The Stoner HiVe top 20 Countdown of 2017

The Stoner HiVe top 20 Countdown of 2017

Three days left to send in your lists for the Stoner HiVe Top 20 Countdown of 2017! Which will start on December 12! For yes, just like every year since the HiVe started, back in 2009, we shall of course do the year end countdown. But just like every year we need your help. We need to know what albums made your head spin, blood boil and your bones jump with pure euphoria! So please, my lovely fellow freaks, send your lists to our email or message them to the Stoner HiVe Facebook page...

The rules: vote for any amount of albums or EP’s released in 2017. (And at the very end of December 2016.) If you dug only one; name that one. If you dug 78; name all of them! It doesn’t matter how much, one, five, 10, 13, 20 or 41. We just want to know which albums made you go crazy! So far we’re approaching the maximum amount of lists we have ever received… So please, send yours now, so we can best our grand total! The deadline to send in your list closes on December the 12th… So there’s still enough time to get crackin… Three whole days in fact! Go on… If not for yourself or me; do it for all the rest of the lovely freaks out there… Scurrying in the HiVe…

Send your lists HERE

Visit the blog for past years editions!

Do you remember all the Number One’s of pas editions? 

Greenleaf last year, Elder before that... But before that?

Clouds Taste Satanic – The Glitter of Infinite Hell

Clouds Taste Satanic – The Glitter of Infinite Hell

Kinda Like Music – 2017

Rock, Doom, Psych, Instrumental

Rated: *****

Two months in a row, October & November, they came in second to the number one of the Doom Charts. Our very own Billy Goate from the awesome Doomed & Stoned had the honors to write a blurb about the new Clouds Taste Satanic. And he claimed that ‘Masterpiece is not too strong a word’ to describe The Glitter Of Infinite Hell. And we could not agree more. We’ve been following this foursome from Brooklyn since we first spun To Sleep Beyond The Earth back in 2014. And they have been releasing a steady output of instrumental greatness since then. A joyous occasion every time one of their evil sounding work of arts came out. Your Doom Has Come in 2015 and Dawn Of The Satanic Age last year. But those two records, we must confess, did not top their first one. In our opinion. Well, this one does not just top that first one or the latter two, they top every other record in the instrumental doom genre. Holy hell! It starts with the vinyl cover. Letting your eyes wander across the Jheronimus Bosch inspired painting Christ’s Descent Into Hell which can be viewed in the Met in New York. One wishes that the four were in Den Bosch, Netherlands last year during the majestic Bosch exposition. Hell, they should have played a show every night the museum was opened. Four musical art pieces are served on a double album set on bronze & bone color-in-color vinyl with gold & oxblood splatter. Four tales of Greed, Treachery, Violence and Wrath. And all four of them are truly amazing. This is doom on the very edge of the needle! But this isn’t just doom. It marries a truckload of genres in a rock symphony without ever becoming a classical opus. It is however a magnus opus. A grand piece of music that keeps on becoming better and better. And this is not just for the doom lovers out there. This is for every rock fiend! And I do mean every single one of them! Join the Clouds with their trip down below. Cause the soundtrack for everyone’s descent into hell just got a whole lot more addictive and amazing!

(Written by JK)

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Dig Deeper – In Central European Time

Dig Deeper – In Central European Time

Alien Agency – 2017

Rock, Psych, Roots, Folk, Blues, Country, Americana, Kraut, Space

Rated: ****

Scandinaviana. Indeed. The Norwegian four-piece Dig Deeper serve us a tasty platter of Americana and American roots rock with a Scandinavian earmark. A European perspective is ofcourse very present on In Centreal European Time. Which is also the starting point for all the psychedelic, kraut and space rock influences one can decipher throughout the record. But don’t get me wrong. This is roots and easy on the ears rock shimmering with gigantic vistas. The quartet plays with such warmth and intensity the songs immediately nestle in your soul. Six playful yet very raw tracks that are layered to such a degree you keep discovering new things about them. Just like all their influences, some of them obvious, others slightly hidden. But if you imagine a Neil Young jamming with Pink Floyd right about now, it would be a very justified image. A real gem of a record meant for endless car rides, sweet summer evenings or cold wintery night by the fire place. A record for all times in fact. A record for the ages…

(Written by JK)

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Driven by Impact – Driven By Impact

Driven by Impact – Driven By Impact

Self released – 2017

Metal, Core, Black, Death, Thrash

Rated: ***

We must confess, we have been a bit rusty when it comes to listening to the high intense metal genres that mix their sound with black metal, death metal, metal core and thrash metal. But when the self-titled debut by German five-piece Driven By Impact found our way we could not stop spinning it. The twenty-five seconds intro piece called prologue is already steeped with promise. After which all hell breaks loose on Building Fear. Powerful drumming that doesn’t continually go for speed but also has moments of fast groove in it. Absolute shredding guitarwork and a growling voice that indeed helps in building up a healthy anxiety. But it is without a doubt, the groove and the melodic influences that set Driven By Impact apart; its keeps the intense pounding and earth shattering metal in check. It will make the furious breakneck rush, the pulsating guitars and the galloping drums come together in sheer beauty. Yes, there is beauty in death and Driven By Impact proves it!

(Written by JK)

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The Atomic Bitchwax – Force field

The Atomic Bitchwax – Force field

Tee Pee Records – 2018

Rock, Hard, Metal, Stoner

Rated: *****

They're calling out to you, but are they cool enough for you? I would have to say absolutely. The Atomic Bitchwax's new album Force Field is an awakening of grand proportions, period. . . . If you liked their previous album Gravitron, then force field is for you! It's like Gravitron squared. The songs are well crafted, the playing is awesome and the production is on point. But just a tad more on this album than any former. If I had to pick my favorite song on the whole album it would be Shell Of A Man. It's what I like to call a ‘driving song’. It makes you want to get in an indie car and go full boar 200 mph. And the song Alaskan Thunder F!#* is balls to the wall progressive style metal riffing on fire. I'm not sure if they're adding extra octane to the water in Jersey these days but something is definitely a foot. And I'm not sure who is the majority writer of their songs, but they get better with every record. Probably Pantella. The Drummer is usually the most talented guy in the band, but no one knows it (wink) BoB... But you have to give a nod to all three band mates. Finn and Kosnik both rip! And vocally this is the best album to date. If you love hard rock get Force Field on December 8th!

(Written by Charlie Tooth)

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Uffe Lorenzen – Galmandsværk

Uffe Lorenzen – Galmandsværk

Bad Afro Records – 2017

Rock, Folk, Psych, World

Rated: ****

What an amazing time that must have been. Those ten weeks on that small volcanic island Gomera near the coast of Morocco, where Uffe Lorenzen did nothing but write new songs and meander about life, love and everything in between. The result is his first solo album under his own name, Galmandsværk. We’ve been going wild on all of his musical efforts for years now. On Trial, Spids Nogenhat, Dragontears and first and foremost Baby Woodrose. With whom he released the amazing Freedom album last year. Which we still spin regularly! But during those ten weeks he explored his inner self, and might have gone right there, towards the end of its tether. The result is an amazing psychedelic folk album with all sorts of worldly influences and an amazing array of different instruments. We can hear the sitar, bansuri, hurdy gurdy, violin and a few more. All of his explorations are done in Danish and tell a highly personal tale. (Which unfortunately might be lost on many of us who aren’t fluent in Danish.) Ten stories that delve into his thoughts about every aspect of life; but which; even without speaking Danish, will make you drift off into the sunset or focus your thoughts on a single task before you. The ten songs all seem to have a different ability, but it is always one that sounds universal, timeless and absolutely beautiful!

(Written by JK)

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The Stoner HiVe top 20 Countdown of 2017

The Stoner HiVe top 20 Countdown of 2017

Well, this is an already pretty late first reminder to get the attention of all of you lovely freaks out there. For yes, just like every year since the HiVe started, we shall of course do the year end countdown. On DECEMBER 12th we once again start with The Stoner HiVe Top 20 Countdown of the best albums of 2017. But just like every year we need your help. We need to know what albums made your head spin, blood boil and your bones jump with pure euphoria! So please, my lovely fellow freaks, send your lists to our email or message them to the Stoner HiVe Facebook page. The rules: vote for any amount of albums or EP’s released in 2017. (And at the very end of December 2016.) If you dug only one; name that one. If you dug 78; name all of them! It doesn’t matter how much, one, five, 10, 13, 20 or 41. We just want to know which albums made you go crazy!

Every year we hope that more of you find the time and energy to send in your list. The Ultimate Stoner HiVe top 20 list has been a steady grower going from 18 lists to 37 to 48 and on to 56 and 61; and then 86 lists, back to 78. And 76 of them were counted last year. A few were received after the deadline. So, should we set our goal high and hope to reach the big 100 this year? Or just hope to make that great amount of last year again? Either way it would be grand; just so that this Countdown becomes more and more valid with each passing year…

The deadline to send in your list closes on December the 12th… So there’s still enough time to get crackin… A big week in fact! Go on… If not for yourself or me; do it for all the rest of the lovely freaks out there… Scurrying in the HiVe…

Send your lists HERE

The Doom Chart for November 2017

Doom Chart

“God’s creatures who cried themselves to sleep stirred to cry again.”

~ Thomas Harris, The Silence of the Lambs

As November turns into December and the weather worsens by the minute. Judging from the mushrooms popping up everywhere, this could turn wetter and colder very fast. (On the North European side of the globe, that is) We already look forward to the end of the year. Not because we desperately want to blow stuff up with fireworks. Although we do. And not just because we want to drink copious amounts of Champagne and other assorted alcoholic beverages. Although we do. But becaue it is just that. The end of the year. Approaching ever faster. And with it comes those nasty little things called End Of Year Lists. They do them for everything. But the music lists still holds something special. And just like those mushrooms those End Of Year Lists are popping up everywhere as well. The freaks who can be counted on for the Doom Charts for instance all do something with them. Just visit their individual websites and blogs listed below. And ofcourse we pay hommage to the one hosted by the honorable JJ Koczan on The Obelisk. I like’m. Those lists. Not because it necessarily grades all of my favorite albums. But because you it grands you the opportunity again to revisit all those amazing albums of the past year. And you can be sure that the Doom Charts will also do an unholy counting of the numbers. Adding all those lists of the past year up to one final tally…

But now, we give you the November edition of the Doom Charts. A tallied assortment of twenty-five heavy rock albums that bring something special to the table. ELEVEN new albums entered the list and all of them deserve to be listened to on repeat. So. Enough chit chat. Check’m out! Check’m all out!

~ Joop Konraad (Stoner HiVe)

Welcome to Doom Charts, representing some of the finest bloggers, journalists, radio and podcasters, and album reviewers from the doom-stoner-heavy underground around the globe.  Each month, our critics submit their picks for the best new doom, sludge metal, stoner-psychedelic and heavy rock albums.  The results are compiled and tabulated into the chart below.  This is a one-stop shop for the best new albums in the world…

The Doom Chart for November 2017

Stoner HiVe’s Top 5 Artists listened to last week…

Stoner HiVe’s 

Top 5 Artists listened to last week…

Purple Hill Witch

Disastroid

Rise Of The Wood

Fireball Ministry

Red Scalp

The November Doom Charts are out there. That’s the real deal. So, head on over there and catch up on 25 of the most played records among the heavy rock community. But over here, in the HiVe, we’ve been spinning the following 5 the most. Purple Hill Witch! Wow. Simply wow. Sonically we are served a mixture of seventies inspired rock, stoner, hardrock, doom with tasty psychedelic and occult offerings, with a bit of prog and whole lot of freakin magic! For that is what Purple Hill Witch does, they enchant you for seven tracks straight. It sounds like days long gone, it sounds lo-fi and grimy and it sounds absolutely wonderful! Disastroid keeps getting spun as well. And you all know why. We mentioned those freaks last week. ‘An almost funky take on stoner and grunge, with sludgy overtones and Disastroid’s signature breaks and time shifts which reminds of math-rock.’ And then some! Check their new album Screen out. It is freakin good! Our fellow Dutchmen of  Rise Of The Wood have delivered a new album called: First Seed. We already loved their 2015 self-titled one. But this one definitely ups the ante. Fireball Ministry decided to release an album after a holy seven years. Remember The Story, out on Cleopatra Records, is filled with classic hardrock, classic metal and all executed with fuzz precision and a desert attitude. Adding a great record to the liturgy of all the riff preachers and hook evangelists out there. I came in late to the Red Scalp party. Or is the party only just getting started? Cause Lost Ghosts is for me already a contender for the high spots of the Stoner HiVe Top 20 Countdown of 2017. What an album! Which reminds me. It’s about time you lovely freaks out there start sending in your lists to stonerhive@hotmail.com ! We need to prepare for the Top 20 Countdown!