristol-based duo Pohl will absolutely sit you on your ass and reaffirm your trust that good music still exists. The heavy grinding fuzz and slam-you-against-the-wall chorus of noise of Pohl will amaze. Although the band is only a two-piece they lay into their instruments with remarkable fury and precision. The songs churn with hints of Sonic Youth, early Smashing Pumpkins and various states of grunge and stoner influences especially those of the minimalistic variety. The vocals are mainly hidden in the mix and are primarily yelled as if they are another layering unto this steady and rhythmic head-thwarting buzzfest. I can only imagine how incredible these dudes would be in a live setting. As their Facebook page address says, Pohl Rules! Indeed!!"
((facebook|bandcamp))

Sunday Sludge: Sonance - "Like Ghosts"

You'd have a hard time finding a lighthearted American this weekend. Media saturation spills across the pond, so the melancholy is likely hovering over the rest of the world by now. I'm not sure if what we'll hear for today's Sunday Sludge is an antidote to the poison or perhaps a mere extension of the symptom, but there's no denying it's an appropriate and paralleled complement to the mood we've recently had thrust upon us.

I won't contend that a trip with Bristol's Sonance is boiled down to a handful of benzos, but the pharmaceutical effects the band imposes are staggering nonetheless. On Like Ghosts, Sonance broaden the already impossibly expansive metal continuum, utilizing ambient drone to tranquilize listeners between stunning swells and collapses. There's no mold to break, there's simply a tapestry of brilliantly woeful uncertainty, ambient with waves and punitive with walls.

Like Ghosts is like ghosts, but not in a sense of paranormal bumps and whispers. The forty-two minutes on these two tracks breathe and haunt more like an undying memory, surging and waning beyond your wishes. These ghosts are seemingly within you, not around you. You can compartmentalize the chills, but the lucidity is never sealed off. And when you've been lulled to comfort and feel a cool sigh can be enjoyed, you're jarred by descending sludge terror.

That terror is no more immediately evident than on Side A, interrupting a brief hovering swarm. Icy guitar grows poetic, mirroring Slint's tinny Spiderland jabs. Rhythms twist as much as they hammer, with jagged swirls invading every teetering emotion. Tom's vocals cling to Chino's thumbings like drying blood, while Will's tortuous accompaniment sets a landscape of agony that provides no repose. Drone drips as fears are examined with an ambient caution, but the slugs of doom greet that pensive lament. It's devastating and beautiful.

The mood takes center stage on Like Ghosts, but musicianship deserves its moment in the sun. Ben's screwdriven assault on frets is more Alex's violent droog than Thurston's sonic experiment, while the film-score precision on Side B tiptoes with early-hour cold. This is where your bones feel it, Sir. The cackles and windchimes are a sort of harbinger, but for what? Will the fog lift and let the day emerge? Perhaps. But paranoia and bleak gusts follow every sideways glance toward empty fields. Long, incredibly ambiguous, and heady as fuck. Fourteen minutes in, though, doom shakes us from our gorgeous trance and resonates with drift until chiding buoyance clubs us senseless. Sludge atmospheres funnel toward chaos, pushed abruptly and appropriately. Should we expect an end? Sometimes it just happens.

Does isolation hit us as we believe it does? The eyeless, faceless malevolence in waiting is as frightening in thought as it is in presence, so perhaps the isolation shields in any sense. With numbing resonation, these Brits pull at every fear until bones are bare. You're exposed, your fears no longer matter, and the dead air is all you need. Like Ghosts is an album that burrows and lingers long after you've put your head to the pillow. You may find yourself wishing you had the company of lost spirits. These ghosts are much harder to shake.

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