Merkabah - Merkabah (EP)

Artist: Merkabah
Album: Merkabah EP
Label: Self Released
Year: 2009







Tracklist:
01. Looks, Sounds - Like Stale Time And Space
02. Narwhals
03. Still Water
04. Fields Of Shipwrecks Pointing South

Download

Merkabah was founded at the end of 2007 in Warsaw, Poland. Their music can be described as psychedelic metal combining improvised, noisy soundscapes with more precise, aggressive riffs and post-rock melodies. It often includes electronic influences, as well as tribal rhythms, all mixed with a feel of freedom and experimentation.

MySpace

Ahkmed - In Your Neck Of The Woods Dying

Artist: Ahkmed
Album: In Your Neck Of The Woods Dying
Label: Independent
Year: 2005







Tracklist:
01. Kirrae
02. Ilanesia
03. Curlie
04. T=0

Download
pass: lateralnoise.blogspot.com

Melbourne, Australia's Ahkmed is really on to something. Their self-described sound is "post-stoner," and that's an apt des c r i p tion, as the band fuses the more traditional psych and fuzz utilized so often by the best of the stoner bunch with the more atmospheric instrumental approach of bands such as Pelican and the more recent Mogwai albums. Cool concept - it's like somebody put chocolate in my peanut butter, and peanut butter in my chocolate, and I'm loving it. What's even cooler is that this trio isn't afraid to throw a little kraut into the mix as well, and while that might sound really disgusting if we were still talking about peanut butter and chocolate, musically it works well.* I hear echoes of Neu!, Amon Duul II, and Tangerine Dream in some of these sprawling tracks. Oh, and for the record, the last track has vocals; the other three do not. These guys have been around since 1998, and it's a shame that they haven't gathered more notoriety, because this is pretty intriguing stuff, and they actually manage to take modern heavy psych and put their own spin on it. I really can't recommend this enough. Now come to America so I can see it all live. (StonerRock.com)

Official Site
MySpace
Buy

Across Tundras - Lonesome Wails from the Weeping Willow

Artist: Across Tundras
Album: Lonesome Wails from the Weeping Willow
Label: Forgotten Empire Records
Year: 2008






Tracklist:
01. Before the Rooster Crows
02. Blackbird Sanguine Sky
03. Holes II: High River Dirge
04. The Wall of Breathless Sleep
05. Lowlands Low & Thunderstorm Wake
06. Last Breath over Venom Falls
07. Massive Echo Mountain
08. Cold Earth Death Scrolls
09. Lonesome Whistle Blues
10. Requiem for Luke the Drifter

Download
pass: lateralnoise.blogspot.com

As of late, Across Tundras' clever take on sludge and doom metal has certainly been appreciated amongst the Neur-Isis disciple bands. The band's previous record took a robust helping of the standard stoner metal ingredients and blended in dashes of country twang, vintage rock, and folk undertones to create a unique combination of raw heaviness with a western psyche. Lonesome Wails from the Weeping Willow, their debut release for Forgotten Empire Records, showcases the band's ever increasing attention to detail, as the trio's sound is filled out with a wide range of traditional folk instruments (mandolin, slide guitar, etc.). These elements, though present on Western Sky Ride, permeate each and every track, allowing LWFTWW to represent the bands most unified and fluid record yet.

LWFTWW also displays a bit of a step away from Neurosis and Black Sabbath-type songwriting styles toward a sparser sound more akin to a blend of Earth and Neil Young. While the latter pair of influences was certainly instrumental in the musical mood of Western Sky Ride, they have moved to front and center on this release, pushing the stoner metal elements to the rear. In fact, many of the heavier moments of LWFTWW aren't necessarily heavy at all--they've got much more in common with 70s psychedelic rock than anything that would be classified as a traditional metal. So while the cohesiveness of this record is extremely impressive given the wide range of influences, many sludge/doom metal fans may find that Across Tundras has evolved to where they no longer sit on the edge of the genre.

But that's not to say that this album couldn't still appeal to this fan base. "Blackbird Sanguine Sky" and "Cold Earth Death Scrolls" both feature fantastic slow-moving chord progressions, vintage rock licks, raw drumming, and vocals buried deep in the mix--all of which could draw numerous comparisons to the songwriting mentality of many doom bands. Even the opener, "Before the Rooster Crows" exhibits an impressively dark mood through somber acoustic guitar work and murky ambiance. However, the great folk influence of tracks like "Lonesome Whistle Blues," "Lowlands Low & Thunderstorm Wa," and "Requiem for Luke the Drifter," represents quite a sizable songwriting shift from the band's last record. But alas, the band pulls it all together with ease, so listeners more inclined toward spacey vintage rock, or simply those tired with the often limited variety amongst doom and sludge releases will have no trouble getting into this.

Bottom Line: Across Tundras' Lonesome Wails from the Weeping Willow might not be as heavy as the band's previous record, but a more unified songwriting approach and the inclusion of all the bells and whistles of great folk and vintage rock albums easily make it a hit. It's perfect for fans of Earth, Neil Young, or those looking to trade a few big doom/sludge riffs for some equally dark western twang. -by lambgoat.com


MySpace
Buy

Conifer - Crown Fire

Artist: Conifer
Album: Crown Fire
Label: Important Records
Year: 2008








Tracklist:
01. Surface Fire
02. Cruciform Empennage
03. History Of Disappointment
04. Song For Krom
05. Breathe Hold
06. Into The Gauntlet
07. Crown Fire

Download
pass: lateralnoise.blogspot.com

Confier play psychedelic sludge metal in the same vein as Pelican and The Russian Circles, pushing heavy, wiry instrumentals to stratospheric heights. Making Crown Fire stand out, aside from its stellar musicianship, is its organic flow and Eastern-tinged flourishes. Its spiraling riffs and cyclical percussion roll on hypnotically, creating a immersing, stoner-friendly torrent of sound. Its more expansive pieces are set beside dense jams like "Song for Krom" which blends deep bass attacks a la Kyuss with celestial release.

There’s really nothing wrong with this record - its focused, intense, well produced and a fine thing to trip out to. Conifer do however sound very similar to their many rivals in the the sludge/doom metal genre, making their natural and fluid sound seem more constrained than it should. There are some attempts at experimentation, including some spacey post-rock noodling ("History of Disappointment") and even some oddball vocals towards the end of the record, but these brief moments seem somewhat forced compared to their more refined and confident performances.

While Crown Fire may not be breaking any new ground (I know, its an unreasonable expectation for this young band), its still a great piece of work that matches the tremendous energy of Isis, Pelican, Cult of Luna or whoever else is leading the post-metal pack these days. If you are already immersed in this exploding underground scene, then you should certainty check out Conifer. They are, as their name implies, one of the most organic sounding metal bands around. (therockblogger.com)

MySpace
Buy it

Ufomammut - Idolum

Artist: Ufomammut
Album: Idolum
Label: Supernaturalcat
Year: 2008

Tracklist:
01. Stigma
02. Stardog
03. Hellectric
04. Ammonia
05. Nero
06. Destroyer
07. Void/Elephantom


Download
pass: lateralnoise.blogspot.com

Formed in 1999, Italian avant-rockers UFOmammut are a psychedelic sludge band with influences ranging from Neurosis, Kyuss, Pink Floyd and early Sabbath. Consisting of core trio Poia (Guitars, Synths), Urlo (Bass, Vocals, Synths, Fx) and Vita (Drums), they invite Lorenzer of ‘Lent0’ and vocalist Rose Kemp to add their magic to two tracks. With an evil running time of 66minutes and 6 seconds, the Italian trio deliver 7 hard-hitting tracks which range from 5-10 minutes, the exception being the half hour monolith ‘Void/Elephantom’ which closes proceedings. The sound of UFOmammut is a unique combination of crushing post-metal fused with elements of stoner rock and space-rock. Occupying a similarly rough and unpolished aesthetic as early Isis, their sound simmers with an apocalyptic power which is inset with spacey undercurrents.
There are many metal bands doing the whole post-rock dynamic thing, attempting to stretch their downtuned riffs towards infinity and slopping ambient dronescapes into the back-ground. UFOmammut are a different proposition altogether and exude a classiness that is missing from all but the league leaders (namely Isis and Pelican). Although these aforementioned bands provide a reference point, UFOmammut take those post-metal aesthetics to new and uncharted heights, carving out a propulsive and constantly engaging soundscape. As befits their genre, they produce linear-ish sound-structures but instead of treading formulaic territories, their sound is always focused and is committed to creating the most explosive and energetic soundscapes possible through cleverly arranged arrangements and a masterful grasp of tempo manipulations. Building on the experience of their warmly-received ‘Lucifer Songs’, ‘Snailking’ and ‘Godlike Snake’ albums, they constantly raise the intensity of their sound in each track, with cyclical guitar, bass and drum clusters that crawl steadily along an alien landscape like a psychotic freight-train crunching through all that gets in its way whilst eerie fx spiral in and out of focus. Urlo’s rasping vocals appear intermittently, sounding tortured and muffled like they have been recorded in the studio’s basement. This submerged quality makes them sound like another instrument and remind one slightly of Electric Wizard’s Jus Oborn.
Refrehsingly ‘Idolum’ is not just one constantly pounding barrage of riffage and its variety allows its heavier dynamics to be accentuated and made more tangible. On ‘Ammonia’ for example the listener is greeted with spacey atmospherics and Rose Kemp’s angelic vocal murmurs which combine with the downtuned riffage and stoner-rock percussion to create a highly cinematic experience that pitches light against dark. Elsewhere, the 8 minute ‘Nero’ initiates with a particularly nasty, early Isis-esque downtuned guitar and barraging percussion cluster that meanders hypnotically over a soundscape of wafting drones and out-of-scope vocal sample snippets. The force of the guitar and percussion rise to the fore with military prowess before being joined by Urlo’s rasping vocals. The aptly named ‘Destroyer’ shifts along with crunching momentum before slipping into a spaced out ‘Tarantula Hawk-ey’ psyche-metal finale. The closer eptimises UFOmammut’s now polished spacey post-metal sound, commencing with bubbling psychedelic guitar, bass and synth excursions over which Urlo’s raw vocals are barely audible. Almost techno-like in its progression, each element starts to gather momentum until it explodes in a crunch of metal-y goodness. There is a real palpable sense of molten energy released with each motorik cluster of downtuned riffs and Lorenzo’s powerful sonic waves give the track its crushingly psychedelic identity. An extended foray into frequency-manipulating ambient drone territory acts as the lull before the storm as after several minutes, melodically oscillating space-rock melodies spark into action to indicate the gathering of storm-clouds before the crushing finale.
With ‘Idolum’, UFOmammut have carved out their most satisfying, raw-to-the-bone piece of apocalyptica yet. Thoroughly engaging, refreshingly varied and performed with real conviction, it scores a soundtrack to ones ‘twisted super-hero’ inspired dreams. (KS) (experimusic.com)

Official site
MySpace
Buy it

Subarachnoid Space - The Red Veil

Artist: Subarachnoid Space
Album: The Red Veil
Label: Strange Attracktors
Year: 2005









Tracklist
01. Honorable Mention
02. Ourobouros
03. The Red Veil
04. Trainable
05. P.S.S.A.
06. Duster

Download
pass: lateralnoise.blogspot.com

Red Veil is instrumental, metallic neo-psychedelic hard rock of a brittle and grim sort. The spiraling and soaring guitars, often splintering into highly amplified staccato distortions, are driven along by a rhythm section of stoned-face determination, given an astral quality by the embellishments of a pulse generator. These six pieces never do escape from ominous riffs and progressions. If there are faint echoes of the journeys to the heart of the sun taken by Jimi Hendrix and Pink Floyd, these aren't so much voyages for the thrill of discovery as steely resolutions to get on with it, bearing little expectation that what's found in the outer reaches of space will be a garden of delights. Certainly this is the work of a tight quartet, mastering their thick fuzz and mini-novas of sound with the assurance a weather-beaten captain brings to the steering wheel of his steamboat. At times they can lighten the assault with drifts of dissonant sound waves and tones, as you can hear in the opening of the 11-minute title track, and parts of "Trainable" actually border on metal-thrash, though high-volume rock is never too far off the radar screen. It's too enervating to have wide appeal as recreational listening, however, though it seems that SubArachnoid Space are very aware of that.
-Richie Unterberger (allmusic.com)

Official site
MySpace
Buy it

Asbestoscape - Asbestoscape

Artist: Asbestoscape
Album: Asbestoscape
Label: Self released
Year: 2007








Tracklist
01. Arctic
02. Return
03. Mono
04. And So The Story Goes...
05. Like Shit Attracting Flies
06. Ashen
07. Thursday

Download
pass: lateralnoise.blogspot.com

A much debated topic in the underground music community is the overuse of strings of adjectives. 'Post-Emo-Metalcore', 'Neo-Folk-tronica', 'New-Wave-Psychedelic-Electro-Ethnic-Industrial', it goes on. It would make sense to assume that the reason for this is to try to convey a vague sense of what the album sound like, so that other people who may not be familiar with the genre have an idea of what to expect before listening. While this can sometimes work in a very amorphous way, it will never get to the true feeling behind the music itself.

In the case of Asbestoscape, this could never be more true. Part post-rock, part electronic, part drone, part metal... I could go on, but despite the proven theory that too many elements can sometimes be chaotic and detrimental, this works and it works quite well. This self-titled debut has a charm to it that grows with every listen, not too quickly and not without restraint, but it definitely does. The start of the album begins with a simple Isis-esque repeated guitar riff, but it slowly morphs into the next phases of the song. This pattern repeats itself through each piece, and through the boundaries between them relatively seamlessly, affecting blended theme changes.

After a few tracks, a distant reverb-soaked piano starts in "And So the Story Goes..." which slightly judders the well-calculated flow which has so far been established. This is resolved shortly afterwards, however, by some well-placed synthesizers and the introduction of the ominous sounding rhythm section.

While this is definitely a competent collection of tracks, and nicely formed into a cohesive album, it is not without its faults. "Faults" seems a very strong word here, but when several small niggling features present themselves together and are exacerbated by the repetitive nature inherent in this type of music, they become more noticeable. Because the first half of the album is so brooding, making room to slowly build and develop to imply tension and coming change, it becomes slightly disappointing when it doesn’t reach its expected peak. Asbestoscape actually remove some of the more climactic elements. The electronic drums, for example, give a sense of rushed melody against the tense deliberate guitar and pounce upon the listener after a minute or so of tuned feedback and rumbling bass. It is these rarely exploited juxtapositions that give the droning pieces their intrigue, and it seems a strange choice to leave out.

Miscalculation on the artists part is never a reason to dislike an album, but it does detract from the experience somewhat. Then again, after listening to the vast majority of the album, you tend to forget its failings. The challenge here is always going to be keeping the listeners attention while retaining the feeling associated with more lethargic metal. Asbestoscape manage to do this without much effort for the most part, and with only minor shortcomings in the rest. Indescribable, but definitely not nondescript. -Barry Smethurst (thesilentballet.com)

Official site
MySpace
Buy it