Stoned Jesus : "Songs to Moon"

The Ukrainian band's 7th full length finds them leaning further into sludge with an atmospheric crunch that sits somewhere between the Melvins and Mastodon on the opening track of this album. There is ample post-grunge to the riffs as the vocals layer a more introspective melodic sense after the more burly bark the song started with. It feels like most sludge albums are going to get overshadowed by Neurosis this year, so it's a good thing these guys have a more rock side to fall back on and seperate them from keeping up with those Joneses.

"ZYX" has a more indie rock sound, and it is actually the most intersting of the first three songs. There is a cool groove, subdued vocals that provide a contrast, and nuanced guitar playing, so here's hoping they continue to explore this new direction. They jam a bit at the end of the song. There is more ofa progressive slant to this album. Keyboards play a larger role. Midway into the album, it is even more apparent that they have crossed over into prog. If it worked for Mastodon, these guys took notes. This leads to cleaner guitar tones becoming more abundant as a shift away from the fuzzed guitar tones that were a staple of where they came from. 'Jackal" is the first song where I pick up on any lyrical hints they live somewhere that is being obliterated. The song builds back up into a more dramatic, sweeping build of rocking out. 

The strummed 'Window in My Room' feels like a lost alt -rock ballad from the 90s. It ambles along with almost Nick Drake-like folk energy. The album closes with "One More Empty Day". The Nick Drake-like mood of the previous song carries over into this one. The album takes a turn from how it started, with the last two songs leaning into the softer side. Overall, it works I will give this album a 9 as I like some of the newer direction they head, even if the last two songs did not register for me; they are balanced out by superior moments.

6.6

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DVNE : "Voidkind"

 

The Scottish sludgsters are dropping their third album. It is typically rowdy enough, with proggy passages and clean vocals that fly out of the din. Things get much more melodic in the second song. There is certainly a huge Mastodon influence hanging over them. The guitar hypnotically winds around itself. It plays it almost a little too safe, as this sounds like the prog I was listening to 20 years ago. The busy nature of their riffing begins to get a little more tedious with "Reaching for Telos".  Midway into the song they rein it back and ride on the sonic groove, but by that point, I have had to sit through enough riff wankery. 

They continue to rage on with a great deal of bombast. There is just not much at that throbbing speed to hook you in. They are decent songwriters with a clever enough knack for throwing punches in when accents are called for. Perhaps the vocals could do more than howl or just sing in a monotone fashion. The recoil and expand formula that creates an almost Tool like dynamic works well enough, but I feel they are capable of adding more sonic colors.  "Path of Dust" breaks things down to a clean guitar tone, but it's only an interlude however it sets the stage for more intentional melodies to follow it. 

The harsher howled vocals are very Neurosis influenced. The sung vocals are higher with an almost emo vibe to them. This works for me, it helps to set them apart from other bands doing this sort of thing. Some of the melodies that lurk under the explosive outbursts of guitars are the only hints they are from Scottland , if you told me this band was from Savannah GA, it would make an equal amount of sense to me. When they stomp into a heavier more deliberate with the weight of "Abode of the Perfect Soul" it works much better for me even if it's more like every other sludge band. "Pleroma" grooves with more of a Tool-like tension, which I can appreciate over just balls-to-the-wall howling. The last song works off a more melodic pulsation with the drums doubling up to keep things in motion. This album does find it's groove and might be more mathy than what I normally indulge in when it comes to progressive sludge, I will however give it an 8, as they execute what they set out to do well and fans of heavy prog should dig this. It drops on Metal Blade Records.  

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November is Doom- VAK : "The Islands"

 This Swedish band is interesting, when called a progressive sludge band, the burden of proof at first lies on the side of sludge, though with each song they become heavier. The album opens with a spacey instrumental piece, before going into a rowdier angular crunch where the gritty yet not fully growled vocals come in, when one thinks of sludge one thinks of doom that has been through the filter of punk, but with prog, it is then the antithesis of punk, so this is where an interesting original sound springs from. "Sewer Cafe' is where things become more acidic and begin to earn the sludge title more akin to early Mastodon yet on their own terms. However, it is more bass-dominant almost in a Killing Joke-like manner. 

While things are ominous with a meaty overdriven rumble, they feel more rock n roll on "Q & A " though this is mixed with psychedelic chaos. It does make for a listen with more depth than if they were to have just been another Neurosis impersonator. "Speed of Images" does let things ring out in a more deliberate doomy manner. I like how it gets darker as it drifts further downward, while they jam out the droning throb. "the Map" is another droning jam that finds things escalating to a much more apocalyptic mood.

This album is not progressive in the ways you might expect it to be, but they do show a more King Crimson-like side of themselves on "Bodies". The off-time manner in which the riffs wind around brings this to mind. The angular turning of the bass line gives this sonic snake of a song its spine, while noise crashes around it.  It is more focused on sound than song but is far out enough in left feel to make it an easy listen, at least for my ears. The eleven-minute "Melody Junkie" closes the album. Midway into the song, things shift into a heavier intensity with the throaty howl of the vocals chiming in.  Overall this is a very captivating listen, fans of heavier prog or more adventurous sludge will enjoy this , I will give it a 9, as capture a mood rather than dazzle you with math. 

Yakuza : "Sutra"

 Chicago Avant - Guardians are back. It's been over ten years since their last release. There is a more focused intention to bring the heavy here. Bruce Lamont, moans with more anger on the off-kilter opening track that is framed with dissonance. "Alice" has a deliberate metal chug kicks it into motion. The music shifts under the vocals. In many ways, it feels like a noise rock band that managed to capture a massive sound by mistake and shed punk aspirations for metal grandiosity. There is a grungy atmosphere when their thoughts turn inward, which keeps a great dynamic balance.  "Echoes From the Sky" has a more math rock chaos, that keeps the pulse of the song writhing through the riffs that are being thrown. This rougher edge does cause them to compromise the melody, leaving Bruce to yell at you more often than not here. It might sound like sludge if it was slowed down some. As I typed those words that is what happened. The result is more like a Swans like creep, as the burly bass keeps booming behind them. e

"Embers" finds them ebbing down into a more Doors like place where Bruce's croon feels most comfortable. "Capricorn Rising' works off a similar vibe before midway into the song it bursts into a pretty much straight up metal attack . There is a thrashed out sludge feel to it that reminds me of earlier Mastodon. " Burn Before Reading" carries this energy further into a metal maelstrom. The chug of the guitars has a more thrash influence aggression to the tension being held. Two and a half minutes into it, there is a shift into a more atmospheric section for the sax to float along. They come hammering back with more sludge tinged syncopation. I like the dark exotic slither of "Walking God". The moodier moments are some of the album's strongest. It builds up into a gradually heavier deliberation with it settling down like a storm. 

"Into Forever" is almost like a Melvins song. It's has a cool straight up metal riff that drives it, with left of center vocals, so occupies the same space as the Melvins. The odd vocal phrasing, which comes from a much less emotionally aggressive place than most metal , keeps up it's weird streak for "Psychic Malaise". This song is not as catchy as the others. The riffs are jerked around with a bit of awkwardness. This creates the effect I think they are going for, however I am not sure how pleasing it is to my ears in this instance. There is a more spacious mood as if they are sailing into the dusk on the last song, slowly builds with a more epic dynamic on the last song. They do proggy in a weird way, which is more accurate if you are thinking about bands like Vander Graf Generator and King Crimson, though the song converges upon the more sludged-out riffage that empowers the bulk of this album. I will give this album a 9, as it's return to form for the band though takes close notes from their peers. Highly enjoyable listen, let's see how it grows on me.