Ruff Majik - The Devil's Cattle

 

let me start off by saying how the fuck did i miss these guys? 16 releases since 2015?! reading their bio youd think these guys live in the studio and are constantly all over the place, allegedly based out of germany but this record alone credits multiple locations on multiple continents as production spots so sounds like these guys are about as working class as it gets in the rock and roll business and it certainly seems to be their business.

definitely give this slab a spin, its chock full of the heavy riffs you're looking for with the muddy fuzz mids that'll send your morning into complete stoner mayhem. well written with variation to keep it moving. i'm certainly going to give more of their work a listen.

pick up their stuff at bandcamp, they're also on spotify

https://ruffmajik.bandcamp.com/album/the-devils-cattle

after giving this one a spin, i'm going to just come out and say it, my pick for 2020 rock and roll album of the year. show me another album that goes from bluesy psych to 4 on the floor with hints of some 'modern' rock. either way if you find something wrong with the guitar tone i can't help you.

KMFDM - In Dub

 

i typically dont do reviews on this blog of albums outside of the 'weed rock' sphere, but from time to time i think its important to cleanse your audio palate. 

i believe i heard about this album on media monarchy, great podcast if you've never checked it out, with a seriously knowledgeable host, in tunes and media & what not. i'm not particularly into kmfdm's stuff as even for me their usual albums are a bit industrial for my taste but to each their own. however this album is quite different, its well produced with care paid to structure in almost a homage to outfits like the specials.

so if you're feeling a slab of ska infused with sound bites and the freedom of a group making an album rather than filling a prescribed mold, check this one out. its different and that's good.

they're on spotify but try to check them out on bandcamp

https://kmfdm.bandcamp.com/track/dub-light

Brunt - Ataraxy

 

it seems when i've decided to simply write a post to put a post, i come across something brilliant.

i dont know if i should feel like a smacked ass not having heard of Brunt, but i certainly will be cruising back through their catalogue after hearing this epic slab. one of the biggest things that sometimes lets me down is the perceived heft in an album. some riffs and consequently albums are ruined if the bottom end and sustained growl isn't present enough in certain genres and in psych and the wider 'stoner' realm this is important. brunt hits this concept on the head harder than a 10lb sledge. 

typically i'll use studio headphones for reviewing most albums and where many records land flat, it feels like this trio from an island in the english channel have sorted out how to fit 10lbs of balls in an 8lb bag. 

i can't say there's a boring drone to the album or that any parts seemed too repetitive. in fact i'd say there's a great display of musicianship at work here between the use of effects to create space and the percussive bass the threesome jams and flows more than brute forces through the tunes.

i like it, i'm going to check out their other stuff as well, give it a spin, there's some real honest riffing and writing on this one.

https://brunt.bandcamp.com/album/ataraxy

All Them Witches - Nothing as the Ideal

 

i dont have too much to say about this record. its a solid all them witches record. its a good slab from front to back, i think its all sold out right now on their bandcamp for vinyl but go get a copy. the only reason i'm probably not over the moon is that new yawning man record is a killer. i need some kind of sorbet for my ears to cleanse the sonic pallet.

like i said, of course these guys did a good job on this record, they're a talented outfit, not sure if i dont care for much of their work. check it out, patronize all the bands you can right now however you can, at least listen to their stuff so they know people give a shit still.

https://allthemwitches.bandcamp.com/album/nothing-as-the-ideal

Yawning Man - Live at Giant Rock

yawning man has always certainly been on my short list of great instrumental rock outfits, however with this release they've moved upward for sure. to be clear its not that i'm hyper critical of yawning man, its just that the field toward the top is packed with people who have mastered the art of the instrumental trip.

outfits like earthless, karma to burn and sleep are obvious heavy hitters that dwell in this realm, but to be perfectly honest yawning man is a better instrumentalist band than sleep, can chill better than earthless and rocks out longer than karma to burn, there i said it, wanna fight about it?

to each their own of course and again not taking anything from those other outfits, this album live at giant rocks simply blows doors and ups the bar.

where this record deviates a bit from some of the other riff trippers out there is the attention paid to ambiance and the notable lack of overly 'wild' guitars. there's no disturbing freak outs, only pure flow without the tedium that sometimes comes with such productions. in a way the record reminds me of a vox-less symphonic space trip or desert drive literally or through your mind with some assistance from some fungus.

i'm currently on my 3rd play through and i'm still finding things to rave about. the nuance is palpable, one could use this album as a master class on well written and well executed psychedelic riffage of the highest caliber.

one final note on this album, if you're into the some of the 2000s era hardcore you should listen to the final track's chord progressions and harmony parts in the guitars, you'll find the melody seems like its going to build into a screaming break down but the tune just rolls along. yet another example of the complexity of this release, fine work indeed.

get a copy on wax at the end of the month 10/30/20, help these guys

 https://yawningman.bandcamp.com/album/yawning-man-live-at-giant-rock

Psychlona - Venus Skytrip

 

this is truly one of the finest records i've heard in a long time, the space is right the tone is perfect the vox are great the presentation and production are stellar. i dunno that's it, its solid from front to back

only thing, band name, its cool, but its pushing the pretentious envelope a bit fellas, but mostly people wont be able to spell it or search for it, because most people can't spell words with 1 or at most 2 syllables.

great work tho, masterfully done, pick it up, its super heavy duty psych blues rock along the vein of king buffalo or all them witches

https://psychlona.bandcamp.com/album/venus-skytrip

The Oil Barons - Grease Pop

 

running across these guys this morning was an interesting treat. if you're a fan of peter pan speed rock, the chuck norris experiment, turbo negro or electric frankenstein you'll find their sound is similar. however, it should be noted that there is some boogie and hammond organ that make these guys a very unique trio. it seems these guys definitely got the memo on being a rock and roll band, its about dropping the pretense and doing whatever you do, just harder than everyone else. the variation in this album will also be a crowd pleaser. the final track sounds like its a lost kyuss tune and the singer simply nails the garcia vox tone

check out these riff slinging melody machines, a fav track off this slab for me was garbage train, spectacular stuff indeed.

https://theoilbarons.bandcamp.com/album/grease-pop

Wicca - You sow Your Crop

in this age of moronic talking head shit shows, i've decided its time to start remembering whats real

rock and roll is real, so lets get on with it

i stumbled upon these guys on bandcamp, just randomly looking under the desert rock hashtag.

first we'll start with the critical stuff, the name is cringe, and this is coming from a guy who used to play in a band with a terrible name, a couple bands with awful names tbh. but beyond the need to project less of a 'tough guy' metal bs persona, this ep kicks ass.

if you're into mars red sky, or maybe some of the more melodic electric wizard, this record is for you.

the tracks have the right guitar tones, the right chord progressions and frankly the composure overall is quite good. its typically the lyrical quality or some thing that ruins the sauce but wicca certainly have done a fantastic job musically. again the only criticism i have is the projection or my perception of their projection and it comes off as a bit try hard. like i said, having been there i get it, but that also wears off after a few years so maybe they'll come around. the best thing about rock and roll is that its not serious, it never has been and it needs to be fun. so if you think black metal dudes sleep in their bullet belts, well you may be correct because they're lunatics, but most rocker dudes go to work and have normal lives, and that's what rock and roll is, its the regular guy's music.

so enjoy some regular guy music with this varitable regiment of steam rollers pounding sweet melodic drone and riffage into your side head holes.

https://wicca333.bandcamp.com/album/you-sow-your-crop

Moloch S/T 1970

Diving into some background tunes can typically be a helpful venture for any musician. There's no point in reinventing the wheel, however, we can make it lighter, faster and with more skulls for coolness. But in the end we're typically still playing the same blues riffs from 50 years ago. 

Anyway, with that said, I came across this album while exploring another blog, Silverado's Rare Music (link in post script). This is a great blog to explore if you frequent dark, dingy used record joints that smell vaguely of mold spoors (old albums). 

Moloch's self titled album is really representative of the style and the time period, you get the boogie tunes but also the slower tempo, more lament based blues tunes as well so its very complete. Its a real shift from 'Same Old Blues' to 'Cocaine Katy', however its a shift that I must say makes sense in the overall scheme of the album. 

This experience of an emotional range in an album is notably in contrast to the typical current state of underground rock. Many modern players will keep up a pace throughout a record that makes the album 'cohesive', however at times this may limit the potential of the work. With this in mind these older works add a dimension that is sometimes sorely lacking in modern records and that dimension is variation within a style.

Leaving all the technical stuff behind its super easy to enjoy this record. The choices of piano, hammond and a myriad of other choice instrument tracks compliment the familiar blues shuffles and typical patterns of the style and fill in the gaps. At least add a copy of this great record to your digital library as I do not believe you will be able to catch these guys live, or living? The wax version can be had on discogs relatively cheap as well (link in post script).

Silverados Rare Music

Album on Vinyl

Enjoy!

Fuzzcrafter S/T

Its a hard sell sometimes across the board when it comes to 3 piece bands, especially when they are instrumental. I personally know guys in the underground scene that appreciate the shit outta this sort of music and just can't get down with the 3 piece let alone the lack of vox.

However, I personally can dig well thought out instrumental tunes. I suppose maybe it has to do with the riff structure and appreciating the methodology of the construction. Either way, doesn't matter what I think beyond this record being worth your time. That's the point we're driving at here.

Its a tough swim these days through the sea of tunes and bands on outlets such as bandcamp. With that said after about 6 disappointing records I came across these fellas, Fuzzcrafter. From the opening riffs of the unceremoniously named, A1, I was very much pleased with the bass work. The tone, attack, structure and execution of the riffs are very nicely done with a precision that isn't always analysed and appreciated. 

In my humble opinion, Fuzzcrafter should continue to capitalize on their talented low end to drive the three piece. This isn't to diminish the finely composed guitar work, especially on pieces that show case such work as A4. 

This album portions out its fair share of heavy, spleen crushing, vibes along with some riffs so sweet you'll want to check your blood sugar levels. Couple this with the offering's variation and execution that many would spend eons striving for and you have a head nodding good time. Catch Fuzzcraft's S/T on bandcamp, and as always, check them out live if you have a moment and are in the Lyon France area.

Fuzzcrafter Bandcamp

Sufferghost ~ Thaw

Being a Curse the Son and Tuco Ramirez fan, see older reviews of their stuff and a links below, ps they put out a new album that rocks harder than fuck. But being a Curse the Son fan I was really stoked when I ran across this bandcamp page for a band that Ron from CTS was in previously called Sufferghost.

I hadn't heard of them so I said to myself I need to check this out. 

Its almost like a lost CTS album but certainly has its own personal features, and I think it was before the spider stole the weed. I'll make this short, if you like fuzzed out guitars at a reasonable speed, then you'll dig this. The vocals styling is a bit different but its great, its neither abrasive or offensive, which lets be honest can be a real deal breaker in the stoner/doom realm, for me anyway. Definitely give these guys a spin, check out Isolator from Curse the Son, its a monster and i'll do a proper review some time. But for now enjoy this record and enjoy the holiday. 

Sufferghost Bandcamp

Curse the Son

Tuco Ramirez

Wet Cactus - S/T EP

On a random trip through the google searches for 'dessert rock', yes not desert but dessert, because i'm an idiot, i stumble upon these guys. However lets think about what dessert rock would be like, 1000lb cake, blunt cake, special brownies, etc etc.

So anyway, I'm at the office workin away, new job btw and it fuckin rules, but i'm jammin away on some brant bjork because i've been on a kick for a while. Haven't been doing a lot of digging since i've been busy with stuff, and stuff.

But i came across this rawkus of an ep and although its short this thundering beast certainly will keep your kyuss-esc space trip at a rhythmic pace that pumps so relentlessly that the album will be over before you realize, or desire. two, three listens may satisfy your jones, i dunno.

as far as bands hailing from Spain, this is certainly a first i think for the hoof. its difficult for me to get into some scenes. it may be time to take another look after this one. we dont need to drag this out any further, check these guys out on the bandcamp and facebook and whatever else they're on. if you're in that area and you're reading my blog than hello first off and second make sure you get these guys some bucks for their hard work and crafting. check em out!

Facespace

Wet Cactus Bandcamp

Samsara Blues Experiement ~ Long Distance Trip

I had listened to this a while ago and hadn't really gotten around to writing about it. I wont make claims that 'I knew about these guys way back man.' however, I almost would rather review this album as opposed to the two that have been released since the 2010 release of this particular slab.

There's a documentary that talks about this sort of music and Mark Arm of Mudhoney said it best, sometimes being over technical especially in rock and roll can just spoil the entire thing. I'm paraphrasing of course, you want notation and proper sighting you can go the fuck back to school, this is a respectable low brow organization here. PS that doc is here, and is one of my favs.

So I'm listening to this album again as a write the review here and its yet another album that really relates the execution and really the feeling of playing this sort of music. As musicians this three piece have built, with this record anyway because I haven't really delved into the others, an expression of the true intent of their medium. If you like Eternal Elysium and other sort of psychedelic, sort of rock and roll, sort of doomy, these guys are for you. I wont lie though, these guys firmly understand how to make a heavy psych/blues record, I don't think this was groping in the dark. This record offers much in the way of a methodically constructed sonic space trip.

As far as quality of the record is considered youd be hard pressed to find much you dont like about this. The guitar tones sing, the typical but required effects are just so, but in the back ground you'll hear a fuckin sitar, crazy/nice, this album is a labor of artists. It may annoy some, it may have parts where I'm like well maybe I'm just not in the proper state of mind to listen to this jam right now, but i tell ya man, I'm diggin it.

Check this album out if you're in a loud psych sort of mood, or are feeling Earthless.

Dig it.

Samsara Blues Experiment Bandcamp

Facespace

Weedruid ~ Into the Acid Swamp

I'm really digging this album, between the growling, growling not obnoxiously distorted, guitars and the perfectly logical flight of this album you merely need to turn it on to experience a complete thought from the collective consciousness of a modern underground doom rock band.

I myself enjoy how relatable this record is in the sense that the keys and progressions make sense. The meandering tour this slab will take you on had in my opinion the perfect amount of doom, typically the tempo falls out of modern 'doom' and it becomes very boring. As I said the crafting of this album is I think more impressive than the actual material, the lack of vocals makes for a riff showcase that is more groove based, none of the deedly deedly bullshits here.

I can't say much more than brilliant execution, it has the heart of Sleep with the sensibilities of a voxless Mars Red Sky, it's heavy as shit but at some points seems as finely crafted as a crystal pot leaf statuete in Satan's curio cabinet.

Check these guys out, enjoy.

Weedruid Bandcamp

Criticizing, Saying Fuck You & the Difference.....

Hi, how are you. There are so many times, especially recently, I would have enjoyed reviewing an album that just came out from a band I'm into or want to get into and then it falls short and I feel as if it wouldn't be very polite in a way to say 'hey this is weak and I wasn't into this due to my personal stylistic choices.' However, I don't think this is fair because at the end of the day when the egos are tucked in bed everyone wants to know how they're doing in whatever it is they do.

Essentially I dont want to tell people they suck wantonly, exactly the opposite, I want to tell them how rad they are, but if I can offer insight why not do it? If I don't care for the vocal styling of a band then so be it from hear on out. Its my opinion really, why the hell would anyone truly care. Its all notes for future endeavors. 

I'm far from a journalist, just some rock n roller who puts words on the internets. So when I read some tips on art criticism I really got a laugh outta one that said 'Criticizing someone's art is like criticizing someone's children'. Now trust me, I do that all the time, some people have no business guiding another human through life, but it happens. Just like how art is produced sometimes spontaneously and I'll hear grinding wonderful tone and someone else would hear straight up noise. 

So where am I driving with this? Well, with all the lists that came out this year I noticed several of the same bands in these lists and while several great bands put out albums this year after either a time period of silence or maybe it was their first effort but its important to remember that it shouldn't be taken as mosses coming down with chiseled tablets. Some of the efforts this year came in way sub standard for the musicians that produced them. Some were mind blowing, others were above average for the typical from the respective outfits, but lets not get wrapped up in what people have previously produced. Lets keep site of the fact that even the classical composers had stinkers by the truck load and weren't appreciated by all. We shouldn't be too quick to say something is a masterpiece for the ages if its alright at best.

The silver lining to this whole thing is that you never know what the end user will do with the tunes you make and really that's the hope all musicians carry I think. Its they carrying on of a human tradition not the production and pay off from that tradition that matters. I'll always commend my friends and other musicians for their efforts and talents, but lets agree that the sun does not shine out of everyone's asshole that makes a record as it certainly doesn't shine out of mine, as far as I know.

With that I hope you all have a great and safe holiday season, remember to keep your mind open man, pull in all the experience of being a human that can enjoy music in all its facets for better or worse.