stoner rock / sludge
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Revivals are awesome. I've been enjoying a few of them ever since I've started writing for this webzine. Stoner rock being one of them. In all honesty, the genre has never been away. In fact, it has been continuously evolving since Black Sabbath invented the mighty riff. But you have to admit that there's a bit of a revival going on in the past few years. Festivals like Yellowstock, Roadburn, DesertFest and Freak Valley have been rising and growing out of the soil, like mushrooms do. Of course, sludge metal had a huge impact on the haziest of all genres (except maybe for reggae) by becoming the favorite genre of thousands of people.
So where does Godsleep fit it? Well, this Greek quartet sounds like the perfect opener for any of those festivals. What they do is indeed nothing really new but they combine stoner rock with sludge and at times a dark rock and thrashy edge. The result is a bombastic manifestation of the power of the riff in seven monolithic anthems.
The album opens with 'The Call', a groovy piece of psychedelic rock with a very occult touch. The vocals in this one reminds me of some eighties gothic acts who tried their best to be scary. Yet, throughout the entire songs, there is this warm, desert-like feeling as if you're trapped somewhere in the Nevada desert and something is crawling up on you. Luckily for us, that something is 'Thirteen', an explosion of vintage seventies riffs, vigorous drums and rough, raspy blues vocals which will blow you away.
Here it becomes clear that Godsleep doesn't want to be just another stoner rock band but sees things a bit different. Maybe it's the political situation in their homeland or maybe it's the total disdain for all that is going on in the world, but fact is, there is some genuine aggression and woe in here. In that aspect, these guys really do have the blues, be it a bloody heavy version of it. If you don't believe me, give 'Wrong Turn' a good listen. This is one of the most groovy pieces of depressed music I've ever heard.
Now, there's also time for the good times on this album, so don't worry, it won't bring you down. 'This Is Mine' for instance is a great song, perfectly combining the riffs of Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats with the power of Down or Crowbar. 'I Want You' takes that combination even further, and suddenly Stone Temple Pilots and Soundgarden come to mind. 'Home' on the other hand returns the dark, psychedelic feeling of 'The Call' and in that way becomes my favorite track on this album.
So in all, this might be one of the most promising debuts in the stoner rock scene today. It's no surprise that these guys have already made some blistering appearances on festivals like Yellowstock and Freak Valley and I truly believe that more festivals will be added to their list soon. If you're a stoner rock or sludge fan, you have to get your hands on this one. It just might become one of those must-haves in the near future.
Serge
So where does Godsleep fit it? Well, this Greek quartet sounds like the perfect opener for any of those festivals. What they do is indeed nothing really new but they combine stoner rock with sludge and at times a dark rock and thrashy edge. The result is a bombastic manifestation of the power of the riff in seven monolithic anthems.
The album opens with 'The Call', a groovy piece of psychedelic rock with a very occult touch. The vocals in this one reminds me of some eighties gothic acts who tried their best to be scary. Yet, throughout the entire songs, there is this warm, desert-like feeling as if you're trapped somewhere in the Nevada desert and something is crawling up on you. Luckily for us, that something is 'Thirteen', an explosion of vintage seventies riffs, vigorous drums and rough, raspy blues vocals which will blow you away.
Here it becomes clear that Godsleep doesn't want to be just another stoner rock band but sees things a bit different. Maybe it's the political situation in their homeland or maybe it's the total disdain for all that is going on in the world, but fact is, there is some genuine aggression and woe in here. In that aspect, these guys really do have the blues, be it a bloody heavy version of it. If you don't believe me, give 'Wrong Turn' a good listen. This is one of the most groovy pieces of depressed music I've ever heard.
Now, there's also time for the good times on this album, so don't worry, it won't bring you down. 'This Is Mine' for instance is a great song, perfectly combining the riffs of Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats with the power of Down or Crowbar. 'I Want You' takes that combination even further, and suddenly Stone Temple Pilots and Soundgarden come to mind. 'Home' on the other hand returns the dark, psychedelic feeling of 'The Call' and in that way becomes my favorite track on this album.
So in all, this might be one of the most promising debuts in the stoner rock scene today. It's no surprise that these guys have already made some blistering appearances on festivals like Yellowstock and Freak Valley and I truly believe that more festivals will be added to their list soon. If you're a stoner rock or sludge fan, you have to get your hands on this one. It just might become one of those must-haves in the near future.
Serge
