Spurv produces a "wordless exploration of the enigma of existence" with transcendent second album

On June 1 Oslo, Norway's Spurv (Sparrow) will drop their latest long-player Myra (The Marshes) and I Talk To Planets was fortunate enough to spend some time with with this album this past month and let me tell you, it is nothing short of breathtaking.  The music is resplendent, it's moving, it's enchanting, it's haunting.  It is everything you would want out of an emotional post rock/metal album.

The album purports to be a "wordless exploration of the enigma of existence through intense and melodic instrumental music, noisy drones, (and) orchestral clusters..."  Myra, however, is not entirely wordless.  The final track, the English translation of which is "Everything Ends, Even at Night," begins with an excerpt from a speech given by seminal Continental philosopher Martin Heidegger of Germany.  In that excerpt Heidegger says, "Die Sterblichen sind die Menschen."  What that translates too is, "The mortals are the human beings."

Now, Heidegger's principal work is Being and Time and I'm going to give a crash course in the German philosopher's work because what he did in his lifetime so informs what Spurv is trying to communicate with Myra that I think understanding his primary teachings lie at the crux of enjoying their music thoroughly. Heidegger's philosophy attempts to conjoin two main thoughts: 1) is the notion that all beings are found in the world (including the world itself), but the idea of Being had never been examined before; and 2) building upon the work of fellow kraut thinker Edmund Husserl who coined the phenomenological slogan "to the things themselves," Heidegger ran with that idea and came up with his notion of Dasein, or the being for whom Being is a question.  Heidegger thought that all experience is grounded in "care."  That became the premise for his "existential analytic" in Being and Time.  

Photo courtesy of Lars Opstad.

How does all this relate to Spurv's new album?  In the band's own words, "Ultimately Myra is about
life and death, about that which is and that which perishes. Art poeticizes and co-creates our understanding of life and death, of the world, existence, and the human being's place among animals, plants, twigs, moss, fungi and mud. And in a time when the boundless sovereignty of the human being, the inevitability of progress and eternal growth without decay is the myth that increasingly steers humans from all corners of the world, it is up to artists to show the porous fundament of the myth, the the world is immensely more unfathomable than it appears at both first and second looks, that nothing lasts forever, but that everything gets its end, also the night."

The album consist of eight tracks, one of which, opener "A Lift In Case" (perhaps something was lost in translation), is only about 43 seconds of prelude, mostly sounds of a babbling brook, building to the horn introduction of the next track, "And a New Forest Is Brought Forward."  The sounds are vivacious and spirited.

I really want to take note of Hans-Jakob Jeremiassen's bass work on the 8:26 long "From the Depths Under the Stone."  It cut across the other instruments and stood out to me.  The song, the third track on the album, is really a quite lovely piece that flows right into the following synthesizer driven fourth cut on the album, which may be my favorite, it's so relaxing and calming, such stillness in the middle of this album that wants you to take time out and think about life and death, this tune gives you the opportunity to do that before moving on into the more heady parts of the album.

"A Pale Light Sounds" was released ahead of the full album and this is the album's penultimate track, everyone is at the top of their game, such wonderful melody, excellent harmonies, the rise and falls of the music so beautifully executed.  This is perfect music to meditate upon the transcendent, ineffable qualities of life, and death.

Photo courtesy of Lars Opstad.

It's track six and seven that really captivate me, "From the Myrtle Temple" and "The Voice Of the Old Man Breaks."  The textures are just so beautiful and hauntingly sad.  There is some wonderful guitar work here, not the screeching solos and flamboyant riffing I'm so used to hearing in the genre, but some gentle strumming and picking.  The harmonies cannot be overlooked either.  "Ole-Henrik and Kari Ronnekleiv have come with invaluable contributions that fill out and bind together the album, while Tore Ylvisaker and Ole Aleksander Halstensgard from Ulver have filled in details that draw out harmonies that we did not know were to be found in our music," noted founding member Gustav Jorgen Pedersen.

My recognition of the harmonies and soft guitar work, however, doesn't mean there isn't any riffing going on on this record.  Take the final track "Everything Ends, Even at Night," for example, there is some serious riffing going on here.

Heidegger's speech is delivered over some light piano at the outset.  The piano picks up in intensity and is joined by a cacophony of sound, suddenly the drums slice through the wall of sound, then the guitar in a traditional crushing metal riff kicks in.  This track by far is the most metallic cut on the album, but even it is melodic, and filled with wonderful harmonies by the group, and the band's use of instruments you wouldn't typically find in a rock band persists even in this, their heaviest song.

Photo courtesy of Lars Opstad.

This is one of the most melodic, trippy, transcendent albums I've heard this year, and I loved every second of it.  As far as contemporary releases to date in 2018, I compare it to Weedpecker III, Trail's Spaces and to an extent, River Cult's Halcyon Daze, all great records.  I rate this album a 93 out of 100.

"The album was written in the years that have passed since Skarntyde (No Forevers 2016) and recorded in the first weeks of 2017. With Skarntyde we felt we had come as far as we could, almost on our own, and with Myra we have taken a huge step, if not forward, then deeper, towards what we want Spurv to be," relayed Pedersen.

Spurv was founded in 2011 and consists today of Gustav Jorgen Pedersen - guitar, Hans-Jakob Jeremiassen - bass, Herman Otterlei - guitar, Simon Ljung - drums, Eirik Orevik Aadland - guitar, and Simen Eifring - trombone.  Also contributing to the album are Ole-Henrik Moe - picoletto, violin, viola, cello, Kari Ronnekleiv - violin, Cathy Donnelly - cello, Tore Ylvisaker - synth, Ole Aleksander Halstengard - fx and synth.

Spurv on Bandcamp.

Eagle Twin making early bid for Album of the Year

In the beginning was the scream... and it was good.  The duo that comprise Eagle Twin, Gentry Densley (guitar and vocals) and Tyler Smith (drums), have been making music together since 2009 under that moniker and The Thundering Heard: Songs of Hoof and Horn is their third long-playing offering, the first being 2009's retelling of the creation myth via crow iconography The Unkindness Of Crows and the second 2012's conversion of the avian characters to the serpentine, The Feather Tipped The Serpent's Scale.  The third album see's the band move the tale further along the food chain, dealing with herd animals of the mid-western United States, such as prong-horned antelope, the mighty elk, the buffalo, etc.

The story so far, on the debut album Densley spins the tale of the Crows, borrowing bits from several sources, including Upton Sinclair, Japanese Haikus, Mormon hymnals, Native American myths, and heavily from poet Ted Hughes who penned the Crow and is husband to Sylvia Plath.  On The Unkindness Of Crows  the birds waged a war on the sun and were burned, they fell to earth blackened and writhing and took the form of snakes.  During the course of the second album the snakes balled themselves up and sprouted horns and became herd animals.  That's where we come in on The Thundering Heard: Songs Of Hoof and Horn.  Okay, you're all caught up.

Drums and Tuvan throat singing grab the listener by the balls upon the needle first dropping on the opening track, "Quanah Un Rama."  This tune means business. Densley possess a growling, guttural vocal delivery, and considering the towering mythological subject matter, and it's distinct manliness by nature with its hunting overtones, it suits.  The guitar riffs are aggressive and match, nay, exceed Densley vocal's.   And Smith's drumming is just so complimentary.  He goes unnoticed in much of this review, I have noted upon rereading it, but it's because of his skill, not because of a lack of talent.

(Editor's Note:  An interesting aside,  I attempted to track down the meaning of "Quanah Un Rama" and found that Quanah Parker was the last Comanche Chief, named chief by the U.S. government not by tribal council, and that his first name was given to him by his mother when he was a child and he kept it to honor her as an adult and it meant "stinky one.")

"Elk Wolfv Hymn" starts in a much more peaceful manner compared to the previous tune, more on the psychedelic side of Eagle Twin's palette of sound.  It builds in intensity as Densley tells tale of wolves tracking down and encircling a great stag as crows look on and keep watch.  I love his story telling, and his vocals, Lemmy would be proud.

 Side Two.  "Heavy Hoof" was the lead single for this record and with good reason.  "The heavy hoof clips, the heavy hoof clops.  The heavy hoofs dance on your grave."  The guitar is just so menacing here, with a such a sludgy low end, and considering there really is no bass, its all the more impressive.  The soloing on "Heavy Hoof" is just the most exciting on the record, and on a record of this caliber, that is really saying something.  This track just KILLS!

"Antlers of Lighting (Hooves of Thunder)" closes out the album, as a mighty storm stirs up and lightning strikes the great stag's rack of antlers.  This track features soaring, searing guitar riffs, matching the electrified lyrics, "white veins of lightning."  Indeed.  Some of Tyler Smith's best drum work on the album comes in this song near the end of the lyrics in my opinion, right before the soloing starts to escalate into a white-hot burn. 

"I live I die I bleed."

This circle of life seems complete, but where will Eagle Twin go next?

What a thrill ride in 41:32.  Flip this sucker back over and play it again. This is a true candidate for Album of the Year even at this early stage in the game.  It's a little odd in subject matter, but I think that's a bonus.  I'm not in a habit of giving out perfect scores for records, but damned if this isn't two already this year, 100/100.  Get this album.  You'll be glad you did.

And, if you would like a primer on where to start with Eagle Twin's back catalog, here's the 411.  On the debut, I recommend the 15-minute epic "Crow Hymn," "Carry on, Carrion King" and the album's denouement, "And it came to pass that birds fell to earth as black snakes."  If you can find it, there is the split disc with Pombargira that includes the pulsating "I Come From a Long Line Of Dead Men."  Track two also comes from Eagle Twin, the jazzy "Blackfoot Messiah / River Girl Song."  It's worth checking out as well.  Jams to groove to off the second full length release include the counter-point to the debut's mid-point, the aptly titled "Snake Hymn" this time which checks in at over 12 minutes in length.  Also, the repetitive "Horn Snake Horns / It Came to Pass the Snakes Became Mighty Antlers."  The second half of the split, which consists of the final two minutes, is purely instrumental jam and some of my favorite riffs on the record.

It's taken Eagle Twin 10 years to advance the story line this far and the mind boggles at where philosophically the tale may be heading next.  But in the meantime, we have Thundering Heard: Songs of Hoof and Horn to tide us over.  It is destined for a number of those end of the year Best of Lists in my opinion.  The record has already worked it's way into high rotation here in my collection since the hard copy arrived last week.  Sadly, I'm a late-comer to Eagle Twin, only discovering them with this release.

From the band's web site:
Eagle Twin is two beasts, operating in a spectrum of duality.  Eagle Twin is finesse and power.  Eagle Twin combines the power of the riff with the freeness of jazz.  Eagle Twin is the serpent and the crow.  Eagle Twin is Gentry Densley and Tyler Smith.

Eagle Twin's Home.
Eagle Twin on Bandcamp.

Holy Mushroom's sophomore album conducive to meditating, medicating

Pink Floyd, The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, these are just a few of the influences the members of Oviedo, Spain's tripped out foursome Holy Mushroom cite as inspiration for their psychedelic psilocybin lovin' anthems that comprise the new album Moon.

Moon, a spaced-out sophomore trip at 44 minutes in length, consists of five songs, largely instrumental in nature, although bassist Alex Castro does sing on occasion.

Let's dive right in.  The first offering is a trippy little ditty titled "La Caverna" which translates as "The Cavern."  It begins with a bit of Spanish dialogue from a film, I believe, though I'm not certain what movie it is from.  The Spanish speaker says, "Al salir y ver al fin / Aquella sucia tarde de otro tiempo / El sol azul por vez primera / no era el sol, sino nostros.*"  What that roughly translates to is:

          "Going out and seeing at last / That dirty afternoon of another time /
          The blue sun for the first  time / It was not the sun, but us."

A peculiar passage for certain, one to ponder upon if you're partaking, or meditating, as you sit back and let the sounds of Holy Mushroom flow through you.   The jazzy guitar and airy percussion work, along with a soulful bass line, bring this tune together as it builds and builds and finally explodes into a Floyd-esque guitar solo.  Then the percussions go a tap, tap, tap like rain on a tin roof, before a drum roll and then another scintillating solo, one maybe borrowing more from Jimmy Page this time rather than David Gilmour.  All in all a tripped out, fuzzy and and full on psychedelic ride.

Drummer Pablo Argüelles really shows his jazz chops and keyboard player Enol Cuesta tickles the ivories on "Birdwax Blues."  This is one of the few places where Castro stretches out and expresses himself vocally.   He has a a distinct European singing style.  What I mean by that is that traditionally, Europeans have treated the voice like a musical instrument itself.   His delivery is nasally and to me at least, that is problematic.  Reading through fan criticisms on YouTube, the ONLY negative thing ever said about

this group is when it comes to the vocals.  A few negative comments pepper the YouTube comments section about the said vocals.   The vox, however, are not the dominating aspect of Holy Mushroom by any stretch of the imagination.

Don't believe me, keep listening beyond "Birdwax" and you'll become a believer.   The nearly 13 minute long epic "The Preacher" follows and it is magnificent in its slow, elegannt  climb.  Floyd like in its opening, with dreamy keys and bass.  Yes, Castro does sing a bit, but it's a minor distraction here.  Just listen to that bass and it builds and scales upward.  When Alberto Arce joins in on guitar for a little tease then fades back into the mix you long for him to cut loose.  Well I assure you, it's coming, in bombastic style, it's coming.  He breaks back in from time to time to let you know he's still there, then with six minutes left in the song, there's a pause as the bands collects itself it seems.  When they kick back in the jam is different, with Arce taking more of the lead role.  A few more lines of vocals near the end and were done.  Whew!  A near religious experience is "The Preacher."

The song "Eufrates" was previously released as a single, but just in case you're not familiar with it yet we'll hit the highlights.  The first couple minutes the band plays light jazz bits, building for what is to come, which is a tribute, if you will, to many of the bands the inspire them.  At the two minute mark I'm hearing The Doors plain and simple.  I can picture Ran Manzarek on the keys, John Densmore working the kit and Robbie Krieger on guitar here.  Then around the three minute mark the band shifts gears and channel their inner Pink Floyd for a little over a minute.  Psychedelic sounds of Rick Wright's keyboards, Nicky Mason's skins, the bass of Roger Waters and guitar work of David Gilmour shine through, with around three minutes left in the song Arce breaks free and its time to pay respects to Hendrix.  The band closes it up in the final minute with an all out jam.  This tune is the album's centerpiece in my opinion, a stupendous piece of work.

Finally, we reach the closer, "A Grand Finale In the Blind Desert."  The opening riff actually reminds me a little of the Bond Theme.  There are some other complexities going on around the riff, drum rolls and fills, and a bass line, but still, it insists itself upon my memory until the tune rearranges itself a bit about three minutes in.  I actually am reminded of many of the desert set films I've seen, Lawrence of Arabia, The Mummy, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and others.  At 3:45 the tune changes again, to almost a festive atmosphere, and the saxophone joining in the mix REALLY reinforced the movie memories.  A snazzy little solo flare to finish and the album comes to a close.

This is a brilliant album to just throw on and relax to, not a complete psychedelic freak out, but a definite light mood enhancer that will mellow you right the fuck out if you're having a bad day or just need some time to decompress.  Have a drink, or if yo live where it's legal, something stronger, and enjoy Holy Mushroom's Moon.  95 out of 100.

Excerpted from the band's press material:
Holy Mushroom is a Heavy Psych band from the north of Spain.  Formed in 2016 by four musicians from 19-23 years old, it combines classic sounds of the sixties psychedelic music with modern styles. 

*Spanish dialogue provided by Holy Mushroom, translated via Google Translate, after my own paltry Spanish skills produced a VERY BAD translation.

Holy Mushroom on Facebook.
Holy Mushroom on Bandcamp.







                                   

Cosmic Fall joins the space race, releases In Search Of Outer Space

Cosmic Fall found themselves in a unique situation coming into the creation of the new record, In Search Of Outer Space, having to replace departed guitarist Mathias Rosmann.  Enter Martin Morawski.  He joins the founding rhythm section of Daniel Sax (drums) and Klaus Friedrich (bass/vocals) on one of the band's most ambitious releases to date, In Search Of Outer Space.

I tried to familiarize myself with Cosmic Fall's back catalog of work before launching into my review of the new record and I must admit some frustration.  At the insistence of Rosmann, the band has removed its previous releases from its Bandcamp page so I had to look elsewhere for  material.  From 2016's debut First Fall I was only able to track down two tunes, "Sun Of a Gun" and "Jam I."  From the 2017 follow up Kick Out the Jams, I found three tracks, "Earthfull," "Interstellar Junction," and "Cosmic Conclusion."  Finally, from the Cosmic Fall/Apodyl Starsplit I was only able to run down the song "Overhead Intelligence."  I wanted t at least be passingly familiar with the body of work the band had produced with its previous axeman so I could see how it has grown with the addition of Morawski.  Well, I'm here to report, the band's guitar duties are in safe hands indeed.  I heard hints of some of the greats while listening to In Search Of Outer Space, Jimmy Page, David Gilmour (particularly during "Purification") and Saint Jimi to name a few.  The band hasn't just replaced a guitarist, I believe they have taken a step forward in songcraft from what I was able to sample and I think Morawski is a fine fit.

On to the album.

"Jabberwocky" connects instantly.  It's a tale of swordplay and weed worship, wrapped in low pitched, swirling psych guitar.
   
          "He knows she comes with vorpal sword
          And he is praying to the lord
          The only thing that still remains
          Is smoking weed in wasteland plains"

And then we're treated to some more of that low end guitar growl for a few moments before we get the second verse, and denouement:

          "At least refreshing and last hope
          That everything can solve the dope
          He doesn't want to catch and bite
          Just sharing with the girl his pipe

          "Unlucky stoned Jabberwocky!"

I LOVE the lyrics to this song, even if I have to dock Friedrich a few style points overall for the vocal delivery.  His monotone, slightly nasal, traditional Krautrock singing voice just isn't my cup of tea.  But Cosmic Fall makes it work, focusing primarily on the jam, the lyrics and vocals are secondary to the album.  In fact, only two tracks, opener "Jabberwocky" and closer "Icarus" of the six tunes on In Search Of Outer Space have vocals.

The second tune, "Narcotic Vortex " sees Freidrich hold down the low end while Dan  plays some light jazz on the skins and Martin  gets positively psychedelic and spacey with his picking and playing, building toward a nice and rather unexpected Sax drum solo, before the band comes together to close things out.

"Purification" could easily find itself at home on a Pink Floyd album, but Morawski is channeling his inner Hendrix on "Lumberjam," as he blazes a trail of fuzz and distortion, soloing all the way. 

The next to last track is the trippy "Spacejam."  With all the studio effects laid on top of the band's instruments on this particular track, it makes for some  truly spaced out experimental psychedelia and I'm a huge fan of this particular track.  Martin's guitar sounds like a piano, the drums have an echo on them, the bass is tripping all the while.  This may be my favorite track on the record.

We close with the tale of "Icarus."

          "You tried to fly so high, touching the sun
          The vision of being on top with the gods
          Such a great dream was never done
          Icarus' wings burned by the sun."

It's a familiar tale for certain.  Wings made of wax, melted when they got too close to the heat of the sun and man plummeted to the ground and his death.  Man wishing to touch the divine.  Cosmic Fall does this tale justice, swirling psychedelic guitar, driving bass and pounding drums.  Then everything mellows for the lyric break and delivery for verse one and two (editor's note: verse two not reprinted here.)  Then the song picks back up and turns back into the frenzied beast it was during the opening section for a few moments before evaporating, thus bringing a most excellent trip to a close.

I eagerly anticipate the vinyl release of Cosmic Fall's In Search Of Outer Space.  Pre-Orders for that hot ticket begin on April 30, and the vinyl itself will be released on May 30.  For now, I'll will have to satisfy myself by connecting my iPhone to my stereo and blaring the mp3s version of In Search Of Outer Space over my stereo speakers until I can drop the needle on the physical product.  It's a physical product I deem worthy of adding to my personal collection, by the way. which means it rates at least an 85 out of 100.  In actuality, I score it a lofty 95.  This is an amazing record.

Lyrics and photos provided by Cosmic Fall.
Cosmic Fall on Facebook.

Record Butler saves your vinyl, gives you a helping hand

I recently found myself in a precarious situation for any vinyl enthusiast or audiophile, I was facing a period of time without the use of one of my arms, possibly on a permanent basis.  Now I spin records nearly 10-15 hours a day every day that I'm home, being disabled, that's most days.  Music and vinyl is my life.  After a trip to the Emergency Room to rule out stroke and life-threatening dangers, and another trip of my family physician and another to my neurologist, was all taken care of, the next thing I did was get online and visit my vinyl groups on Facebook and share my problem.

PERHAPS you can spin a 45 with one hand.  But my 45 collection is meager at best. Nineteen Iron Maiden singles from the 80s, a Prince Record Store Day picture disc 7," a U2 Batman Returns single, about a dozen stoner rock releases from Monster Magnet, Clutch, The Well, and Roadsaw, and a Flexi-Disc from a Bloom County comic collection.  That's about it.

Most of my collection is LPs.  Those typically require two hands, unless you're just going to man-handle your vinyl and get finger prints all over the disk and risk damaging the grooves.  I had no idea what I was going to do.  I tried to awkwardly spin a disc or two.  I nearly dropped them.  It was a near disaster.  I gave up hope.  But one poster, I have sadly lost his name to the annals of time, recommended something called a Record Butler.  He provided a link to the product on Amazon which I now share: Record Butler.

I was skeptical but willing to try ANYTHING that might allow me to spin my beloved records. 
About five days went by and I either spun 45s, or nothing at all.  The, the Record Butlers arrived, a two pack.  I took the orange one in my right hand.  Got out a record, I don;t recall what it was, but it certainly WAS NOT Iron Maiden.  I folded the Butler in half as instructed and slid a record neatly out its jacket, using my knees and one hand.  VIOLA!  It worked!  I was able to place the record onto the platter with one hand while not damaging the vinyl, as the fleece on the Record Butler provided a soft barrier of protection.  I was once again able to spin my records, even while temporarily incapacitated, able to use just one arm.

And, the fleece on the Butler allows you to clean the record too. For under ten dollars, this is one accessory I simply have been unable to do without.  I'll order another pair or two just to have around in the event that I wear out my first two, but so long as you do not get them dirty and store them properly, they seem to hold up pretty well so far.  I've been using the first one now for about three months and haven't had to soil my second one.

Get a pair or two and see what you think, especially if you find yourself in a one-arm pinch at some point.  Or gift a set to an audiophile you know who may be unaware of this product but in need of it particular ability to expand one's dynamic range.  Rating this product, we score it an Most Excellent 90/100.

Enchantelope's Dungeons & Dragons homage a ripping good time

90/100

Right from the monstrous opening riff of "Eighteen Doors," the lead track of Enchantelope's debut long-player Natural 20, the listener is grabbed by the short hairs, your attention is commanded for this balls-out, no non-sense stoner rock homage to Dungeons & Dragons.  With an album title like Natural 20, and song titles such as "Cone of Cold," "The Necromancer," "Dimension Door," "Eye of Fear and Flame," and "Malleus Maleficarum," all D&D references,  I pretty much knew I was at least going to like the subject matter, having come up playing the role playing game Dungeons & Dragons since I was 12 years old.  While the subject matter may have piqued my curiosity about this album, it was the groovy, sludge-tinged rock 'n' roll blaring from my speakers that held me fast.

The guitar acrobatics of Steve Angers is all over this record, and the low end, handled by duel threat bassist and drummer Mike Palm, is rock solid.  Angers is also the vocalist.  He doesn't have a clean delivery, but I wouldn't call it a dirty vocal either.  Somewhere between a fierce growl and clean vocal and it fits the subject matter and the musical style to a tee.

I find myself curious about the Dungeons & Dragons module, or campaign even that led to the creation of this album.  I want to ask the band about their characters, their misadventures, how long their game lasted, etc.  I just know some good stories would arise from tale that birthed the crafting of this record.

"Cone of Cold" has a groove that reminds me of Pantera when they were at their funkiest, laying down the power grooves.  "The Necromancer" opens with a similar groove after a brief crack of thunder.  Now that I think about that, that's really a good description.  Enchantelope has a sound that crosses power groove with 70's guitar rock and throws in a hint of space rock to make it psychedelic and trippy in places.

The guitar solo that closes out "The Necromancer" is one of my favorite parts of the record.  It's blistering in intensity.   Favorite tracks include the aforementioned "The Necromancer," "Eighteen Doors," and "Cone of Cold."  The songs on this record are ready made to tell a story via a string a video releases.

One wonders what this duo will do when it comes time to take Natural 20 on the road, will Palm opt to play drums or bass, will Angers still play lead parts while singing?  I don't know how they handle that.  The band has been together 10 years so one presumes they've played live in the past and have these logistical issues answered already.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this record.  It's not what I'd term an "Instant Classic" that must be in every collection, but damn it's good and I'm certainly adding it to my vinyl collection.  I rate it a 90 out of 100.  

At press time the band had just sent out a notice that the vinyl releases had arrived two to three weeks earlier than anticipated and were beginning to be shipped out immediately. Since the vinyl was limited to 100 pieces, I recommend you get it while the getting is good.

Half dozen albums from 2017 that get the ITTP's seal of approval

100/100

Last year I listened to some stoner/doom records even if that wasn't the focus of this page.  I even purchased a few in various formats, the most recent of which was an album I determined to be the Album of the Year across ALL formats of music, and that was a record released on the late date of December 7th, namely The Atomic Bitchwax's Force Field, wholly excellent from end to 70's rocking end.  An incredible feast of riffs that breezes by in just 35 minutes, it doesn't come up for air except to flip the record if you're listening to it in good ole vinyl format, otherwise you do not get a break.  This power trio comprised of Monster Magnet rhythm section Chris Kosnik (band leader on bass and vox) and (drummer and pianist) Bob Pantella, alongside guitarist Finn Ryan, has really changed directions since coming together on 2008's The Atomic Bitchwax - 4, written stylistically as T4B, going more for the throat on the past couple of releases.

95/100

Up next, a record I truly love, Iron & Stone's Petrichor.  Issued on November 3, this album delivers nine tracks of sludgy goodness, with one acoustic interlude aptly titled "Interlude" sitting in the five hole.  The band had an earlier release, the 2015 EP titled Old Man's Doom, which I freely admit I am not familiar with at this stage in the game.  I need to check it out.  I only came across this record back in late February so it hasn't gotten a great deal of play yet, but I've quickly grown attached to it, especially the mountainous opener Avalanche.  I love this band's succinct one word titles, all except "Northern Lights."  I'm normally one who lean's more to the psychedelic side of the stoner/doom metal side of things, shunning dirty or screamed/shouted vocals, but they really work nicely here.  (Editor's Note:  There are a number of the shouted vocals types I do enjoy however, such as Bongzilla, Pyraweed, Eagle Twin, etc.)

90/100

This brings us up to a band and album recommending to me by a friend of mine in the gaming community.  That record is Elder's Reflections Of a Floating World.  At the time of his recommendation, my friend also recommended their 2015 album Lore, which I actually like MORE than I like Reflections of a Floating World, but that's not really the point here.  Just six songs, but checking in at an hour and five minutes in length, this album is a monster of stoner rock psych.  My friend described these two albums combined as "religious experiences."  So, I had to give them a chance, I'm all for communing with the divine whenever possible and getting there however possible.  Well, Elder wasn't quite that moving to me, but I dig it, a lot.

90/100

The fourth album I want to tell you about from 2017 is actually more of an EP, The Wizards of Delight - titled The Wizards of Delight.  These guys get it.  Rock and roll is supposed to be mainly about having fun doing what you're doing, making your music, and you can just tell, these guys are having a hell of a good time.  They had a single titled "Time Travel Lady" that was pretty cool back in 2016.  It had a cool sound effect fueled psychedelic freak-out in the middle and was just a lot of fuzzed out fun.  Released on August 14, the self-titled EP features four new songs, in the vain of Dio vocal wise, but Ozzy attitude wise.  "Gypsy," "We Got the Rock 'N' Rollz," "Mountain Woman," and "Shogun Messiah," are all just fun 70s style rockers with fuzzy guitars and some clean vocals delivered in over-the-top style.

85/100

Next, released on March 17, Mothership High Strangeness.  I was first drawn to Mothership when I saw their song on the Jimi Hendrix tribute from Magnet Eye Records, who issued Electric Ladyland (Redux) where Mothership covered "Still Raining, Still Dreaming" in spectacular fashion.   High Strangeness doesn't shy away from the drug references, being a part of the stoner rock culture I guess I shouldn't be surprised.  "Speed Dealer" and "Eternal Trip" are two of their song titles on High Strangeness and whether or not the cover of "Helter Skelter" is a drug reference is debatable, I believe.  But still, good stuff.  Nothing new under the sun, but the album is rock solid stoner rock fare and is one that just struck a chord with me last year and made it into my iPod shuffle.  And what a gorgeous cover, I mean look at those colors.

95/100

Finally we come to one of my favorites on the list, issued forth on December first, so it was a late-comer to the part, ReStoned's Chronoclasm.  One thing that you'll notice different about this record right away is there are no vocals.  Zip, nada, none.  Now, maybe I miss the mark here, and maybe i don't.  But I'm not just hearing 70s rock influences when I listen to this album.  I'm hearing some grunge influences.  Maybe some Smashing Pumpkins, some Soundgarden, Screaming Trees, TAD and the like.  Perhaps I'm calling my shots off target, I don't know.  I believe Re-Stoned are fusing the 70s with the 90s and pushing them through the stoner/psychedelic blender and getting something wholly new and unique on the other side.

So anyway, there you have it.  Six albums from 2017 that I dug the most from the stoner rock scene.  Check back often for more reviews, see what we're listening to around here and get a new Vinyl of the day, or at least every other day, LOL.