This week’s theme seems to be varieties of stoner metal, though new songs from Between The Buried And Me and Cynic certainly add a prog tinge to things. So let’s dive into the music of the aforementioned, alongside Corrosion Of Conformity, Fu Manchu, Earthless, and two quite metal Pink Floyd covers!
Between The Buried And Me – “Condemned To The Gallows”
Between The Buried And Me just released its new single “Condemned To The Gallows” from their coming Automata I album, and I am beside myself with excitement on how this effort will shape up. It’s everything I loved about Alaska and Colors but with a seriously heavy twist. Seriously, skip ahead to 4:35 in the song and prepare to have your face blown the fuck off.
Automata I is out March 9, and you’re going to need it in your life. You can also grab the digital single “Condemned To The Gallows” here.
Cynic – “Humanoid”
After four years of legal disputes and total inactivity, Cynic returns! The band has since parted ways with drummer Sean Reinert and has recruited Trioscapes drummer Matt Lynch in his place. While there’s no news to share of a new album, Cynic has dropped a new song called “Humanoid,” and it’s pretty much Traced In Air II: More Clean Vocals. Or to put it this way, extremely, incredibly promising for whatever’s coming next.
Grab “Humanoid” here.
Doom Side Of The Moon – “Have A Cigar”
Doom Side Of The Moon is the project of The Sword guitarist Kyle Shutt, who also steps up to the mic in this case. Shutt and crew put out their self-titled debut album in 2017, which was a front-to-back cover of Pink Floyd‘s Dark Side Of The Moon in the style of bands like Sleep and Black Sabbath. Now they’re back with an EP called Encore, which covers Pink Floyd‘s “Have A Cigar” and “Wish You Were Here” from Wish You Were Here, as well as “Pigs (Three Different Ones)” from Animals, all in that deliciously spacey stoner rock style. If you listen really closely to “Have A Cigar,” you can actually head the tab of acid dissolving on Shutt’s tongue.
Grab Encore here, which was surprised released on January 12, and Doom Side Of The Moon here if you haven’t yet. Oh, and while we’re on the topic of Pink Floyd…
Of Mice & Men – “Money”
Blam! More Pink Floyd covers! Of Mice & Men‘s new album Defy, its first ever without vocalist Austin Carlile, just dropped today and kept this cover quietly hidden away amongst its tracklist. “Money” is a massive hit from Pink Floyd, but it’s also a generic song name that unless specifically stated, you wouldn’t assume an artist was covering based on the title alone.
Anyway, Of Mice & Men threw some wah pedal on the bass, some serious meat on the drums, and let bassist-turned-frontman Aaron Pauley continue to prove to the world that he’s a damn good frontman for this cover and it came out great. It’s also cool to see Of Mice & Men tackle the track just to prove that they’ve nailed down such a defined and new song on Defy that they can easily translate to a cover.
Grab Defy physically here and digitally here.
Earthless – “Gifted By The Wind”
Earthless‘ music is generally defined by extended run times, stoner-meets-psychedelic vibes, and being largely, if not entirely instrumental. The stoner bit seems to be retained for the band’s coming album Black Heaven, but the instrumental and long times bits don’t quite hold up. Guitarist Isaiah Mitchell performed vocals on four of the six tracks that comprise Black Heaven, though if they’re as good as “Gifted By The Wind,” then who’s going to complain? This is Earthless‘ fifth album. It’s cool to see them diversify their sound and try new things!
Black Heaven is out March 16.
Corrosion Of Conformity – “The Luddite”
Look, expectations for Corrosion Of Conformity‘s first album in 13 years with frontman and guitarist Pepper Keenan were astronomically high. Even with that level of criticism waiting at the band’s doorstep, they still came out with No Cross, No Crown and absolutely nailed it. Go ahead and get lost in the harmonies and axe-slinging madness of “The Luddite,” and revel in the fact that not only is Keenan back, but the band is acting like they’re still some scrappy nobody who’s got everything to prove to the world. This is how you do sludgy southern doom rock. Period.
No Cross, No Crown is out now.
Fu Manchu – “Clone Of The Universe”
If you’ve been listening to everything in this lengthy list then you’ve likely noticed there’s quite a lot of stoner-esque doom in here. Trust me, I didn’t specifically single out the genre this week, it’s just that there are too damn many good songs coming out all at once. Fu Manchu‘s brand of doom brings with it a very confident Californian style of head-held-high-ness to it, complete with a guitar tone that gives bands like Windhand and Entombed a run for their money.
Clone Of The Universe is out February 9.
Tribulation – “The World”
Tribulation has mastered the art of straightforward blackened rock n’ roll, and then throws everyone a curveball with “The World.” Tribulation trades in AC/DC drum beats for a wide tom groove, crusty guitars for bigger atmospheres, and throws in a ton more keyboards to complete the soundscapes of a song aptly-titled “The World.”
Down Below is out January 26. Get it physically here and digitally here.
Still looking for more music? Try out last week’s edition of Thank Satan It’s Friday!
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