November is Doom- Earth Tongue : "Dungeon Vision"

 

This album came out back in February, and I am just now catching up with it, though I can understand why it was not on my radar, as it falls into the more indie rock side of the genre clsoer to Dead Meadow than Castle Rat. Still, they do manage to keep a fuzzed-out backbone to provide enough menace to make your average indie rock hipster feel like they are listening to metal. There are psychedelic elements as well as a more garage rock sound coloring the production. It is mixed by Ty Segall which explains a great deal. They are more focused on the title track that opens the album than they are on the second song. 

The guitar tone has to stay dense enough to feel likea bass since they are only a duo. The female drummer seems to sing most of the time, though they also sing in unison often that gives things a 60s feel. They are from New Zealand, but it sounds like this was conceived somewhere in the hills of the English countryside. "Flashlight' carries a more staccato groove. Things are not dark or dense enough to feel heavy; there just happens to be some sonic heft. I stumbled across them while looking for new stoner rock, and I can hear how there might be some overlap. 

"Body of Water' is more of a folk ballad than it is metal. There is some early Pink Floyd influence in play at times in the quirky moods conveyed. I think smoking a great quantity of weed might make this have more impact. They lead off with the more lumbering riffage for "Watchtower". It converges into an angular stomp that is more playful than menacing. "Orbit of A Witch" works with an overdriven rumble with ome effects on it; the sing-song cadence of the vocals carries a more 60s-influenced occult rock feel. That is where they find the most common ground with Castle Rat. This is one of the album's best songs. 

The drums get more nuanced for "Symmetry Dripper"; it's a pretty cool vibe. "1000 Curses" finds things getting a little mathy with the angular timing. They have some prog flirtations that you can appreciate, since it is better than if everything were just 4.4. They balance a surreal, atmospheric vocals feel with the more uptempo pounding on "Silver Eye". This creates an overall feel that is darker than the creep of "Living Hell" though both songs find the album moving in a better direction. 

"Harvester" ambles along more likea na indie rock song with much less menace. The lat song has layered vocals that further the 60s garage pop feel like Shocking Blue or even Coven. I will give this album an 8.5, it finds itself in a better place than how it begins and takes some twists and turns. A metalhead looking for a doom album is better off checking out the new Fvnereal Fukk album but this works for what it is. 

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