Obsidian Sea – Strangers

Obsidian Sea – Strangers

Ripple Music – 2019

Rock, Doom, Metal, Proto

Rated: *****

Powertrio Obsidian Sea hails from Sofia, Bulgaria and released their damn fine album entitled Dreams, Illusions, Obsessions back in 2015. It was rich in tone and used doom to spice up their proto metal sounds. And now, three years later, we can look back at that album and see that it was already there. That sound. That proud quality befitting a majesty. And so they continued on and released Strangers at the end of March… Classic doom and proto metal with a highly grandiose and august atmosphere. There is something regal and even prouder about the six compositions on the Strangers release. It also comes across as very meticulous and exact record; cause even if Obsidian Sea clearly loves it’s languid approach to everything proto it does not slack off or sound perfunctory. The opposite is true and it makes the entire release sound serious, perfectly balanced and stunningly executed. What a wonderful release!

(Written by JK)

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Number 8 on the March 2019 Doom Charts

The Doom Chart for March 2019

Doom Chart

"Let us be thankful for the fools. But for them the rest of us could not succeed." ~ Mark Twain

March sure came in like a lion and out like a god damn lion in terms of the heavy underground. Being April Fools day on this glorious day of the March 2019 Doom Charts list reminds us that we are all fools in some shape of form. Without fools like us, or them, none of us would succeed. Okay now onto the chart. Sorry for the dorky intro, but lets not fool ourselves, we are here for the music and the music of March and beyond is charted below. Enjoy.

Yes, the Doom Charts are here once again, twenty-five of the best heavy albums making the rounds through the underground, around the globe. The contributors all sent in their lists, Bucky does the majestic work of tallying them all up and ending up with a list of over 300 albums each month. Yes, each month...  This time around 320. And you might wonder what kind of bands we find at the bottom of that list? It's not really the bottom you see, it's just where the list ends... And guess what, they are still all damn freakin good, that’s what’s so amazing! 4Mag Nitrous for instance and their High Road EP. (Read about it on Riff Relevant) Or Yatraa with their Arkhan release. (Read about it on LaHabitacion235) Both absolute wild releases that might move higher up the list next month or maybe not. That is why we occasionally debate whether we should publish more? Or even the entire list? Or the individual lists by the contributors? I guess, the Doom Charts, as they are, seem fitting and it does not pretend to know it all or show it all, just to guide you through what came out on top this month. And we all have our preferences and we all find out those hidden lumps of gold anyway, those albums that for whatever reason does their magic for you… But not for your neighbor… It’s music! It’s what we love!

Welcome to Doom Charts, representing some of the finest bloggers, journalists, radio, podcasters and album reviewers from the 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 March 2019

Stoner HiVe's Top 10 Most Listened To Last Month

Stoner HiVe's

Top 10 Most Listened To Last Month...

Boogie Beasts

Quaker City Night Hawks

Saint Agnes

Flux Amuck

Grinderman

Matra

Mark Deutrom

Neon Desert

Brant Bjork

Almanegra

Right before we get to go wild with a new Doom Charts, here’s the March rundown of the Top 10 Most Listened To Artists…

Neoyka - Vol II : El Desborde y el Ocaso

Neoyka - Vol II : El Desborde y el Ocaso

Self-released – 2019

Stoner, Psych

Rated: ****

Chile... The place Where Gods and Immense beings roamed and forged the Inca civilization aeons ago. Now, new Gods have entered equally awesome and leviathan, in the form of Neoyka, a four-piece Stoner band from La Serena, the 'place of Serenity'. However, Serenity is not a word you could ascribe to Neoyka - their blend of Heavy Psych, Stoner and Fuzz assaults the senses and rocks you back on your heels! Shifting effortlessly between the supercharged excesses of Fu Manchu and the grooved crushing of Greenleaf, Vol II: El Desborde y el Ocaso (The Overflow and The Sunset) sees Neoyka stride through their second release with Passion, Flair and damned heaviness! The dynamic proto-metal of '70 Rockas' evokes memories of psych Kings Embrujo whilst 'Sabelas' meanders through cactus - strewn deserts, mesas and sweltering, shimmering heat-waves... 'A 2 Segundos' crackles with a Sabbath-inspired density, crunching riffs as slow as the pulse of Cthulhu with swirling keyboards ominously brooding beneath before unleashing the raw power finale... Each track a seemingly living entity of it's own. Neoyka have offered up a noise to the Gods, and Viracocha smiles His approval... Awesome!

(Written by Reek of STOOM)

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Stoner HiVe’s Quick Fire

Stoner HiVe’s Quick Fire Friday

Friday, March 29, 2019, we’re finally over the hump. It’s been a gruesome and bad case of stomach flu, lost half a stone in weight and almost a week of time. Horrible. Horrible. But it has been done, and the energy and kilo’s will shortly return, I am sure. But as we sometimes do, when a Friday is upon us, when a weekend is opening it’s windows; we quickly mention a couple of releases you all should be checking out during said weekend... And yes, we know, we know, the albums and bands deserve more. More attention and more of our time! But there is so much out there and we just simply cannot ever do it all justice. So here it is. The Stoner HiVe Quick Fire Friday. And its burns hot like molten lava! 

A Constant Knowledge of Death – Vol. III.a: Forth From The Quiet To The Air That Trembles

April will see the release of a new A Constant Knowledge of Death album. The five-piece have delivered a grade a progressive acoustic metal album that seems perfect for a burgeoning spring. Combining all sorts of post rock and post metal influences into very breathable prog, airy and open spaced, thanks to that acoustic take on things. It’s heavy and it’s light and it’s something worth your while! 

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Ramblin’ Roze – Old Time Revival

So great to see and hear that things are getting wild and wicked in Beijng, China as well! Ramblin’ Roze is a heavy blues rock band that likes to speed up and do some honest stoner truckin! On their five-track Old Time Revival release we hear a five-piece that knows where the good hardrocking mustard comes from; and add to those blues roots a bit of punk and a whole lot of fuzzy groove! We love the shit out of this one!

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Scratch – Grave Grove (Call You Out)

The Grave Grove (Call You Out) single is a track that came together with one half of the Scratch band living in New York, USA and the other in Perth, Australia. A grungy protest song that once again takes everything back to the bluesy roots is all came from. One single, damn good, and now we can’t wait for more by Scratch!

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Mu Cephei – Mantras of The Uninformed Mind

If you’re looking for some droning, hypnotic, atmospheric doom metal, that's black to the touch and bleak in feel, look no further. Here’s Mu Cephei and their five track release Mantras of The Uninformed Mind. Over 1 hour of experimental doom that will wreck your mind if it’s not completely open. Cause it’s dark, it’s death and it’s doom! Doom so twisted, it will make your head go Exorcist for the entire duration… 

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Electronichaos – Make or Break it, Don’t Give Up

A first track of a new release called Architectural Destructivism by Electronichaos. The first demo by this one-man band was labeled as Nintendo Metal, and grindcore and deathmetal. And some of that was definitely accurate for the Canadian bastard. But this new track promises much more and seems to steer away from the bleak stuff. Much more progressive and definitely more interesting! Make or Break It, Don’t Give Up seems to have found interesting foothold and we can’t wait to hear about his next steps…

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Onioroshi – Beyond These Mountains

And we end almost as airy and upbeat and uplifting as we started this Quick Fire Friday, and we do that with some progressive psych from Italy. Onioroshi releases an atmospheric post rock adventure that incorporates some noise explosions, some stoner elements and a lot of intricate details that give their sonic landscapes, color, body and depth. It’s a wild adventure that you can take over and over, cause there is so much to discover…

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Earthbong – One Earth, One Bong

Earthbong – One Earth, One Bong

Self-released/Sludgelord Records – 2018/2019

Doom

Rated: ***

Hazy wisps of smoke permeate the atmosphere with a villainous odor and a poisonous spirit. And there you are, on a worn down couch drinking lukewarm beer; sitting and just waiting for something. Something ominous and creeping. And those twisted moments when one needs aromatic fumes to distort reality also needs slow heavy metal to set the pace. Three-piece Earthbong from Kiel, Germany self-released their One Earth, One Bong record December last year. It is the perfect soundtrack for such a night. And it now becomes available through Sludgelord Records as well. On it are four tracks that will have you hypnotized and zoning out through a seemingly endless array of slow riffs and intense drums. Only to be awakened by the beastly growls or an accidental and minute, speed-up. Those never last long and soon you will drift away again on those majestic doom clouds. This is doom! Slow malicious doom. And what’s not to love about that?

(Written by JK)

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Disen Gage – The Big Adventure

Disen Gage – The Big Adventure

Addicted Label – 2019

Rock, Prog

Rated: ***

The seventh album of Russian collective Disen Gage is called The Big Adventure and it’s not just one hell of a journey, it’s a party as well! From pointy and hooky moments to jazzy and frolic playing, it’s all there and it’s all incredibly cheerful. Eight compositions that get to the core of progressive rock and celebrates its jazzy influences and isn’t afraid to drag you along with meandering rhythm changes and tracks that seem to bounce like a gumball on a trampoline. You get torn apart by atmospheres and moods that border on the delirious and are all encompassed by the bright clear and crisp production. This is progressive rock indeed; progressive with many colors and hints of luminous phosphorescent energy. A happy adventure it is! 

(Written by JK)

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WEEED – You Are The Sky

WEEED – You Are The Sky

Halfshell Records – 2019

Prog, Stoner, Experimental

Rated: *****

Every once in a while an album comes along that ticks every box you've got: Intelligent, thought-provoking, entertaining and refreshingly different. Bainbridge Island's WEEED have produced such an album. ‘Opening’... a quiet Gong-ish cosmic murmur, replete with ethereal Shakti Yoni crooning, merging into a trippy guitar noodling pentatonics over an Eastern percussive backbeat. Suddenly, ‘I See You’ bursts through... It's sunshine - feel guitars and weaving bass so reminiscent of 'English Settlement'- era XTC... In fact, XTC's influence permeates the whole You Are The Sky album, with the vocals uncannily similar to Partridge's plaintive howls and the use of cyclic melodies and counterpoints. ‘Where Did You Go’ runs swiftly in, following the same theme but becoming a striding math rock exercise before descending into a percussive Fuzz-wah interlude... ‘Open Door’ throbs with a robotic moog vibe and eases into groovy krautrock, ushering the arrival of ‘Caramelized’ which builds to a Proggy crescendo of heavy bass and psychedelic guitars - again, reminiscent of Gong. Finally... The title track, ‘You Are The Sky’ returns to the cyclic melodies of previous tracks before hitting the gas pedal and rocking out with quirky patterns and booming basslines, then slowing to a crawl before unleashing the furious Heavy Psych finale, even throwing in a nod to Dick Dale's ‘Miserlou’ along the way... As with all Great albums, it leaves you wanting more… Thoughts of the imagined glory of that elusive 'extra track' lingering long after the final notes ring out. This is a marvelous, satisfying and staggering display of just how good it can be when it all comes together... Album of The Year material!

(Written by Reek of STOOM)

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E.T. Explore Me – Shine

E.T. Explore Me – Shine

Voodoo Rhythm Records – 2019

Rock, Garage, Punk, Surf, Thrash, Psych

Rated: ****

They’ve been releasing a steady stream of seven inches for the past years and now finally the time felt right to do a full-sized album. Say hello to Shine by Dutch trio E.T. Explore Me! And now that you’ve said hello, shaken hands and shared some drinks, get ready to get freaked out! Cause this is extremely gritty thrash-surf-garage that will have you gnashing your teeth and make you go delirious through psychedelic mantra’s and sweaty sweltering punk explosions. Rowdy energy straight from the gutter spills its drink over your zoot suit and knocks you out with Ace-Tone driven warbling and feverous opiate ritualistic dancing. Aah yes, this is the good stuff! No, this is the great stuff! The amazing stuff! The stuff that will make a junkie out of you. If it’s too loud, you’re too old and you should not have dared enter the universe of E.T. Explore Me!

(Written by JK)

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

Stoner HiVe’s

Top 5 artists listened to last week…

Boogie Beasts

Matra

Almanegra

Flux Amuck

Neon Desert

Every bone in his body seemed to have its separate and private pain, and he knew that his despair had acted as an anesthetic when he came out of it and felt the actual sharp pains… Oh yes, it’s Monday once again… Another week gone and a new week before us! Last week we had those dastardly Boogie Beasts on repeat; their new album Deep out on Sonic Rendezvous marries psychedelic wickedness with barnyard garage and bluesy bourbon soaked tunes to perfection. The heavy sun dried stoner tones resonating out of Milan, Italy makes us desperately long for the summer! The new self-released III by Matra definitely raises the temperature on all fronts! Pop sensible desert and stoner, very addictive! There are more outfits named Almanegra; but this trio resides in Buenos Aires, Argentina and just released their self-titled debut. Five tracks that hits you with heavy blues fuel, makes you speed up to the horizon, arms waving and with a lust for adventure and wild times. Can’t get enough of this one! Omaha, Nebraska home of five-piece Flux Amuck. Releasing their debut The Alternate for all the metal crazies who loves some experimentation, weirdness, punk and funk for breakfast. Good, tasty and nourishing on almost every scale! Neon Desert comes at us from Brazil, and gives us some grungy stoner and punky hardrock on their debut self-titled released. The duo produces raw and smoky tunes that will have you traverse the globe with a definite swagger in your step! Check’m out! Check’m all out!

Motorpsycho – The Crucible

Motorpsycho – The Crucible

Stickman Records – 2019

Everything

Rated: ****

How do you review a Motorpsycho album? Even their record company has to prepare a warning before you play the music! “Motorpsycho was always too gnarly for prog nerds as well as too musically unwieldy for punks, and as their appeal becomes ever more selective, they are still proudly falling between all cracks, stools or chairs one might think of putting in their way. ‘Prog rock’? Call it Motorpsychodelia!” See what I mean….. Elements of Sabbath rub shoulders with King Crimson while dipping a toe into Jazz while flirting with Opeth and Yes. This is a sprawling, epic journey that will either alienate you or enthral you. You are never quite sure what you will hear next but it will always be heavy. Repeated plays reveal gems in the background. Some people will be turned off by this. Me, I listen to Miles and Zappa exactly for this reason. Music that demands to be listened to, not background wallpaper. Be brave dear readers, take the plunge!

(Written by Tony Maim)

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The Skull & Worshipper, live at The Lane, Oostburg

The Skull & Worshipper !

 Live at The Lane, Oostburg

Remember when you could not stop spinning The Endless Road Turns Dark by The Skull? Like, yesterday? And ever since it came out in September 2018? The album did not reach the Number One position on the Doom Charts for nothing! Well, the band is on tour with Worshipper! And the tour will take them over the pond to Europe! A definite stop will be The Lane, Oostburg, so all you Dutchies and Belgians are in for a treat! May 1st!

And now in Dutch... 

Met de originele Trouble zanger Eric Wagner en Trouble bassist Ron Holzner in de gelederen, ging The Skull verder met het album”For Those Which Are asleep”waar Trouble eigenlijk was opgehouden. Metal Kaoz Ezine gaf toen al aan dat : "For Those Which Are Asleep” voelt als een ongegeneerd stukje doemdenken, maar dan op de juiste manier zoals het hoort in het genre.

Met hun laatste nieuwe album The Endless Road Turns Dark gaat The Skull verder met nog een ander doom-meesterwerk. 

The Skull's show bestaat natuurlijk uit originele The Skull songs, maar er kan natuurlijk zomaar een Trouble song voorbij komen en andere rariteiten verspreid van over periode dat Eric Wagner en Ron Holzner in de band Trouble speelden. De show kan ook zomaar uitmonden in een uitgebreide live-jamversie. En zoals ze zelf plegen te zeggen “It´s doom that rocks.” Dus wat valt er nog meer te zeggen over The Skull… Eigenlijk niets meer dan dat je deze band gewoon live moet meemaken!

In de afgelopen drie jaar heeft The Skull maar liefst drie keer op het bekende Roadburn Festival, gespeeld, evenals Hellfest, Under The Black Moon, Desertfest Belgium en Hammer of Doom. Evenals clubshows door het heel Europa. Op deze tour zal The Skull Desertfest Berlijn en Desertfest London aandoen. Maar eerst even in The Lane als eerste optreden van de tour...

Eric Wagner (original TROUBLE vocalist, Blackfinger): vocals

Ron Holzner (TROUBLE): bass

Lothar Keller (Sacred Dawn, Divinity Compromised): guitar

Rob Wrong (Witch Mountain): guitar

Brian Dixon (Cathedral): drums 

The Endless Road Turns Dark

Worshipper

Als support zal het uit Boston komende Worshipper een nieuwe stem in de heavy muziek laten horen. Door vergelijkingen te maken met sterren zoals Black Sabbath, UFO uit het Dio-tijdperk en The Scorpions uit het klassieke tijdperk, creëert Worshipper iets nieuws en epischs uit de echo's van het verleden. Door hun unieke mix van hedendaagse en klassieke invloeden, bewijst Worshipper dat de ziel van melodieuze heavy muziek nog steeds fel brandt. 

John Brookhouse - Vocals & guitars 

Dave Jarvis - Drums 

Bob Maloney - Bass & vocals 

Alejandro Necochea - Guitars 

Worshipper

Woensdag 1 mei / Vvk 8 euro /avondkassa 10 euro Vvk Kaarten te krijgen in The Lane aan de bar of te reserveren via thelanebooking@gmail.com o.v.v The Skull

Starified – Feathers

Starified – Feathers

CSBR Records – 2018

Rock, Hard, Stoner, Indie

Rated: ****

Over the last decade, Russia's Stoner & Doom scene has grown exponentially in artist numbers and reputation. At the forefront of this New Russian Wave are Starified, a three-piece outfit from Moscow. Their latest release, Feathers walks the line between Modern Metal, Hard rock and Indie pop sensibilities. Opener 'Hunter' has a bluesy edge, but tempers the hardness with an Indie vibe, as singer Vadim Ambartsumyan gives us his growly, Alex Turner - esque delivery. The Bluesy Grunge feel continues unabated through tracks such as 'Guessing Game' & 'Second Life' with Guitarist Yuriy Berezovik wringing out fat, melodic riffs and quirky hooks throughout the album. Title Track 'Feathers' crawls with an off-kilter Stoner vibe whilst remaining light and airy. All in all, Starified have delivered a Modern, Accessible Rock album with a very Radio - Friendly sound and great production deserving of airplay both on and off the airwaves... Otlichno!

(Written by Reek of STOOM)

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