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.