Zac's "Double Dose": Crobot / Thumlock

 

Crobot: Groove World Order Single & The Legend of the Spaceborne Killer 

Stoner rock with a whole lotta soul and a little bit-o funk... and it's coming from Central Pennsylvania! Who would have thought the rolling hills of PA would become a hot bed for the underground rock scene. In the past year we have seen more quality stoner rock and grungy grit escaping this mountainous terrain and Crobot, this weeks first 'dose, is another fine addition to the list. Crobot released The Lengend of the Spaceborne Killer this past September [2012], which seemed to slip through my hands. I finally caught wind of the four-piece with their single release of Groove World Order in January [2013]. With their use of witty song titles and lyrics, intoxicating instrumentation, and soaring vocals Crobot's style of stoner rock is pop catchy with a legit disposition. To me it's a little like Extreme in content and The Black Crows, Soundgarden, and Zeppelin in delivery. The rock is pretty straight forward here; catchy guitar licks and power chords separate the towering chorus and verses. The guitars and Brandon's voice absorb the majority of this listeners' attention, but that's not to ignore the building blocks of their rock n' roll. The bass-lines are thick and fuzzy and the percussion morphs from jazzy cymbal taps to a hail of hammer blows from the northern gods. That being said none of these tunes quite crush like Homeward Bound. The track contains most everything that appeals to me within the rock and metal world. A distorted groove-tastic RIFF intro is delayed via vocalizing 'ohhh ohhhhhhhs' (these reappear throughout the song). The pace steadies and the RIFF endures, growing with the ascending voice, who is desiring the comfort of home. The track finally regresses with a chant and soft build up of tribal drums. Get your own copy of The Lengend of the Spaceborne Killer and Groove World Order at bandcamp and be sure to watch their music video for The Legend of the Spaceborne Killer's title track at youtube.

 

Members: 

Brandon Yeagley - Lead Vocals // Harp 

Chris Bishop - Guitar // Vocals 

Jake Figueroa - Bass 

Paul Figueroa - Drums

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Thumlock: Emerald Liquid Odyssey 

Pulling a trick from Toby's hat, In Case You Missed It... I deliver unto you to the dated and completely excellent, completely Australian Thumlock and their 2000 (yes, that's thirteen years ago) release Emerald Liquid Odyssey. I crossed this oceanic behemoth in my bandcamp meanderings one evening and, paying no attention to the release date, wondered why didn't we [Heavy Planet] get the promo for this prime slab of Grade A stoner rock?! So, I get a hold of our main man at Biolocation Records and asked for a copy (on a side note, be sure to peruse Biolocation's inventory, it contains multiple 'Planet favorites). Fast forward and I find myself lost in Thumlock's smokey haze and it hits me like a hundred foot Pacific tidal wave "released 09 June 2000"!! Suddenly my Thumlock induced obscurity momentarily lifts and my crooked mind has an epiphany. "Honest rock [metal] is timeless". This piece of decade old music is still relevant. And upon that thought I knew it should be shared with my 'Planet brethren and you, our faithful readers. This Wollongong, Australian four-piece got started in the mid-nineties and had quite the success landing at number four on Australia's Independent Records Charts. Since those glory days little to nothing has been heard from the mighty Thumlock. Well, perhaps we can change that... 

Emerald Liquid Odyssey is fifty minute stoner rock masterpiece. Calling for guidance from the almighty Black Sabbath and Hawkwind. Listeners can be confident in expecting nothing but luscious layers of guitar melody and bass harmony with proportional cosmic psychedelia. These ingredients ensure a tsunami of grooves that can leave the headbangin'ist of stoners shipwrecked. Thumlock also employ reoccurring themes of pacific seafaring with the ferocity of the ocean god Neptune. I'm not a big Nirvana fan, but I clearly hear a Cobain-esque vocal delivery throughout each sung track. Some of the most memorable moments are the soft spoken lyrics and haunting laughter, which found in the self titled track. The percussion is an endless tidal wave of battery, containing the quartet's foundation and, at the same time, demolishing it. The album is solid through and through, sharing a mix of lengthy epics (see Planet Neptune) and shorter ditty's (see Rockin' Course). My personal favorite, and its radio friendly run-time of four minutes, is Doom Lord Dying, right smack dab in the middle of the album. The track begins with a dual guitar driven swirl sure enough to drown you before the lyrics anchor your ears into the abyss. Spend some time navigating Thumlock's Emerald Liquid Odyssey. The voyage can be started over at bandcamp, where the entire album is streaming. If you dig as much as I do, help me make some waves... and who knows maybe we can get another pressing of Emerald Liquid Odyssey or a reunion!

Members: 

Ben Lough - Vocals // Guitar 

Greg Eshman - Drums 

Raff Iacurto - Guitar 

Wayne Stokes - Bass

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Sunday Sludge: Odyssey - "Abysmal Despair"

The only drawback to discovering great new bands is doing your research and learning there's little likelihood you'll see the live show.  Helsingborg, Sweden's ODYSSEY have garnered attention and accolades for both the volume and the violence of their performances.  The band's debut album, Abysmal Despair, was released on May 16th and just might hold off the hunger pangs in the event I never make it across the pond.

From start to finish, Abysmal Despair injects shifting tempos, elemental breakdowns, and genre-bending noise ribbons without even a hint of uncertainty.  A band is shit without confidence, and Odyssey back up their bravado with strong structure and masterful patience.  If these eight chapters are any indication of what the band's stage presence might hold, I'm jealous of every European with a car, a bus pass, or a pair of sturdy shoes.

Pyramids' creeping wraparound guitars are joined by a low and loose bass, thick with rough despondency.  The entire track buzzes until sludge crushes each chorus.  The noise adds an element of the unfamiliar, something seldom heard and always welcome.  Jonas Pedersen's vocal is just warming up; there's a lifetime of anguish waiting in the album's balance.  The chunky, choppy roll of Wicked Witch is uptempo by comparison.  Witold Östensson's smoky guitar complements Pedersen's bass crawl, building toward an awesome, fuzzed-out stoner-sludge breakdown in which the track fights with itself; elements push and pull at one another as controlled chaos melts and pours us into the heart of the album.

The title track is where Odyssey really start getting heady.  Rhythms are still dirty and grainy, sure.  But Östensson's bouncy guitar creates a juxtaposition as Odyssey slow to a doomy, cave-dwelling trickle.  Jesper Karlsson's lonely skin slaps pick up to a primal trot, and that sludge rhythm swells to a anarchic noise explosion.  The shrill sounds come from every direction, and yet another layer of Odyssey's sound has revealed itself.

Odyssey display an uncanny knack for not only merging styles, but also for transitioning seamlessly between moods.  No Fucking Way employs a hum that never relents as the slow cadence is sliced in half by intermittent licks and drum gallops.  Odyssey climb into a bell tower clutching a rifle until a cool guitar warble allows for some breathing room.  The hazy interlude will soothe even the most savage of beasts.  Wolfspit and Witches' Breath immediately trails with a slow burn that's heavy on the napalm.  Guitars are hollow and distant, building a separation from the slow, thick rhythm.  I guess you could say it's like watching a forest fire from a distance.

The disc's best structure arrives on the back of thick, mossy vibrations on This Ship Is Sinking.  Mid-tempo and pretty fucking cool, pacing is what sets apart this one.  And Pedersen's vocal hits its peak here, harmonized by his buddies.  The slow plod that follows on Darked is the definition of stoner-sludge.  The album's closer is quick but muddy, with a sludge bass that hits the trenches and a chippy, confident guitar that hits the dunes.  A mothman hover breaks the rhythm and we enter a midpoint that's patient and ominous. You'll be waiting for the thunder to drop, and instead you'll meet a sandstorm of swirling licks and swampy basslines.  Karlsson sounds as though he's drumming with tree trunks.  What a perfect noise-metal finale.

There's no need to club skulls here.  A band that can lull you into submission and snuff you out slowly often operates more successfully than one that never throws the transmission into neutral.  Odyssey find their feet when they break the crunch and sift the soil.  But when they wanna bring the heavy, watch your ass.  When mud, moss, and sand combine so efficiently, listeners will reap the benefits.  But when Odyssey toss in a dash of the unknown, it's no wonder audiences will keep coming back.



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