ALBUM REVIEW: FALL OF AN EMPIRE - "CROWEATER: AN ECHO IN THE BONE"

South Carolina's Fall of an Empire had arguably one of the best releases of 2014 with their debut album Songs of Steel and Sorrow, named by HeavyPlanet's own Reg as a top ten album for that year. Now they're back with a follow up album, Croweater: An Echo in the Bone. How does this 6 track EP stack up to their gargantuan debut? One spin through is enough to let you know this purple covered jewel exceeds any eager expectations. So well crafted, well constructed, and keenly delivered is the music on this six song presentation it is not beyond the realm of possibility it will become an album for the ages, a metal standard to be enjoyed through time and generations to come.

Each song is an exquisite blend of melody, craft, and fuzz, delivered with high handed skill of the most accomplished songsmiths while brandishing the heart of the hungry tyro. The weaving of syrupy rich solos, gritty riffs, crackerjack rhythm, and exuberant drumwork is exquisitely framed by the magnificent vocals of frontman Kenny Lawrence whose voice is a beacon of rock clarity seldom matched in a sea of thousands of gargling mediocrities.

Band members include:
Brent Carroll - Guitar/Vocals
Shane Smith - Bass
Cody Edens - Guitar
Brad Munoz - Drums
Kenny Lawrence - Lead Vocals

Fall of an Empire's style, if you will, is one of evocative, haunting ballads of deep, rich texture, amplified thrills, gargantuan twin guitars, and leviathan bass and drums trolling along a rumbling underworld of deafening darkness. No song exemplifies this more than the title track "Croweater". The standout song of the album, perhaps, is "Uprising", a relentless pummeling of sound and turbulence whose inexorable vibrations quickly sync to a primal core of sonority. Each song is an adventure of deep stirring with payoff in excess as heart, guile, and finesse deliver a trove of music treasure.

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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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