Monday, 12 May 2025

FROGLORD - Metamorphosis (Album Review)

Release Date: May 02nd 2025. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD/Vinyl

Metamorphosis - Tracklisting

1.Collision 04:31

2.Follow The Star 04:00

3.Herman 03:50

4.The Swamp 03:52

5.Cryptids 04:10

6.Mutation 05:26

7.Emergence of The Toad 07:50

8.Sweet Emotion 04:18


Members


Vocals - Benjamin 'Froglord' Oak

Guitar - Jordan 'Caudata' Cross

Bass - Luke 'Bufo' Clemenger

Drums - Chris 'Anura' Seldon


Review


Sludge/Doom/Stoner Metal Amphibian Overlords Froglord have achieved a great deal since their inception in 2020 where they have told a very cool and highly intriguing story of The Froglord. It’s perhaps better for the band describe their overall creative story for Froglord:


SINCE THE DAWN OF TIME, MYSTICS HAVE FORETOLD THE COMING OF THE FROGLORD, AN ANCIENT AMPHIBIAN WITH DEATHRAY VISION AND ECTOPLASMIC SLIME


Five years into their entire existence, the band have released their stunning fifth album Metamorphosis and it’s inspired by the legendary DUNE saga in places and even though I’ve been a fan for a long time this is the first time I’ve featured them on the blog. Shame on me but I’ll correct that oversight by reviewing their outstanding record which is full of classic Doom, Sludge and Stoner Metal grooves with influences ranging from CONAN, Mastodon, The Melvins, Black Sabbath and BONGZILLA. The aquatic theme is the main way for Froglord to tell their story of their aquatic messiah. 


The music is harsh, aggressive and superbly melodic with a distorted and destructive energy that appears from within the murky swampedelic grooves that has a killer WO FAT sound developing from the early stages of the album on tracks such as Collision, Follow The Star and Herman.


Sure, everything is over the top but it’s served Froglord brilliantly well over the years but the band have the talent to back up their superbly unique creative vision. There’s a wide assortment of Prog Rock sounds and NOLA based riffs with intense production values appearing throughout. Even if you’re not fully on board with the trippy, surreal, highly psychedelic storyline then Froglord will impress with their great style of extreme vocals and abstract instrumental passages.


The record just transforms into a seedier and heavier style of Sludge/Stoner Metal where Froglord blur the creative lines of fantasy and reality with a subtle Blues Rock energy developing throughout the album which shows a wonderful sense of black comedic humour along the way.


Other standout tracks include: Cryptids, Mutation and Emergence Of The Toad which cements Froglord as a force to be reckoned with. What really seals the deal is their stunning cover of the Aerosmith classic Sweet Emotion. A great cover that pays homage to the original but also desconstructs the track and rebuilds it within Froglord’s undeniable heavy and downtuned image.


Metamorphosis allows Froglord to swap some of their underground “CULT” appeal for a well deserved shot at something bigger and better within the Doom, Sludge and Stoner Metal scene. 


This is FROGLORD's most outrageous and brilliantly entertaining record to date. Long may that continue...


Links


LinkTree | BandCamp | BigCartel


Psych Stoner Rock Collective BASK Release Cosmic Cover of The Brian Jonestown Massacre Classic Track Anemone


After a smoking hot tour with their labelmates and fellow North Carolinians Weedeater, Bask are now ready to turn over a different kind of leaf. The Asheville natives will release their fourth album later this year. But first, the band are looking back at one of their influences.

"We've always been inspired by acts like The Brian Jonestown Massacre", says guitarist and vocalist Zeb Wright. "They write songs that feel outside of time and place".

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the documentary that thrust The Brian Jonestown Massacre into the spotlight, today, Bask are releasing a cover of "Anemone". The road to get to this point has been much smoother than it was for the shaggy San Franciscan collective, but the heavy dose of Americana that the band bring to this cult classic shows how far they've come.

Even though they're separated across coastlines and nearly three decades, Bask and The Brian Jonestown Massacre were in a similar headspace heading into their fourth albums. While partially named after the Rolling Stones' guitarist, BJM shifted from spaced-out shoegaze to flower-powered '60s psychedelia on 1996's Their Satanic Majesties' Second Request. Bask's upcoming full-length also ventures into headier pastures, though their cover of that album's sleeper hit "Anemone" is plucked straight from the band's Appalachian roots.

"You should be picking me up / Instead you're dragging me down", Wright repeats in a dazed drawl while twanging on his banjo.

Bask haven't endured nearly the same amount of lineup turnover as their kindred spirits in The Brian Jonestown Massacre. On "Anemone", Drummer Scott Middleton and bassist Jesse Van Note hold down a bottomless groove that's as sludgy and free-flowing as a riverbed. But this cover is the first release since Jed Willis joined as the band's official fifth member. As his pedal steel ripples against Ray Worth's colorfully swirling leads, the band take cosmic country into a whole new dimension.

"'Anemone' is hypnotic in its repetition and perfectly expresses the combination of emotional distress and unbothered cool that to us feels so integral to BJM's sound and songwriting", Bask says. "It's also really fun to play and riff on".

More praise for Bask:

"I've heard the components of Bask's music before: Baroness, U.S. Christmas, Bruce Springsteen, Crazy Horse, Across Tundras and so forth. But I've never heard them together as one unit. If someone were to ask me if it were possible to be heavy without being brutal, I'd refer them to Bask" - Invisible Oranges.

"Such a knack for expressive music is Bask's bread and butter" - Angry Metal Guy

"This is the kind of band you want to see grow. Join the party now" - Heavy Blog is Heavy

"The entire thing rocks your socks off with gripping guitar riffing" - Metal Bite

"... a remarkable demonstration of melodic genius created by a shrewd horde of big-footed giants...behold and bear witness to legends among villagers!" - Outlaws of the Sun

"...undeniably both infection and innovative" - Metal Storm

Lineup:

Jesse Van Note – Bass
Scott Middleton – Drums
Ray Worth – Guitar
Zeb Wright – Guitar/Vocals
Jed Willis - Pedal Steel

Guest Musician:

Kenny Harrington - Tambourine

Recording Studio:

Echo Mountain Spring

Production:

Produced, Engineered and Mixed by Kenny Harrington and Zeb Wright.

Mastered by Joe Hutchinson at Garage Masters in Nashville, TN

Follow Bask:


Thanks to Season Of Mist for all of the info.

Live Gig Review - Alain Johannes (with Earl Of Hell) - London Underworld on Friday May 9th 2025

 

Alain Johannes (with Earl of Hell) review

There are few better ways to spend an evening than with good live music and Firday night at Camden's The Underworld was no exception.


Dan and Lewis from Earl of Hell kindly spent the best part of an hour with me talking touring, their recent debut album, Mark Lanegan and working with Alain Johannes and I'll write that up to follow this a little later.


An evening headlined by Alain Johannes and supported by Earl of Hell began with a set from Okay You Win. I wasn't familiar with the band before this show but I'll be checking them out further. Their set was an impressive blend of psych-infused desert rock and the lead vocalist was superb with a great delivery that could be both dirty and soaring as needed.


Once their set was finished, it was a very quick turnaround until Earl of Hell took to the stage.


Anyone that has read some of my writings over the last year or so will know how highly I rate them. As much as I'm a huge fan if Alain, I've been listening to them a lot since seeing them last year and so was looking forward to hearing their set almost as much as that of the main man himself.


I love their recently released, self-titled album (which I've had in my listening rotation pretty constantly since it's release last month), so it was a real treat to hear it played in full, front-to-back. If you don’t have it or haven’t heard it, get over to https://earlofhell.bandcamp.com/album/earl-of-hell , Nine tracks of loud but melodic desert/stoner-rock which grabs you and doesn’t ease up from beginning to end.


Lead vocalist, Eric Brock got his teeth into the material right from the off as The Infernal Dream kicked the set into life with a real thumping, crunching sound which filled the venue with noise, but even better was how the vocals and harmonies stood up in the live setting.


The fast-paced and in-your-face Impaler was next, not letting up as Dean Gordon on bass and Ryan Wilson on drums kept an impressive rhythm alongside the twin guitar sounds of Lewis Inglis and Dan Mitchell whilst all were brought together by the frantic vocal assault by Brock. It was dark, loud and fantastic. The track that made me sit up an pay attention to the band last year in the same venue was great to hear in person again and it if anything had only gained in it's power, bite and impetus.


Brave New Age and Calling Is The Crow followed next, two songs which have lately been amongst my favourites of theirs and both supplying riffs in abundance with a varied mesh of sounds. Brave New Age in particular is one that’s really grown on me of late and gives me a bit of an Alice In Chains/Jerry Cantrell vibe (never a bad thing), hearing it in person was something special indeed.


Them after My Twisted Mind came Macabra Cadabra, possibly my favourite one from the album and it was beautiful in its loud, dark relentlessness and there was a sea of nodding heads all the way through.


Waiting To Die (which at its climax features bass player Dean playing in amongst the audience) and Bloodlines are excellent as both album and set closers and as the latter reached it's end, building from a number of sounds and styles throughout, I could easily have listened to much more from the band (which we sort of would, later)and think that it's a great sign that the album stands up so well in the live setting and the band can more than match it's recorded counterpart.


If you get the chance to see Earl of Hell live, I can only highly recommend. It's loud and there's plenty in their music for everyone; a bit of sludgy, crunching guitar, powerful bass and drums, a lovely twinned guitar sounds throughout some of the songs, great harmonies and a front man who really seems to be at home in the role and has a real stage presence and command of the mic.


The main event was still to come though, the incomparable maestro that is Alain Johannes.


With a number of guitars spread around the stage initially, it was just the man on a stool with the cigar-box guitar that's become somewhat of a signature for him.


Starting off with the rather gentle pairing of ‘Not On This Earth’ and ‘Eyes to the Sky’, it always amazes me the sounds that he conjures and control that the man has over his instrument, making melodies that are at times both rapid but soothing, coupled with lyrics to match the mood.


The first of a few tracks this evening to be plucked from his incredible album, Spark follow with the beautiful ‘Return to You’ and then ‘Gentle Ghosts’, which is preceded by some astounding improvisation playing which is something that he's just masterful at. For me, the sounds he makes at times conjure up similar feelings that I get from the work of Duke Garwood in that it has a transcendental quality, and the ability make you feel that you are someplace else. I find myself closing my eyes at times and letting it wash over me.


‘If Morning Comes’ from the latest Johannes solo album, Hun follows, and it's nice to hear one from there. It's one of my favourite albums of the last few years and it was nice to hear it in the live environment. 


Another track from Spark, ‘Make God Jealous’ is next with Alain switching to a conventional acoustic guitar and his dexterity and command of the instrument is again to the forefront, as it is on ‘Unfinished Plan’, which follows.


A further guitar change brings in the first of the night's numbers from the Desert Sessions, ‘Holey Dime’ followed up by two numbers from his former band Eleven, ‘Seasick of You’ and ‘You're My Diamond’.


These weren't part of the set I heard at The Underworld last year and handled by Alain solo acoustically they sound heart-wrenchingly beautiful and are two real highlights of the night for me.


A tribute to Chris Cornell follows, with Alain's take on ‘Disappearing One’, which he helped put together as part of his work on Cornell’s Euphoria Mourning album. As one of the tracks' creators, Alain Johannes does a great job in keeping the essence of the song similar to its album version, but moulding it so that, although vocally it sounds different (as hardly anyone can compare with Chris Cornell on that front) it remains just as vital and moving and acts as a wonderful tribute to the virtuoso's lost friend.


Following this, the bulk of Earl of Hell (for the time being minus Eric Brock) appear as Alain's support band for the remainder of the set, with Johannes now wielding an electric guitar as his weapon of choice as ‘Let It Gnaw’ from the Fragments and Wholes album was brought to life in a real chugging and loud fashion that immediately said that this was going to be a much louder and energetic half of the set with the gentle stuff now put to rest for the evening.


It's amazing how Alain Johannes can instantly get from that zone of playing really calm, soothing numbers to some dirty desert rock from one song to the other but his career is nothing if not varied and it must now be second nature to him.


The immense Eleven track, ‘Ava Tar’ follows, the bass and guitar pounding the ribs as it continues to its climax, before following up with the Johannes solo track, ‘Kaleidoscope’.


Last year, one of my highlights of the Johannes/Earl of Hell combination was hearing their take on Eleven's ‘Nature Wants To Kill Me’ and again tonight it didn't disappoint and really hit the spot. The combination of Alain with Earl of Hell seemed really tight as a unit all night and they really brought the Eleven songs to life in a way I don’t think you’ll have seen bettered unless you were fortunate enough to see the original band. Nowhere was this more apparent than on this number which was simply electrifying.


Lewis Inglis provides impeccable harmonies alongside Alain (throughout the whole of this set, to be fair, but they are particularly effective and evocative here) and the whole track just bounced along with a vibrancy and infectiousness. This is to me, rock music at its best. It didn't let up either with another walloping rendition of an Eleven track, this time Crash Today, which the audience really got into.


The final Eleven songs of the evening followed with soaring versions of ‘Why’ and ‘Reach Out’. People were singing along and they created an incredible atmosphere. I talked to a couple of fellow fans after the show, who were big fans of Eleven and they said that this part was a real highlight for them.


A major highlight for me was in the next little run of songs to come. As a huge Mark Lanegan fan myself, Alain then brough Earl of Hell frontman Eric Brock (also a huge Lanegan fan) back out to join them as they next blasted through ‘Driving Death Valley Blues’ from the partially Johannes-produced Bubblegum album. The band had previously shared a video from last year where they had made a couple of attempts at the song, but they seem to have quickly gotten the measure of it. Covering Lanegan I’d imagine is no easy task and nobody is going to be able to replicate the man’s vocal prowess, but Brock was assured thoroughout, adopting a Lanegan-esque stance, gripping the mic and performing a memorable version.


A further tribute to the much-missed Lanegan followed with ‘The Gravedigger’s Song’, a staple of Lanegan setlists since 2012’s Blues Funeral (and, coincidentally my Dad’s favourite Lanegan song) and one which I imagine many in the audience would be familiar with. In a brief chat with Eric Brock after the show, he said that of this and the previous song, that this one if more of a challenge to sing as it’s more outside of his natural range, but, with Alain also accompanying both instrumentally and vocally, backed by the band, they create a stirring rendition, which I think ‘Dark Mark’ himself would have approved of.


Mr Johannes again resumed vocal duties for a run-through of Hangin’ Tree, a Queens of the Stone Age number previously headed up by Lanegan, but created by Alain as part of the famed Desert Sessions. It’s pounding, rollicking and exactly as you’d expect, a euphoric statement from a well-oiled combination towards the end of their set.


I often think that covering songs performed by an artist with such a singular voice and presence as Mark Lanegan must surely be somewhat of a risk for a band, as (speaking with my Lanegan-fan hat on) there’s nobody that’s ever going to be able to sing those songs like him. However on occasions like this, with the songs being arranged by one of Lanegan’s dear friends, along with talented musicians who treat the songs respectfully and keep the original feel of the song while remaining themselves throughout, they work incredibly as both a tribute to the man and as great additions to the setlist. It would be a shame if some of those songs were never played live again, and so to hear them live again was both poignant and uplifting.


The set was rounded out with a full-band version of Making A Cross. The versions of this I usually hear are Alain solo-acoustic, and it’s an elegant heartfelt number (one I believe he wrote at the same time out in the desert at Joshua Tree as Hangin’ Tree in what must have been a very fruitful time). What he and the band manage to achieve with this version is to retain those qualities, but to also to add some sludgy, fuzzy noise and make it a stoner/desert rock version of it, with it leaving a lasting reverberation as the band take their bows and left the stage.


All in all, a wonderful night. I hugely enjoyed seeing Alain Johannes and Earl of Hell last year at this venue, but this was even better. The Earl of Hell set is longer and an extra years’ playing seems to have made them even better live. Alain Johannes is always a joy and there is a reason that his contemporaries often refer to him simply as ‘maestro’.


The combination with he and Earl of Hell also seemed to be even tighter and you would think they had been playing together in that set-up for many years as it really brought to life a lot of the heavier, rockier numbers that Alain is involved with. I hope it’s a pairing that continues for many years to come.


The tour continues for the next week, so if you are anywhere near these venues, I’d implore you to grab a ticket and enjoy a sublime night of music:

- Thu 15 May. Leeds, Lending Room. Alain Johannes, Earl of Hell.
- Fri 16 May. Birkenhead, Future Yard.
- Sat 17 May. Glasgow, Cat House.


Words by Gary L Taylor

Sunday, 11 May 2025

US doom metallers GOYA release new single off upcoming "In the Dawn of November" album on Blues Funeral Recordings; US summer tour announced!


Phoenix, Arizona's heavier-than-thou doom metal spearhead GOYA unleashes their new single "Depressive Episode" — a skull-grinding new excerpt off their fourth studio album "In the Dawn of November", out June 13th on Blues Funeral Recordings. The band just announced an extensive East Coast tour with fellow doom mongers Bronco.

With sprawling compositions, titan-heavy riffs drenched in fuzz and haunting atmospherics, GOYA fit right between genre pioneers Electric Wizard, Sleep and Acid King, while adding an undeniable grit and charisma to their own recipe. They doesn't just play doom music: they embody it to the core. Unrelenting and immersive, their fourth studio album "In the Dawn of November" is raucous, hypnotic and defiantly punishing. Recorded by Jack Endino (High On Fire, Year of the Cobra, Soundgarden), this new sonic onslaught from the desert trio takes no prisoners while sweeping everything on its mighty path.


Get hit at full force by Goya's new video "Depressive Episode" + listen to the song on all streaming services


About the album, frontman Jeffrey Owens reflects: "The eight years since the last Goya record have brought me face to face with some hard truths about life. I’m getting older, and mortality has struck me in new ways, so this album is largely a meditation on death. In the Dawn of November is the natural evolution of the band, and the culmination of everything that came before it, simultaneously signifying a new era for Goya." 

Watch their latest video for In the Dawn of November!

Goya Eastern US Tour with Bronco

12 Jun – Chicago, IL – Reggies / Music Joint
13 Jun – Indianapolis, IN – State Street
14 Jun – Cleveland, OH – The Winchester
15 Jun – Detroit, MI – Parts and Labor
17 Jun – Toronto, ON – Bovine Sex Club
18 Jun – Montreal, QC – Bluedog
19 Jun – Portland, ME – Geno's Rock Club
20 Jun – Jamaica Plain, MA – The Midway Cafe
21 Jun – Brooklyn, NY – The Wood Shop
22 Jun – Philadelphia, PA – Nikki Lopez
23 Jun – Richmond, VA – Bandito's
25 Jun – Winston-Salem, NC – Hoots
26 Jun – TBA
27 Jun – Atlanta, GA – Boggs Social & Supply
28 Jun – New Orleans, LA – Gasa Gasa
29 Jun – Houston, TX – White Oak / Upstairs

GOYA "In the Dawn of November" - Out June 13th on Blues Funeral Recordings
Preorder on Bandcamp, BFR shop and European shop


Formed in 2011 by guitarist and vocalist Jeffrey Owens, Goya's 2012 demo showcased their early potential, but it was their debut full-length "777" (2013) that announced their fearsome arrival in the doom underground. With sprawling, riff-heavy compositions and occult-tinged lyrics, "777" resonated deeply with fans of titanic sludge-metal. Continuing to evolve, Goya released "Obelisk" in 2015, a concept album that refined their blend of psychedelic doom. They followed this with their magnum opus, 2017's "Harvester of Bongloads", another concept album that leaned as heavily as ever into their fuzz-laden, riff-driven aesthetic and further cemented their legacy of unrelenting doom and immersive sonic landscapes.

In the summer of 2024, Goya returned to the road for a month-long US tour after taking a few years to write their fourth album, "In the Dawn of November", to be released in the spring of 2025 via New Mexico-based label Blues Funeral Recordings (Acid King, Lowrider, Dozer). Goya entered Soundhouse Studios in Seattle in the fall with legendary producer Jack Endino (High On Fire, Year of the Cobra, Soundgarden) to lay down a monolithic work of graveyard grooves and bleak reflections to herald their towering return with their most accomplished and unwaveringly bone-crushing record to date — leading the trio to ink a deal with revered Albuquerque-based label Blues Funeral Recordings.

Goya is

Marcus Bryant - Drums
Jeffrey Owens - Guitar/Vocals
CJ Sholtis - Bass

Goya links

Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram | Spotify

Blues Funeral Recordings links


Thanks to Purple Sage PR for all of the details.

RIFFTREE - Wonky (EP Review)

Release Date: May 09th 2025. Record Label: No Profit Recordings. Formats: DD

Wonky - Tracklisting

1.Bobby 02:47

2.Drinkypoo 01:43

3.Wonky 03:52

4.Ain't Shook 05:05

5.Bongfucker 04:41

6.It's Too Late (Outro) 00:47


Members


 Zmija Filip - Bass/Vocals Marko Virovac - Drums/Vocals


Review


Wonky is the third EP from Croatian Noise/Doom/Stoner/Sludge Rockers RIFFTREE and they add touches of Psych, Drone and Punk into their intense and action packed sound. They have played alongside the likes of UFOMAMMUT and Psychlona where it’s not hard to see why. RIFFTREE are a highly talented band with a pissed off and highly aggressive sound which is put through the Sludge Metal grinder on their latest EP.


The EP only lasts for about nineteen minutes with RIFFTREE delivering a BASS HEAVY and DISTORTED style of music which reminds me of early-era MELVINS and MOTORHEAD at times. Everything is stripped back with a classic sounding DIY atmosphere with intense Hardcore Punk vocals coming blazing through superbly well on tracks such as Bobby, Drinkypoo and Wonky. The lyrics are outrageous and very much in your face whilst the music is played with serious intent especially when things become more SLUDGE METAL based with a twisted Psychedelic energy appearing along the way.


The second half is more WEEDIAN and DOOM obsessive on tracks such as Ain’t Shook and Bongfucker where you can detect a slight WEEDEATER and BONGZILLA influence with the subtle Psychedelic rhythms and harsh melodies. RIFFTREE play with a NO FUCKS GIVEN energy and with that creative attitude then I’m sure RIFFTREE can go a long way in the scene. They have the backing of the mighty NO PROFIT RECORDINGS for this release and WONKY may get a physical release at a later date. 

 

The production is not the best but it allows RIFFTREE to play to their absolute strengths whilst not being contained by modern day recording and production techniques. This is an absolute blast of violent riffs, thrills and spills with RIFFTREE delivering the goods from the very start.


Excellent and Highly Recommended.


Links


Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram


Magmasurfer - Phosphor (Album Review)

Release Date: May 01st 2025. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD

Phosphor - Tracklisting

1.Monstertruck 04:07

2.Sunrun 06:47

3.I Am California 05:37

4.Turtle 05:04

5.Peep 04:18

6.Justitia 06:23


Members


Drums - Mau

Bass, Vox - Rahel

Git, Vox - Lemmy


Review


Phosphor is the debut album from Grunge/Doomsters Magmasurfer who plays sounds inspired the likes of The Melvins, TAD, Mudhoney, Soundgarden and Nirvana with a trippy streetwise level of Doom, Sludge and Stoner Metal being added along the way. There’s a weird Noise Rock attitude that is elevated to a superb style of FUZZ ROCK heaviness. The album can be quite HIP and SURREAL but Magmasurfer know how to create a highly evolving sound of Rock/Metal packed with old-school 90’s attitude.


The record is superbly heavy with Magmasurfer tapping into a destructive style of Doom Metal with flashes of Psych Rock distortion with Lead vocalist Lemmy having a grizzled and determined style that reminds me of KING BUZZO and Kurt Cobain in places. The songs that make up Phosphor have a rebellious creative theme to them with the sound always transforming into a melodic Sludge Rock formation especially on the first half of the album which is perhaps where the standout sounds appear on tracks such as Monsterstruck, Sunrun and I Am California. 


Magmasurfer are quite experimental on the later stages of the record where they surround themselves with a wide variety of trippy noises, Dark Wave stylings and Post-Rock themes which makes the record an ever more intriguing listen that definitely makes Magmasurfer worth checking out. The lyrics have a great Post-Punk quality to them with Lemmy doing a fine job delivering them with superb creative control and conviction. Rahel provides excellent backup vocals when needed and plays the bass with thundering precision. Rounding off this highly talented power trio is Mau on drums.


The second half of the record leads heavily into the gonzo aesthetic with twisted noises and long drawn out sludgy soundscapes with Peep and Justica being the other standout tracks on the album. If you’re missing the good old days of 1990’s Grunge, Sludge and Stoner Metal but with a Noise Rock delivery then Magmasurfer are the band to cure your Doomed Out Blues. As Phosphor is a wickedly entertaining album with tons of seedy and fuzzy grooves within the compact runtime of the whole album. 


Check this out when you can. As this RULES. End Of.


Links


BandCamp | Instagram


Saturday, 10 May 2025

Austin Heavy Rock Trio DEMONS MY FRIENDS share new video "The Isolate". New album coming early 2026 on Ripple Music!


Austin-based heavy rock trio DEMONS MY FRIENDS have recently signed to Ripple Music for the release of their new album in early 2026, and present a brand new track with "The Isolate" today!

“The Isolate” is the result of a very personal exploration for the band members, who focused on trying to reflect through this song the high anxiety that they experienced as socially awkward teenagers many years ago. This song also seeks to introduce the audience to the thematic grounding that will be the foundation for their soon-to-be-announced sophomore release.

️ Watch Demons My Friends new video The Isolate


About the song, guitarist and vocalist Pablo Anton says, "Demons My Friends continues to be a therapeutic effort for all of us, and with this new song we wanted to shine a light on our teen years. One of the best things from growing up is getting some perspective on the dramas from our past, and looking back at events in our lives that were really overwhelming in the moment, but later mean absolutely nothing. It reflects how much of the dramas in our lives can be mostly invented by our own minds, by our own demons, and live only inside us but they don’t exist in the real world and other people can’t even perceive them."

New single "The Isolate" out now via Ripple Music. Listen on all streaming services


“The surreal, apocalyptic imagery matches the dark and downbeat vibe of the sludgy track. Think fuzz. Think riffs. Think drop-tuned heaviness.” — Decibel Magazine

“Alternative doom is not a new thing, although I think it’s yet to truly mature, and this group definitely has the chops to carry the genre further.” – Invisible Oranges

Demons My Friends is a Mexican band that blends elements of rock, post-punk, and doom. The power trio embarked on their creative endeavor via an impromptu recording session at the SXSW music festival in Austin, TX in 2022 and have consummated their relationship with their debut full-length titled "Demons Seem to Gather", which was produced and mixed by Jeff Henson (Duel, Greenbeard, Spirit Adrift, Clutch) and mastered by Alberto de Icaza. They have also provided direct tour support for artists like Bruce Dickinson and Graveyard.

Their approach is typically described as both emotionally charged and sonically adventurous, mixing raw power with a sense of reflective moodiness while their thematic focus often deals with personal struggles, societal themes, and the complexities of human experience with a touch of existential or philosophical contemplation.

DEMONS MY FRIENDS is

Pablo Anton – Guitars and vocals
Lu Salinas – Bass and vocals
Tarro Martinez – Drums

DEMONS MY FRIENDS links

Website | Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram | Spotify

RIPPLE MUSIC links


Thanks to Purple Sage PR and Gravitoyd Heavy Music for the details.