doom metal
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My doom has been on its way here for over a month but this morning it was finally here. That means that the Clouds Taste Satanic album that I've been waiting for has arrived and I couldn't wait to review it. Several months ago I reviewed their brilliant 'To Sleep Beyond The Earth', which constisted of two long instrumentals, combining post-rock and doom. I've been a fan of this band ever since. So when I heard that there was a second album coming, I was overjoyed. With good reason it seems.
'Your Doom Has Come' is a bit different that it's predecessor. There's six tracks in a more or less regular traditional doom metal timespan. Besides, the focus seems to be on monolithic riffs and a gloomy atmosphere in stead of elaborate soundscapes and dreamy passages. The result is a heavier album with some serious airplay capacity within the doom metal genre. But above all, 'Your Doom Has Come' is once again a great album, showing an evolving band.
In a way you can expect a vocalist to occur at any time in the opener 'Ten Kings'. This songs draws influences from old school doom metal and a reference like Black Sabbath is never far away in such a case. However, it's also very well possible to see this track as a continuance of the evolution and the sound on the previous album. The typical post rock/doom blend is very present, be it hidden beneath a wall of distorted guitars and slowly hammering drums.
After that, we get sucked into the newer style of these American becomes clear. While still firmly rooted within the doom sounds, they seem to be exploring the realms of industrial, grunge and stoner rock. This results in some amazing riffs on 'One Third Of The Sun', which is probably my favorite track, and in the slow but steady headbanger 'Beast From The Sea', which once again drives on immersive riffs and typical post-rock guitars. Perfect Clouds Taste Satanic indeed, but clearly gaining confidence in their sound.
This far into the album and I still don't know if I like this album more or less than the previous one. Both are quite different but both are masterpieces in their own right, so I guess I'll like them both equally. Fact is however, 'Your Doom Has Come' is easier to classify and it's easier to compare it to other bands, including the earlier mentioned Black Sabbath as well as Monkey 3 and Karma To Burn. 'Out Of The Abyss' is the perfect combination of those three, now fully stretching their sound into the stoner rock genre.
That being said, I think it's about time that Clouds Taste Satanic contacts the Desert Fest organisation and try to be a part of this year's edition in Antwerp. Not only because I want to see this, but also because these guys will guarantee a powerful show and possibly become one of the absolute highlights of the event. I can already imagine a decent crowd with hooded sweaters, slowly nodding their heads while 'Dark Army' rolls through the speakers. I mean, my wife is doing exactly that at the very moment I'm writing this paragraph and if she likes it, it's great, believe me.
So it seems that Clouds Taste Satanic is somewhat reaching back to the vintage versions of doom metal and psychedelic rock. At least, that is what this album shows. I wouldn't be surprised if the next one comes up with yet another approach to their sound. Maybe they will continue with the lively feel of closer 'Sudden - Fall', another one that will be a live-blast, or maybe something entirely different will appear. At this point we can only speculate but we can rest assured, it will probably be as great as this one is.
Serge
'Your Doom Has Come' is a bit different that it's predecessor. There's six tracks in a more or less regular traditional doom metal timespan. Besides, the focus seems to be on monolithic riffs and a gloomy atmosphere in stead of elaborate soundscapes and dreamy passages. The result is a heavier album with some serious airplay capacity within the doom metal genre. But above all, 'Your Doom Has Come' is once again a great album, showing an evolving band.
In a way you can expect a vocalist to occur at any time in the opener 'Ten Kings'. This songs draws influences from old school doom metal and a reference like Black Sabbath is never far away in such a case. However, it's also very well possible to see this track as a continuance of the evolution and the sound on the previous album. The typical post rock/doom blend is very present, be it hidden beneath a wall of distorted guitars and slowly hammering drums.
After that, we get sucked into the newer style of these American becomes clear. While still firmly rooted within the doom sounds, they seem to be exploring the realms of industrial, grunge and stoner rock. This results in some amazing riffs on 'One Third Of The Sun', which is probably my favorite track, and in the slow but steady headbanger 'Beast From The Sea', which once again drives on immersive riffs and typical post-rock guitars. Perfect Clouds Taste Satanic indeed, but clearly gaining confidence in their sound.
This far into the album and I still don't know if I like this album more or less than the previous one. Both are quite different but both are masterpieces in their own right, so I guess I'll like them both equally. Fact is however, 'Your Doom Has Come' is easier to classify and it's easier to compare it to other bands, including the earlier mentioned Black Sabbath as well as Monkey 3 and Karma To Burn. 'Out Of The Abyss' is the perfect combination of those three, now fully stretching their sound into the stoner rock genre.
That being said, I think it's about time that Clouds Taste Satanic contacts the Desert Fest organisation and try to be a part of this year's edition in Antwerp. Not only because I want to see this, but also because these guys will guarantee a powerful show and possibly become one of the absolute highlights of the event. I can already imagine a decent crowd with hooded sweaters, slowly nodding their heads while 'Dark Army' rolls through the speakers. I mean, my wife is doing exactly that at the very moment I'm writing this paragraph and if she likes it, it's great, believe me.
So it seems that Clouds Taste Satanic is somewhat reaching back to the vintage versions of doom metal and psychedelic rock. At least, that is what this album shows. I wouldn't be surprised if the next one comes up with yet another approach to their sound. Maybe they will continue with the lively feel of closer 'Sudden - Fall', another one that will be a live-blast, or maybe something entirely different will appear. At this point we can only speculate but we can rest assured, it will probably be as great as this one is.
Serge