Drunken Crocodiles – Aegony

 

 

Drunken Crocodiles – Aegony
Octopus Rising / Argonauta Records – 2025
Rock, Stoner, Sludge, Psych, Metal, Grunge
Rated: ***

Italian trio Drunken Crocodiles are about to release their new album Aegony through Octopus Rising / Argonauta Records. It drops on the first day of spring, March 21st.  Formed in 2012, the three audible on the new album have been rocking out together since 2016. At which point they issued their self-titled five track, three years later followed the eleven track Out Of The Barrel and two singles later we’re arriving at the brand new eight track album Aegony. Almost forty-five minutes of grungy stoner and sludge. All delivered with intense energies, highly dynamic and beautifully produced. There’s a grittiness to their approach that falls away whenever the dynamics take them into calmer waters and subdued territories. The opening intro track like a madman screaming into the night, voicing its existential pain. After which the single Autojektor thunders into your heart, the first break, with its wavering vocals, showing just how dynamic Drunken Crocodiles can and will be. A song translating more of the difficulties one might have simply existing. Which is the subject of the entire album, the songs deal with all the different struggles the self might have, with society, nature, instincts, evolution, death, and more. Often audible in the wayward screams of the vocalist or the cries of the guitar. Recorded analog in the Noise Studios in Parma one can truly feel the agony and pain Drunken Crocodiles tries to convey. And that end stretch in Autojektor, stoner trucking, until the break up and the painful howling of all these different voices, stunning. Le Divin Marquis is the other single and displays most of the Drunken Crocodile strenghts in shorthand form, opting for a more catchy groove and the perfect vocal rope to drag the listener along with.  Homo Homini Lupus, is another highlight on the album. So much lovely strolling, by both bass and drums, while the guitar stacks and builds. The drums becoming ever more elaborate. And then comes the snarl and the bite, like a wolf leaping out of your body. And then there’s cathedral like, longest track Behavioral Sink. With its ten and halve minutes going through all the hills and valleys, all the ups and downs, so powerful in its atmospheric build. In the end, one might realize that all the horrors regaled, the anguish felt can lead to understanding, acceptance and a way to find the right balance to exist in. As Drunken Crocodiles have done with the different sides of their heaviness, their melodies and dynamics. Aegony is laid bare and full of evidence. It’s for you to judge…

Want to hear the Drunken Crocodiles go wild earlier? Come back to Stoner HiVe on Wednesday 19th of March, cause we are honored to bring you the FULL ALBUM PREMIERE for AEGONY!

(Written by JK)

Listen to second single Le Divin Marquis now and come back for the entire album Wednesday the 19th of March!




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