Album Of The Day-Las Cruces-"Ringmaster" (1999)

Originally released in 1999, Brainticket Records has finally decided to re-release one of the finest Doom Metal albums ever made. That would be "Ringmaster" by Las Cruces, therefore making it my Album Of The Day.



Review:

Picture this...cross Led Zeppish bluesmetal with Doom Metal and unleash upon an unsuspecting society. These five Texans stand tall and proud and push out waves of slightly psychedelic bluesish deadly doom. Mark Zammaron reminds me of Robert Plant crossed with a demonically-possessed, doom-laden 1930s-era blues singer (I'm speaking hypothetically--it's not Robert Johnson) with just a dash of early Danzig. This is no-holds barred bluesdoom. George Trevino definitely updates the classic blues sound with a healthy dose of feedback-laden doom metal guitar. Ben Regio Montano beats the skins and cymbals into submission and controls the slowly building sludgemonster. No beat shall escape his grasp without paying the price. Occasionally the band softens their brutal assault with a quiet moment, but it only makes the sledgehammer hit harder when they bang it out in the next few minutes. Some songs start slow and tender then build towards its an apocalyptic, bullish finish. Best cuts are "Behemoth" and "Pigz." They have learned much from their producer John Perez (with Mike Trujillo) of the seminal doom band, Solitude Aeturnus. They take the doom-laden with sorrow style of Solitude Aeturnus and increase the bottom end forcing an unnatural heaviness upon an already heavy genre, then they toss in a spoonful of blues to strengthen the approach. With Ringmaster, Perez has helped elevate Las Cruces to the next level. These songs burn the heart and brain with their acid-drenched bitterness and pain. This is not a band to be taken lightly. They will crush you if you underestimate their power. (Sabrina Wade Haines, EarPollution.com)

Track Listing:

01. Behemoth 04:24
02. Killer Kane 03:43
03. Black Waters 04:14
04. Pigz 03:22
05. Cascades of Phantoms 03:07
06. Doomed 03:04
07. Ringmaster 04:46
08. Human Form 07:14
09. This Time 04:40
10. Lazy Drag 03:23

Total playing time 43:13

Listen

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TORCHE: Another New Song Posted Online

Another new TORCHE song, entitled "Grenades", has been posted on the group's MySpace page. The track comes off the Miami, Florida-based band's second full-length CD, "Meanderthal", due on April 8 through the Hydra Head imprint (vinyl to be released on Robotic Empire). Recorded throughout November 2007 at Godcity Studios in Salem, Massachusetts, the 13-track album is TORCHE's first with Kurt Ballou (CONVERGE, GENGHIS TRON, DISFEAR) at the helm.

Commented Andy Low of Robotic Empire, "Having built a unique sound with their self-titled debut and follow-up 'In Return' EP, TORCHE fully realize their potential with their most infectious recordings to date. No amount of heaviness is compromised on 'Meanderthal', an album that should fuel fans heavy fix as well as their undeniable need for catchiness."

"Meanderthal" track listing:

01. Triumph of Venus
02. Grenades
03. Piranha
04. Sandstorm
05. Speed of the Nail
06. Healer
07. Across the Shields
08. Sundown
09. Little Champion
10. Without A Sound
11. Fat Waves
12. Amnesian
13. Meanderthal

TORCHE: 'Meanderthal' Track Listing Revealed

Miami, Florida's TORCHE will release its second full-length CD, "Meanderthal", on April 8 through the Hydra Head imprint (vinyl to be released on Robotic Empire). Recorded throughout November 2007 at Godcity Studios in Salem, Massachusetts, the 13-track album is TORCHE's first with Kurt Ballou (CONVERGE, GENGHIS TRON, DISFEAR) at the helm.

Commented Andy Low of Robotic Empire, "Having built a unique sound with their self-titled debut and follow-up 'In Return' EP, TORCHE fully realize their potential with their most infectious recordings to date. No amount of heaviness is compromised on 'Meanderthal', an album that should fuel fans heavy fix as well as their undeniable need for catchiness."

"Meanderthal" track listing:

01. Triumph of Venus
02. Grenades
03. Piranha
04. Sandstorm
05. Speed of the Nail
06. Healer
07. Across the Shields
08. Sundown
09. Little Champion
10. Without A Sound
11. Fat Waves
12. Amnesian
13. Meanderthal

Check out the song "Piranha" on the band's MySpace page.