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.   

the November Doom of November's Doom : "Nephilim Grove'

This ironically is going to be the only death doom band I cover this month, well because of their name. This is the same line up that has been enact for the past  9 years.  The first song finds the  clean vocals are more prominent, even the rougher ones are in a throaty sung growl rather than total cookie monster. The cookie monster vocals are not far behind as they kick in for the second song. There are melancholic shades, but the first two songs are more uptempo and rooted closer to death . It is not until title track that things darken into a more morose direction. Then it is doom in the same way Katatonia roughly is. The sung vocals remind me more of how Enslaved uses sung vocals. They are not soulful but more of a crooned despondency.

I do like the mellower shades of gray the work in on " What We Become", this finds all of their more typical tropes working with flowing precision.  They hit the chords with authority and the melody fits perfectly. I need more of this and less meandering. It is this part of the album where we here their more traditional doom sound. The growls return on "Adagio" . The chorus to this song works as it is heart felt. In these moments they remind me of My Dying Bride" .  "Black Light' finds them returning to more of a eath metal feel, but the morose vocals still linger. They return to the melodic gloom that beats their death metal on " the Clearing Blind". It has both groove and melody.  "Still Wrath" is pretty heavy and look more towards their death metal direction. As a song it is pretty straight forward.

The drumming on this album is excellent. I also the reason they go in more of a death metal direction at time, if it was less bombastic and more plodding this album would have more of a doom sound. This can also be heard in "the Obelus " .  Which is another uptempo song with more of a  death metal feel. I will give this a 9 as there are some where catchy songs that grow on you, even though this is almost  too well produced in terms of guitar tones for my taste.

November Doom - Year of the Cobra : "Ash and Dust"

There are few things that are surprising about this duo. The first being that they are a duo and this is fuzzed out bass not guitar.  The second is how I was so  shocked by the almost sugary pop like vocals that come in against the very dense and heavy fuzz. In fact she could sound just like Katy Perry and I would prefer it to another second rate Ozzy impersonation or tired grunting.  It stands to reason due to the approach to the vocals that they are influenced by Jucifer. If they had never  heard of Jucifer I would be surprised for a third though Jucifer is not the most well known name as they are not prolific these days. They do not just throw the more pop inflected vocals on you from the get go they gradually get there. On the first song there is a more droning pulse , with the vocals taking on a despondent chant. The music gets heavier on the second song, yet the vocals are harmonized in more pop like fashion. This song has more groove yet keeps the ominous shadow of heaviness.

They break from doom into a more Motorhead like punk with "Ash and Dust" . They are not bad at it , but I prefer their doom. They return to it with the even darker "Demons". Her voice goes lower and gain some grit. "Into the Fray" is where they hit you with the heaviest riff yet, but dial up the pop factor of the vocal melodies. Though it works. The drummer shine more on "At the Edge" the bass is moodier and more melodic as the vocals croon around it. The way the dynamic flow I can hear how this is  bass doing everything, but it's harder to hear when the distortion gets stomped on.I think it plays to their favor as it steers them in a more melodic direction.

Drone and groove are their stock and trade. The loud soft dynamic as seems to be a set part of the formula.  I had to listen to "Dark Swan" a few times for it to sink in. The closing track in despair is more melodic , but the heavier elements that define this due are not in place . This is due to the fact that it is mainly bass and vocals. If this was played on guitar it would be more of a darker folk feel. I will round up to a 9 because, I have gotten a great deal of mileage out of this one and the last song is the only one that doesn't connect with me much. The rest of the album continues to grow on me. 


 

November Doom - the River : "Vessels Into White Tides"

One of the points to doing November doom was to explore other sounds that  being tapped into in the genre. This sometimes means we are going to be at the edge of what is considered doom since that is where growth happens and I would much rather question what the fuck I am listening to than endure a band trying to be Electric Wizard. I  really appreciate this band's sound. Sure much like King Woman the flirt with the line of what doom can be. There is a melancholy to what they do that solidifies them as doom in my mind. The vocals are a timidly sung  by a woman whose voice falls some where between a higher alto and lower soprano. Her approach is very smooth. I can hear shoe gaze influence in what they do as well as slow core bands like Low.

 They go about this  tastefully and keep my interest even on a song like the fifteen minute "Into  White" where the vocals do not come in until the four minute mark. This is a very different kind of doom album, it even goes into some folk moments with the song "Open". It sometimes reminds me of the Gathering. "Passing " starts with almost more of an indie rock feel , when the distortion crunches to life , it has a more Catherine Wheel of Hum type feel. The vocals retain the more mournful feel.  'Tides" has a much more soaring shoe gaze feel, not unlike what many of the post rock bands were doing say 10 years ago. Jenny is playing the string parts that hover under the mix, so an instrumental is not surprising to fine here. They are not solely a doom band but bring a great deal of other influences to the table , when they shift into a heavier dynamic I would say doom is the direction they are leaning.

I will give this album a 9. It is one of those that I can leave on and let play. Granted the most doom
song is the opener and the other songs hint at this , really the only time it is totally abandoned is on the folk song.  I think fans of artists like King Woman and Chelsea Wolfe will find enough common ground here to make it worth their time. Those who are not metal flexible might have a hard time with this one.  This album is being released December 11th on  Nine Records. 

Live Review : King Diamond @ the Tabernacle

The second date of their tour fell on the Tabernacle in Atlanta. It is a fitting venue since it used to be a church so still has the stained glass windows. I had excellent seat in the VIP section so I was on the first balcony on the right had side overlooking the stage. I will start by saying it might sound like a dream gig opening for King Diamond  For the first opener Idle hands who went on at 6:50 found the audience at 30 percent capacity. I think this works for them as they are a young band who played their instruments well, but still seem to be gathering their footing playing in larger venues to crowds  of this kind on larger stages. They had one guitarist who was more flamboyant in their performance  seemed like they had been plucked from an 80s hair metal band. Watching them it was clear they were all distinct individuals with separate influences.  Their drummer was the star of the show with jazz like nuance to his playing.It might sound like a dream gig opening for King Diamond, but you are talking about the greatest metal front man next to Bruce Dickinson, so the singer of Idle Hands who had a more Jim Morrison by way of the Cult  thing going on was up against insurmountable odds . He was probably wondering what he had gotten himself into.

Up next was Uncle Acid and the Dead beats. Everyone I spoke to was aware of the buzz about the band. I like their studio output myself so was curious to see how this translated live. The result was something more heavier and in line with stoner doom rock than the kind of creepy 60s  vibe I get from their albums. Perhaps playing for a more overt metal crowd prompted this. I still recognized the song they just came in on a denser cloud of distortion than expected. Some of this was due to the more stripped down approach, there were not keyboards to help give the more 60s sound. The dual vocal approach was unexpected. They were tight was a response I got most from members of the audience I talked to. They are headliners in their own right, so it is no surprise the are a well oiled machine on stage. The movies projected behind them were surreal 60s spectacles I would not wanted to have seen tripping. I do not think a King Diamond show would be one I would want to drop acid at and when I was doing drugs I think I might have been drunk or stoned, but do not recall anything stronger when seeing him,

  This show now marks the 8th time I have seen King Diamond. It is not mystery if you are a regular reader that he is one of my all time favorite artists. I have been listening to him for over 30 years now.  When I saw Iron Maiden they are pros and big energy, but King Diamond loves what he does, who he becomes and the fact this  shown through after he got the news  earlier that day his friend and former bass player Timi Hansen died is unbelievable.By the time he went on the floor was packed and I was glad I was in the balcony.  The stage was made to look like an asylum where he upcoming album "the Institute"  is set.   He did play a new song from this album called "Masquerade of Madness" which was pretty heavy and fits nicely along sie his other works, making me look forward to the new album. The bulk of the set drew from the first few albums of his solo career "Fatal Portrait", "Abigail" , "Them", "Conspiracy" and "the Eye" along with the title track from "Voodoo". Not only does he go out on tour in his 60s, but picks his most vocally demanding work to sing. He knows the fans want his and delivered.

He had his female back up singer who did join him to double up some of the higher parts. In the bast while he has sounded great, I wondered if this was because he could not pull it off by himself, but there were several sections where he pulled off his upper register by himself no help needed pretty flawlessly. Hitting notes Bruce Dickinson  ascend Rob Halford can no longer dream of at their age. I have been an advocate since teenage years that Kind Diamond is the greatest metal singer ever and this confirmed years of flying his flag. Did he have effects on his voice ? Yes, but so do the two singers I previously mentioned. They band was great the bass player who was the new kid the past 3 times I have seen King Diamond has now really settled in. I was surprised given Timi's death that they did not play any Mercyful Fate, though he dedicated the last song "Black Horsemen" to him and said from this point on it would be dedicated to him. Overall this one was on the best shows I would not say the number one show, but in the top 3 King Diamond concerts I have attended. 

November Doom - Silvertomb :"Edge of Existence"

This is one half of Type O Negative. Kenny Hickey who would always be the higher snarly vocal in songs like "Black No 1" handles the vocals and guitar for this band and John Kelley is on drums. This one is a good example that doom doesn't not have to be slow all the time. There is a grunge feel in places and by that I mean Soundgarden. The doom in their veins is more obvious on the first song. They do not play it as safe as A Pale Horse Called Death. There are a great deal of varying sounds making this up. The only weak spot I can hear in their sound is the lyrics. They seem like if you took the lyrics from "Slow Deep and Hard" and tried to edit them to fit a more mainstream audience. The title alone of "Love Without No Lies" typifies what we are working here. But not unlike some of the lyrical content of "Louder than Love" . There is a great deal of slithering groove simmering over the darker mood.

A Pale Horse Called Death sounds closer to Type O Negative, but I can appreciate Hickey is not trying to really recapture that. "So True" is more of a thrasher. I like the way the vocals glide over it. The a minute and a half into it the song slows into a melodic section. These veterans know the art of employing dynamics in songwriting in a way that is not done like it used to be. This does sound like it could have come straight from the 90s.  The keyboards really give this is texture it needed. "Not Your Savior" is more straight forward and rock n roll. "One Of You" is more ominous and doomy, with some great guitar playing.  Screaming 'suicide over and over seems a little heavy handed , but the rest of the song compensates for this. It is at this point in the album it begins to feel like a concept album.

They stay with a doomy stomp as Hickey wails and screams between forming some actual interesting Melodies "Requiem" has an excellent chorus. The strummed "Waiting" is more grunge thus warranting the Soundgarden comparisons, though it also reminds me of Mindfunk at bit, if you are old enough to know who they are.  I will round this album up to a 9.5, it reminds me of better days.

November Doom

November is not being possessive here so it is not the band. Perhaps a wink in their direction. Black Metal has a month. Goth just had a month. It only makes sense my other favorite sub genre gets a month. November is the coming dark of the winter. Seasonal depression kicks in. You see too much family and want to die. It's the perfect month for doom. Much like the other months mentioned earlier the focus will be on doom, but other reviews will still slip through the cracks as needed. Do not hold your breath for a ton of sludge or stoner rock, though if they are in the same zip code and are dark enough to almost be doom, perhaps I will use them as an example to show what doom is not.

I am also going to steer clear of a ton of Sabbath Worshipers. I might let one through and obviously point out the folly of their ways. Black Sabbath themselves were not a doom band. They birthed riffs that influenced doom, but an album like "Paranoid" is not doom, though I might do a feature on Sabbath's top ten doom songs. Though even as I type that I am unsure if they have ten. Doom does not have to be a endless retro regurgitation of the past. In fact this month I am primarily focusing on bands that are bringing something new to the table. There will be no death doom. I think I have had enough of that for the year and the bulk of those bands are just slow death metal bands and not bringing the kind of darkness I desire.

We are not forsaking the past altogether as I will listen back to classic album and see how they measure up. I will also look at the top 10 doom albums of the decade , as well as the top 10 doom albums of the year. Right not I am listening to an album that comes out in December so by the time the month ends I will be listening to January's albums. I am obviously holding out for the new Esoteric, despite the fact it is going to be a massive double album with 20 minute songs. Let the seasonal depression take us as we dive into November's Doom.