Ufomammut : "8"

Bongs across the world must be aflame so the trend of super psyche filled doom continues this time coming from Italy. I just hit publish on the new Monolord album, when I started listening to this and these guys are even further out in the cosmos. Where Monolord hits you with fuzzed out density, these guys have the Sabbath core of doom obscured by clouds of tripping haze. The vocals feel more Pink Floyd like to me than carrying any kind of an Ozzy influence. With each song they take you further into the depths of their warped rabbit hole. By the second song it's clear the drummer is a fucking champ. They establish more tension on "Warsheep". These are not catchy songs that grab your ear with their infectious allure. Instead they are immensely interesting and captivating in a more cerebral fashion.  They do lock into some more conventional doom like riffs here and there, but the organic melting of ear movement into another has a life of its own.

"Zodiac" carries over the rumble from the previous song. They vocals are more shouted. Two minutes into this song they launch into a cool progressive groove. So this is not for doom purists , but I think even they can find plenty to love about this album. Normally I might be bitching about songs going over the 9 minute mark, but these guys know how to fill every minute. This album begins to work more in movements, much like how "Zodiac" progressed out of the song before it the same could be said of "Fatum". The heavilly effected vocals do kind follow a Ozzy like cadence in how they bounce of the thicker pounding laid under them. Heading into the three minute mark it's so heavy it is sick. Once again the groove of the preceding it given a twist into something new this time it's "Prismaze". There is more of a palm muted tension that reminds me a little of Tool, but on more drugs. "Core" is a more punishing explosion than anything they have offered up so far on this album.

The first solid Sabbath thumbprint is not until "Wombdemonium". This is one of the album's more straight forward moments. At only three minutes they still manage to do better than most of the sprawling merchants of 13 minute doom. I think the dark groove to "Psyrcle" is more compelling . There is a weird hint of a female vocal sampled in and the lead vocals have more of a chanted quality to them. I was not expecting the tempo shift midway into the song.I'll give this album a 9.5 it's an excellent blend of surreal and heavy and another step forward for this band who is clearly not afraid to be different and I commend them for it.