Heavy Maytal- Warning : "Rituals of Shame"

 

The doom band from 40 Watt Sun's main man, Patrick Walker. The most striking thing is the haunting plea of his vocals, which glide over the depressing, lingering instrumentation. Everything feels very organic; it is mixed in a manner that gives the vocals more than enough room to do their thing. The guitars are not loaded down with an overabundance of gain like most doom bands, but they ring out with despair, while the minimal patter of drums keeps things moving. With their first album coming out in 1999, it is clear that this band was a strong influence on what Pallbearer does. 

While they are paced at a depressive tempo, I would not call this funeral doom, as it's not dark in the same way, but it does drift close to that sound. Lyrics also play a much more important role in the songs than the heavier strain of doom. He is a great lyricist, so this only plays in the song's favor. "Stations" finds more melancholy being poured into your ears. It slowly begins to build momentum while staying at a very speculative wandering tone. Lyrically, he is expressing wanting to escape from the outside world, which is certainly relatable. 

It's fitting that a song titled "Night Comes Down" would move in a darker, doomier direction."Landing Lights" finds them sinking further into the despair alluded to in the previous song. The pleading purity of his reedy tenor continues to impress. If he were singing Irish folk music, you might not blink, but here the results are more dynamically beautiful in the manner it provides contrast. The last song "Teacher" finds a similar languid, depressive feel drift over the song. The vocals continue to flow similarly to how they have been. The droning lathargy of this one does create a dynamic uncertainty by the time you get to the album of the album, but it still works. In some ways, it makes me think of Ian Anderson singing for Black Sabbath. The melody this winds around to reminds me of "Fade into You" by Mazzy Star. Which is a pleasant twist of fate. I will give this album a 10 as it's one of the best doom albums I've heard this year so far, as it is unique in its melodic sensibilities. This album drops June 19th on Relapse.

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