Quick Hit: THE ELECTRIC SHAKES - "ELECTROHYPNOSIS"

Europe gives us a TON of great underground rock bands that run the gamut of styles we lump into stoner/doom/psychedelic/desert/retro/blues rock (even the genre lump is sizeable), and the UK is no exception. The trio The Electric Shakes, out of Bournemouth, are another of an impressive group of UK fuzz monsters.

Most trios are set up as one member doing double duty as the vocalist in addition to playing an instrument, but one impressive aspect of The Electric Shakes, in addition to their awesome fucking moniker, is that each brandisher of a musical apparatus performs vocal duties as well. The more vocals the better, whether it's a sharing of song leads, furnishing backup service, or in harmony, and these guys sweep all obligations.

The music they make is infectious, rawking, and fun. It's heavy on the riff and quick on the tempo. The drums are virulent and catchy, engaging head and hips in a dance of infectious rhythm. Monstrous basswork bolsters the heaviness of tracks that otherwise rocket and zoom in gravity defying exhilaration. The guitar brings all the highlights expected of excellence and quality, with a colossal fuzz enclosure punctuated by searing, soaring solos. The songs themselves are melodic masterpieces of amalgamated rock standards with traits of punk, stoner, garage, blues, and 70s era rock. The Electric Shakes' approach to music is a brilliant combination of those great rock sounds of past and present without any direct reflection of one legend over another, which allows them to forge something exciting and new and wholly their own.

bandcamp <{}> facebook <{}> soundcloud <{}> twitter <{}> youtube

New Band To Burn One To: COBRAJAB - "COBRAJAB"

Doom is the tenor of the day, with psychedelic bracing, stoner overtones, and profligate subterranean darkness, emanating from the capital of wholesome goodness, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Cobrajab, a foursome of visionary metalheads who, despite a 'just getting off the ground' presence online, have managed to produce and release an EP and an LP in the past two years, both of which are collections of magnificent riffage amalgamations. An unstoppable, steady force of deeply toned reverberation trudges unerringly, inexorably forward, opening pathways of psychedelic excursions of brilliance, as well as energetic bouts of stepped up fuzzery along the way, but never wavering from the melodic miasma of mighty metal machinations this band has so brilliantly conjured in their spells of doomweave. Their music is engaging, at times hypnotic, at others primal and spiritual, providing instant gratification while forging memorable long-term memory positions in the minds of DOOM aficionados.

bandcamp <{}> facebook  <{}> youtube

Quick Hit: HEY SATAN - "HEY SATAN"

Trios kick ass much of the time. There's just no getting around it. The Lausanne, Switzerland trio Hey Satan kick ass from a number of angles on their debut eponymous release. To begin with this album RAWKS, and rocks hard. It's meant to be played loudly, and to be enjoyed completely. The music will absolutely flow through you like some dark, demonic doomspell. There are ten tracks on this inaugural LP and not one of them misses a cloven-hoofed step. Each is spellbinding with magical melodic imagination, a feat of epic proportions, and none of them are carbon copies of neither themselves nor of any stoner metal legends, providing ten dark, dewy songs on which to guzzle and savor. The stoner/doom influences are obvious as the gargantuan guitars reign supreme with riffs of deepness and distortion as well as searing, soaring solo runs, but obvious homages are rare as this trio's grand abilities forge their own armored merchandise of dark and hefty metal. Vocals provide a searing focal point with a superb rawness and range brilliantly matched to the music. Overall this is one hell of a debut, a memorable and savage romp that should solidify a place in end of year retrospections.


bandcamp <{}> facebook

Quick Hit: EARTH WITCH - "OUT OF THE SHALLOW"

Earth Witch have been producing and playing high energy, heavy metal doom rock since they first formed on Halloween night in 2012 playing Black Sabbath covers. An early EP, released on Halloween in 2013, was a brilliant admixture of psychedelic Black Sabbath doom. For their next offering to the dark fandom gods of haunting melodies and mammoth black-bottom riffs Earth Witch have stepped up their game, submitting a full-length LP of masterful musical acumen. The melodies are exciting and memorable, the riffs are an amalgam of searing psychedelic solos, subterranean rumbles of earth and stone, with characteristics of stoner/desert sounds sewn perfectly into the patchwork of deep doomness and ephemeral wisps of phantom Sabbath spirits. All of this comes to you in afterthought as you listen because the immediate response is joy, joy in experiencing music that masters every trait that we love about low-tuned massive, heavy metal. It's a forty minute escape, much more capable than any current virtual reality gimmick. It's an ode to past brilliance yet still a discovery of fresh raw power entirely attuned to primal urges of amplified sound.

bandcamp <{}> facebook <{}> instagram

New Band to Burn One To: SPACE DEER

So far it has been a banner year for album releases with several albums either released or soon to be released from many of our favorite bands such as Sasquatch, Mothership, Elder, Steak, Geezer, The Midnight Ghost Train, and at least a dozen more. So, it's always such a sweet surprise when someone new can find their way up through the dark, teeming undergrowth of HUNDREDS of stoner/psych/desert...FUZZ... bands and THOUSANDS of fuzz albums to the sweet light of discovery. Space Deer, a provocative trio from Madrid, haven't yet found explosive recognition, but they should be on their way toward at least expanding their base because the sound they have managed to create is both recognizable and fresh, which is quite the trick in any corner of the musical world. Space Deer's sound is recognizable at once as a standard bearer of stoner fuzz rock, heavily ensconced in catchy melodies and memorable riffs. What makes them much more than a run of the mill knock off of amplified fuzz are their beautifully written and executed melodies, songs that instantly engage your rock n' roll soul all the way down to its primal core, engendering an instant spiritual euphoria of pleasure and escape. Sure the sound is familiar. That's what we love about it. But it's new, it's brilliant, its riffs are instantly exhilarating, its vocals immediately engaging and alluring, and its rhythm duo of bass and drums supply the dark heaviness of great metal sound.

bandcamp <{}> facebook <{}> instagram <{}> big cartel

Quick Hit: EGYPT - "CRACKS and LINES"

North Dakota's premier stoner/doom rockers Egypt return with a darkly sizzling 5 track scorcher of an album that once again showcases their penchant for wielding massively heavy, wickedly sharp metal music in their inimitable stoner/psych/doom style, led by the singular vocals of Aaron Esterby, whose natural rawness far surpasses all the guttural affectations of heavy metal mimickers and followers. This band is genuine in their motivations and abilities just as their music is the real thing, tasteful and memorable, primal and heavy.

bandcamp >>|<< facebook

Quick Hit: RUFF MAJIK - "THE HARE AND THE HOLLOW"

Mega-Fuzz rockers Ruff Majik have quite quickly returned with a new release....of sorts. It's only been two months since they issued the brilliant "The Swan", but Ruff Majik have something quite new, yet quite familiar, up their fretboards with what is apparently the initial three tracks of an eventual full-length album that will span a wondrous tale of fantasy. Their plan is to release a fourth of the album in time with each of the changing seasons of the southern hemisphere from which they dwell. This is exciting news, both for its creativity and its anticipation. The three songs that have burst forth through the ragged fissures of this threesome's psyche are earth devouring melodies of titanic proportions, ragged in riff, raging in solo, and gargantuan in rhythmic explosions. More to come is only welcome news for fans of their obsidian assaults.

bandcamp >>|<< facebook >>|<< youtube

Album Review: STEAK - "NO GOD TO SAVE"

STEAK have assiduously become a staple of underground fuzz, having previously released quintessential stoner/psychedelic hard rock albums in 2012, '13, and '15. Now, having signed with Ripple Music, they have released another full length album of ten thundering, riotous rock melodies that once again showcase the musical brilliance and deep-tuned craftsmanship of this Warrior Island battery of four preeminent metal artisans. "NO GOD TO SAVE" has allowed STEAK to bring to the fans of stoner rock, of fuzz-fueled, low-tuned loudness, a collection of songs that completely appease the most hooked addicts with hooks of amplified fervor.

STEAK are a brilliant group of metalheads, rendering songs that do much more than relay a particular sound quality. They certainly are adept at creating and playing extraordinary hard rock music that is rich in low tones and euphoric amplified distortion, music that combines clean, razor-sharp riffs with serrated edge keenness and a mammoth aural presence. But they are also adept at doing so over melodies of near genius, crafting songs that instantly excite while embedding snares of long term memory that will haunt its victims for years to come, songs such as "Overthrow", "Clones" "Living Like a Rat", and "Mountain".

"NO GOD TO SAVE" not only showcases their variety of fuzzy metal music, but does so in perfect harmony of their extraordinary vocalist, Kip, who is impeccably matched to their brand of heavy with his deep, mellifluous vocal tones that easily scale the highest peaks the music requires without ever resorting to any sort of rebel yell, guttural utterance, or falsetto flippancy, as well as complementing the band's six-string slinger Reece's samurai brilliance, or without ever overpowering the mighty drubbing of Cam's bass magnificence, or never overshadowing the wielder of wood, slayer of skin, drummer Sammy's stickwork.

When you look at the legacy STEAK have begun to build you can see this London clan possesses something as special as any metal band around, regardless of attempts at genre identification. They struggle like everyone else in the underground world of heavy rock, but have managed to advance their music, and hence, their careers, when doing so is never ordained. They now are part of Ripple Records, which in itself is a mark of accomplishment, and they have already given us an unerring library of amplified addiction. With "NO GOD TO SAVE" they have bestowed upon us one of 2017's preeminent heavy metal, hard rock, stoner rock albums, proving they are poised to become the legends their burgeoning legacy reveals them to be.

bandcamp <<|>> facebook <<|>> label

Album Review: SASQUATCH - "MANEUVERS"

Alright! The fifth album from one of rock's unsung practitioners has been released. Any spin through any one of the, now five, albums put out by the Los Angeles retro/stoner rock trio Sasquatch will provide opioid level euphoria through a delivery system of dense metal and decibel distension, packaged in razor sharp hooks and monumental melodies. This is the case with the first song on the first album through to the last song on the latest album, the freshly available "MANEUVERS".

The musicians that recorded "MANEUVERS" include:

Keith Gibbs - guitar, vocals
Jason Casanova - bass
Craig Riggs - drums

Where's Rick Ferrante, the longtime drummer for the band, you ask? He's very much still a part of Sasquatch. How could he not be? He's been there from the inception, providing a quality of rhythm drumwork rarely matched this side of Ginger Baker. Craig Riggs, himself an accomplished drummer, as well as vocalist, for the stoner rock legends Roadsaw and supergroup Kind, has been tasked with the skin-thumping duties on #5 as Sasquatch launch their campaign through Europe in support of the new album. Many, if not most, of the gifted musicians that ply their wares in the underground world of stoner/fuzz rock, do so outside of their regular job work schedules, so making extended forays away from those jobs isn't always possible. Rick, though, has other venues lined up for his phenomenal skills, both as a full-time member of The Ultra Electric Mega Galactic and playing live venues with the up and coming underground superstars Aboleth (is that an oxymoron - underground superstar?)

"MANEUVERS" consist of 8 intensely amplified tracks of thick, syrupy mega-fuzz in which Keith Gibbs' wonderfully mellifluous vocals match perfectly his sledge hammer heavy riffs and ozone searing solos, where Jason Casanova's bass is forcefully wielded, relentless in muscular ferocity, and Craig Riggs' steady rhythms sting and pound in incessant brilliance. The overall tone is a soulful resonance, somber, edgy, and nostalgic, unyielding in its sheer power.

"Rational Woman" kicks off the show with gargantuan raggedness, beautifully laid down in primal tempo, showcasing Gibbs' rich, powerfully melancholy vocals. "More Than You'll Ever Be" is steady and relentless, advancing in magnetic forcefulness. "Destroyer" demonstrates the raw might of haunting tonality. "Bringing Me Down" is reminiscent of early Sasquatch songs in sentiment and style, a welcome memory for some, a fresh introduction into past glory for others. Funky and on fire, "Just Couldn't Stand the Weather" brandishes a unique melody and style, a departure that doesn't stray too far from the path marked 'Sasquatch', but is populated by some intriguing mutations, riff creatures at once familiar and uncanny. "Drown All the Evidence" is Americana, magnified, amplified, and wracked through with distortions of flagrant pleasure, punctuated by elegantly ragged, bruising solos. "Anyway" is a psychedelic charmer, a brightly colored panacea, recharging batteries in color and brilliance. The closer is the massive and melancholy "Window Pain". The blue pain and gray fog atmosphere of this song is punctuated by the rare use of keyboards, highlighting the feeling of loss and a damaged soul. Solos reminiscent of Ernie Isley rip through the gray morass in sharp, keen doses.

Overall this album delivers a massive load of essential feels. The music is nostalgic and new, familiar because it's crafted by masters of more than a decade of accomplishment, as well as fresh in a package of nascent material that expounds on a proven formula without a hint of staleness. It's a sound that hearkens back to the last decade when stoner rock was still new and Sasquatch were new kids on the block. The guitars come in every satisfying form, distorting the edges, and burning the center, tapping into those primal cords that run central to us all. Gibbs' vocals are solid, full of heft and strength, and forging soulful connections over and again. Fierceness and joy, the hallmarks of those who love the weapons they wield, are on perfect display through Casanova's masterful, subterranean riffs. And Riggs steps into what would normally be a massive void, shouldering expectations and delivering brilliance with his consummate rhythmic execution.

website <<|>> bandcamp <<|>> facebook <<|>> instagram <<|>> twitter

Quick Hit: Långfinger - "Crossyears"

Smallstone Records has been a 'go-to' place for great fuzzy music since their inception back in 1995. There is north of 80 rock bands in the annals of Smallstone, many of them pioneers of underground stoner rock, including Sasquatch, Dozer, Lo-Pan, Gozu, and Wo Fat, as well as many up and coming finds that have chosen the venerable label to ply their fuzzy wares, such as the focus of today's Quick Hit, Långfinger.

Gritty, imaginative, hard, and loaded with heavy, pulse-pounding riffs of an old school style, "Crossyears" is a rock solid and laudable Smallstone debut for this Swedish threesome out of Göteborg, who already had two 10" and two 7" productions in their canon before making their way to the notoriety of Detroit's Smallstone Records. Their music crackles with burning, searing, unfiltered energy, engulfing the listener in thick metal smoke of a euphoric atmosphere, carried brilliantly throughout by perfectly matched rawk vocals.

smallstonebandcamp >>|<< bandcamp >>|<< facebook >>|<< smallstone >>|<< instagram 

youtube >>|<< twitter 

New Band To Burn One To: COLD DEZERT

Cold Dezert are another in a burgeoning line of established and emerging Grecian stoner/doom bands, and just like so many of them, they have developed a hefty, gargantuan sound. But they've done more than that. They've managed to take a set of recognizable sounds and riffs and forge something all their own, something colossal, impenetrable, made of the densest stone boulders unearthed from the darkest of doom quarries. The music is dense and intricate, imaginative and primal, raw, fierce, and massive. It's what we hope for when we spin something new.

bandcamp ||><|| facebook ||><|| instagram ||><|| youtube

Quick Hit: JUKEBOX MONKEYS - "GREY SKIES RED PLANET"

Jukebox Monkey have created a wonderful mix of contradictions with "Grey Skies Red Planet", delivering a clean sound via a wonderfully nasty disposition, a southern rock style of frankness without any direct homage...in fact, in foregoing anyone else's sound or style they are somehow reminiscent in doses of almost everyone, a mean feat from this mean foursome of warrior isle brawlers, who in doing so have developed their own unique style that is an upfront, in your face,  stoner rock bruiser of a record, inexorable and steadfast in its mammoth assault of sound, ornery in its temperament, and euphoric in its deeply fuzzy experience.

bandcamp >>|<< facebook >>|<< twitter

Quick Hit: MOANING CITIES - "Moaning Cities"

I think perhaps I need to place a permanent office in the midst of the fertile stoner/psych/doom/retro rock country of Belgium. Many of the bands and albums I've highlighted in the past few months have come from that rich rock n' roll province. Today we add one more to the burgeoning list with Moaning Cities, a quartet of interesting blueprint. Operating with both guitar and sitar, backed magnificently by a female rhythm section, Moaning Cities manage to pack plenty of bite and ferocity around ragged edges and furious riffs, co-mingling with otherwise smooth, milky psychedelic power sojourns.

Moaning Cities have been around for 5 years, and have managed to release 3 albums, the first of which is showcased here today. This is because the first album has a more ragged stoner vibe, as does the second album, "Pathways Through the Sail", while the latest release, "D. Klein" is more soporific and spell-binding. The matchless melodies and mammoth music of Moaning Cities can catch one occasionally reminiscing in brief spurts on the fine desert rock of Kyuss. There is nothing direct, no homage, just a recognition that what you are listening to combines power, heart, and musical athleticism, the very best of what rock has to offer.

bandcamp *|:|* facebook *|:|* soundofliberation*|:|* youtube *|:|* label *|:|* website

New Band To Burn One To: THE BIGGEST THING SINCE POWDERED MILK

Something a bit different today. The 'New Band To Burn One To' feature is meant to showcase bands that haven't gotten much attention and perhaps are just starting out in the underground world of the greatest music ever made. Today's band, The Biggest Thing Since Powdered Milk, doesn't have much of a presence online yet, but they do have the above delectable trio. This little bit, though, will likely make a sizeable impression when you give it a spin. These three island warriors have demonstrated a knack for making big, loud, and fun stoner rock music, combining the mammoth guitar that is the hallmark, of course, of stoner rock with a keen imagination for instant hooks and memorable melodies. They have more songs in the bag and are working their way toward an official album release, so, here is what they have so far, something mighty tasty when enjoyed with a large glass of ice cold powdered milk......or something...., and hopefully piquing your interest enough to keep you on the lookout for that eventual album sure to make a large splash when it arrives.

soundcloud >>|<< facebook >>|<< twitter

New Band To Burn One To: SUNDERFEET

A potent sound of high energy, agile vocals, bruising drums, brawling bass, and riffs galore are the hallmarks of this threesome from the north of France. They have mastered the art of combining great melodies with a massive sound, full of razor sharp hooks, skull stomping drums, bone crushing guitar from bass and six string, and dusky, ragged vocals. The music is stonerish and grungy, but uniquely their own as they play with relish and ferocity.

soundcloud >>|<< facebook

Album Review Geezer - "Psychoriffadelia"

From that little ol' band from New York comes yet another exceptional release of guitar-racked brilliance in the form of "Psychoriffadelia", Geezer's latest foray into heavy hitting blues rock, this time with cosmic encounters of bright, burning riffs and mind melting incursions of euphoric frenzy. Adding psychedelics to their résumé, Geezer have become a top staple of the stoner/blues rock genre, eliciting ragged anticipation from the junkies of great guitar anthems.

The album opens with the cover of Nazareth's "Hair of the Dog", a staple of 70s rock standards. Geezer make it theirs without trying to emulate the sound of the originators and do a superb job of injecting their own signature sound of massive riffs and searing solos overlaid with ragged vocal brilliance. "Stressknots" is a standard blues rock jam, the kind that Geezer are known for - fun and infectious. The title track sits in the middle of the tracklist and is their first foray into colorful runs and trippy rolls, cruising through a full ten minutes of mind-melting musical munchies. The odyssey continues on "Red Hook", a long slow burn of intoxication and escape. The closer is the incredible, massive "Dirty Penny", a thirteen minute excursion into bright explosions and cosmic detonations. It, too, burns slowly, but powerfully, as it wraps you in warmth and euphoria on its musical journey of magic and satisfaction.

Geezer are:
Pat Harrington - guitar/vocals
Richie Touseull - bass
Charles Ruggerio - drums

bandcamp >>|<< facebook 

QUICK HIT: Child - "Blueside"

Take a trip today with Child. A trip that floats on psychedelic fabrics of deep Indigo Blues, propelled ever onward by the steadfast strength of Cerulean Blue guitar riffs, solos, and mind-calming runs, fortified by Azure Blue vocals of passion and clarity, bolstered by the primal rhythms of Beryl Blue drumwork and deep Navy Blue bass lines. The journey begins in Melbourne, Australia, running a path straight through the moist, hot climes of the Mississippi Delta and on into the bright, crisp air of the Mojave Desert before steering a course for a deep blue odyssey of worldwide deliverance.

This album is at once stirring and joyous, drawing obviously from a fount of blues rock masters, infusing a whiff of the dexterity borne of the deserts of the American West, all the while underpinning psychedelic melodies with gargantuan riffs of deep, low amplification.

bandcamp >>|<< facebook >>|<< website >>|<< label

New Band To Burn One To: Magpie Toes - "Magpie Toes"

Retro Kick-Ass is the theme today with Hyvinkää, Finland's Magpie Toes who have released their initial foray into blues-rock fuzzery with their eponymous EP of  4 Hi-Fi tracks that beg to be played at ear-shattering decibels and enjoyed in joyous celebration. Their music evokes a time of bell bottom jeans and big hair, of tripping strangely and dancing freely, of love, laughter, and good times. The blues-rock influence of a bygone era of Rock N' Roll, and the bands that forged it, is obvious and heavy, expressed through massive guitar riffs, cool drum solos, and vocals of power and clarity, driven by clever melody and soul-stirring hooks. Emerging out from under all that homage, though, is a freshness, a newness, that can only come from keen imagination, musical dexterity, and a love for what remains possible and potent from the influences of past giants.

bandcamp >>|<< facebook 

QUICK HIT: Kitchen Witch - "Kitchen Witch"

You're just standing there, innocently, expectantly, hoping to engage with the new discovery when Georgie and Simon begin a bisensual assault of straight stinging jabs to your ears......they use their instruments of choice, of course, vocals for Georgie, and bass guitar for Simon. The assault is powerful, coordinated, measured, and.......delightful! Soon enough the rest of Kitchen Witch join in, Conor on guitar and John on drums, and the odyssey has begun, a colorful trip of brilliance and ecstasy.

The bluesy rock sound of Kitchen Witch will quickly bludgeon any impending designs on productivity you may have had, snaking it's electrified tendrils in and around the primal center of your musical DNA before tightening it's amplified grip, supplanting any sense of awareness for an overabundant experience of joy and euphoria. Yeah. It's that powerful. So, lie back, let go, lick your lips, and luxuriate in the lush experience of Kitchen Witch's superior sound.

bandcamp >>|<< facebook >>|<< instagram >>|<< twitter >>|<< youtube >>|<< soundcloud

QUICK HIT: Blackbird Hill - MIdday Moonlight (maxi)

May 5th is the official release date for Blackbird Hill's latest EP, "Midday Moonlight (maxi)", but the music is available for streaming a day early on their bandcamp page. This duo from Bordeaux, France are master blues rock craftsmen, expertly cobbling together powerful tunes of melodious amplification with their single guitar, single trap set, two voices, as well as a knack for engaging melodies and powerful hooks. Their songs range from haunting ballads to rip-roaring rockers, all supremely crafted and heartily delivered. If you listen today, hopefully you'll return tomorrow and download this gem of a collection.

bandcamp >><< facebook >><< instagram >><< website >><< twitter >><< youtube