November Doom- Den : "Iron Desert"

Riding the line of sludge and doom, these guys throw some pretty creative stuff at you, despite the vocals being the kind of coarse bark that more typifies sludge there is enough darkness to their lumber to belong here, though more punk sensibilities to their sound than what you are normally going to find in any kind of doom . The do blast in with varied tempos , but it returns to the lava flow of their normal burning pulse. The verse to the second song is darker and more doomy with the dynamic shift that follows more of an explosive noise rock thing.  Here it's doom colored by more of a Melvins influence. There is more of a dynamic shift here, I like this one better than the opener which was till a pretty solid song.

"Svalbard' is slower and resonates off of the fuzz with an almost analog synth vibe. The vocals are more growled here, but have begun to get a little stale for my tastes as they are a one trick pony.
"Taste of Blood' has more of a back woods boogie set against the more Black Sabbath like pacing. The vocals here are howled more like Black Fl;ag era Rollins. "Bones & Flies' is a great deal darker. It almost has more of a Neurosis feel. The spooky atmospherics are cool as they add a nice dynamic to the album as a whole. The title track that closes the album, has the more coarse husky vocal. The bass is booming a fuzzed out tot he max. I like the tempo they are pounding this one out at as it has a great deal of groove. I begin hearing the hints of the more Rollins like vocal again. The song takes a really unexpected turn somewhere between kraut rock, dungeon synth and tribal drumming its way into more apocalyptic sludge. There is plenty of noise to add angular abrasion.


I really like the sense of dynamics and the more melodic elements these guys use. They are much better than avaerage song writers. My only complaint is the vocals .The get old quick. My hope for them is in the future they employ more vocal colors as it would take their songwriting to the next level I will give this album an 8. This album is being released on Corpseflower Records.      

November Doom- Arrowhead - :"Coven of the Snake"

Is this the most original band? No, there is a great deal of retro stoner metal that falls in the rotation of these guys. They are really good at what they do. I hear hear some Think Lizzy influence in how the vocal melodies work, so this is not just Sabbath worship. The guitar tone of this Sydney band  is very much metal and the grooves are aggressive. They are more about getting stoned in a van with all the other heshers and not dark or depressing like doom should be. "All Seeing Eye' is heavier than the opener, though neither song is shabby or taking it easy. They have some commanding gallops on here that will induce heading banging easily.

They get darker and heavier on "Ceremony of the Skull" . Lyrically themes are like bong infused Dungeons and Dragons.  The vocals get more aggressive , not yelling, still holding melody. They are very much riff worshipers which I can appreciate. The first real hint of Sabbath I hear is on "Ghost Ship" , I can also hear some Sound Garden as well. The more deliberate Sabbath rumble is kicked up on "Root of Evil" . It falls some where between blues and grunge.  "Dopanaught" is like a moderately slowed down version of "Paranoid" but with lyrics about  wizards.  The get a much better grip on groove and melody with "March of the Reptiles". The vocals are smooth. The drummer is kicking it pretty hard on this one as well. "Golden Thunder Hawk: works of a more restrained groove. The song end with a really strong riff.

 Despite riffs being their stock and trade, the rule here is cool riffs alone does not a good song make, On "March of the Reptiles" they prove they can write a song. I will round this album up to a 9. I am not sure how many extra listens this one will earn.
Was released back in July on Ripple Music/

     

November Doom- Brume : "Rabbits"

The Gathering are the new Black Sabbath when it comes to doom. I am fine with this. It's just the 3rd album that has soft female vocals over melancholy metal, that is not satisfied with just stopping at at metal. It's three minutes into the first song before we get the crunch of heavy guitars. "Scurry" finds them conforming more closely to the kind of fuzz drenched lumber expected from the genre. It also falls in line with your more typical female fronted doom. Male vocals harmonize with her. She voice is pretty impressive with the range to soar over the song when she feels like it. After a few listens it proves early on this is an album I can just let play as it flows with smooth dynamics that do not tire.

There is a moody cello intro to "Blue Jay' guitar does kick in half way into the song, but it is more of an atmosphere texture, a storm cloud that never thunders down  The drumming continues to impress on this song. At 11 minutes the longest song is "Lament' which is impressive for a genre know to be ponderous. It opens sounding like depressive progressive. It drifts along on gray waters. Darker than  Not rock bands, but more mellow and less sorrowful than doom. It does slowly begin to build heading towards the midway mark. The drumming is more intricate and busier than what a doom drummer would do. Before the song is over it does however get into a sludged out heaviness. By sludge think more Yob than Neurosis.

It is going to take the last song "Autocrat's Fool' to really tip the balance in regard to what they are. It does get more metallic and in a way that falls loosely into doom.  The song works of more of a a hypnotic drone than crushing you. Until the final 30 seconds. I will round this up to a 9, I think it needs to grow on me more as it's very atmospheric and not what I was expecting going into this.