Release
date: October 2nd 2015. Label: Riding Easy Records. Formats:
CD/DD/Vinyl
Ancient
Of Days - Tracklisting
Meadow
11:51
Laelia
1:47
From
Slumber 5:46
The
Pahtfinder 8:27
Borlung
11:05
Band
Members:
Robert
Sörling - Guitars
Niklas Olsson – Bass/vocals
Jonatan Rimsbo - Drums
Niklas Olsson – Bass/vocals
Jonatan Rimsbo - Drums
Review:
If
there was ever to be an inventor of the stoner doom genre it could
easily be Spelljammer that upon the launch of their first EP laid the
ground pillars for this “stoomer” subgenre. Cardinal
characteristic such as heavy as lead riffs, monolithic drumming,
Richter-scale sized bass-rumbles and distant half-chanting
half-screaming vocals.
First
time I experienced the intergalactic extent of travelling the outer
space with Spelljammer was in 2010 when their first EP took me for an
audible trip in sky just a few Inches From The Sun. I nearly got
burned back then and was scared for life by the heat so close to the
brightest star in our solar system. And like all life’s existence
on Earth depends on the vital solar rays, I too nourish from the
soundscapes conjured by these Swedish overlords in über heavy space
stoner doom.
I
returned in 2012 for more of Spelljammer’s replenishing acidic rain
of melodies and grooves just to find myself left cold and battered to
pieces on a dark place atop of Aun’s Mountain. Vol II was a
different tale boasting a darker and more doomy version of
Spelljammer than was evident from their first outing, which was more
on the stonier side. The imprint left with these two excellent pearls
of amazing stoner doom called for a full length and the vinyl release
of Vol II on the high-praised STB Records the following year did
little to calm down the expectations of an imminent LP release. And
then silence… Rumours of the guys have called it quits started
circulating.
More
than 3 years should pass before the Intergalactic unity of sonic
destruction would resurface, now comprising a new drummer, Jonatan
Rimsbo, and this time under the Riding Easy Records banner with the
promise of new works under way. Anticipation started to build,
expectations were sky-high. I think it’s safe to say that you need
not to worry. The Spelljammer that I have come to love once again
deliver the goods in a convincingly style.
Ancient
Of Days is all that of an album one would expect and pray for them to
deliver, forget about Monolord, forget about Acid King, forget about
“insert band here”.
Meadow
starts thing of with drawn-out guitars, pulsating, vibrating, waving
from side to side, and pushing everything into motion. Tension builds
and it becomes evident that something is on the way in the dark
horizon as higher and higher waves of sound washes around you. The
build-up lasts almost to the 3 minute mark where all energy is
unleashed with a huge crash; enter dump-truck sized drums and bass
lines with a magnitude designed to tear down houses.
Suddenly
you find yourself floating in a syrupy sea of stoner grooves
transporting you far into stoner doom heaven. This is a musical
mind-fuck of the highest calibre. The track has a strong ebb-tide
composition where the rock-solid stoner groove alternates with more
quite psychedelic parts that give the song some great counterparts to
the ever so massive grooving riffs. Once the spell is cast there is
no turning back from their vibrating vacuum. It’s all about
succumbing to the power of the massive soundwaves emanating from this
super-massive black hole radiating high in a star lid sky without
getting torn to pieces by the swirling razor-sharp riff. And before
noticing the song is brought to a halt.
Only
one track in, and already it feels like a long journey, meant in the
most positive way, as at no point Ancient Of Days feel monotonous,
perhaps due to the aforementioned ebb-tide effect or simply by the
fact that this album is damn well executed. The second track Laelia,
a short acoustic instrumental intermezzo, comes with perfect timing
leaving enough time to pack your astronaut bag and check for supplies
for the next astral journeys that lies ahead.
3rd
track, From Slumber, starts of quiet and kind of ambient, with a much
laid back approach oozing with an almost “Sleepy” atmosphere and
an ever present Dopesmoker kind of vibe. In fact the first half of
this track could easily have been found as a slight-return on said
album. Second half takes off into space with swirling guitar flares
bursting into the pitch black night sky while thick waves of
bass-lines meander like hot molten lava underneath it all. At times
Niklas Olsson’s voice almost menacing on top.
Comparisons
aside, Spelljammer is doing stellar work on this track and
slip-sliding the obvious traps of merely mimicking the genre’s
greats. They instead create their own niche within the super-heavy
space stoner doom and evolve from the notes stroked on their previous
works.
The
Pathfinder starts with feedback and after a quick scream it ready-on
launches directly into another of Spelljammer’s monstrous signature
stoomer grooves. This track embodies a lot of the best things from
the Vol II EP’s and also includes some super-sweet bass leads
scattered around the track that brings back the epic work of Geezer
Butler to mind. Pathfinder is the stand-out track for me on the
already impressive collection of songs that constitute Ancient Of
Days. It has this sort of “driving” feel where everything works
as a well-oiled engine pushing all elements forwards towards the
inevitable end - although you never want it to end.
Album
closer Borlung sets the scene for a space lord duel on a barren
wind-swept planetary desert, where the two villains slowly are
approaching each other as spacey samplings and ambient noises
forewarn of a near clash between the duellists. Slowly circulating
and attacking at once at the onset of the stoner machinery, the
battle of Borlung has begun. And it’s a fight of epic proportions,
through the next 11 and some minutes the serpentine bodied lord
fights for his life.
The
track turns and twists as the battle unfolds, spikes and blades fly
high in the air above the surface of this futile planet. As Borlung
finally manages to subdue his opponent the hymn slows down and the
whole thing ends in a huge flash of light with the final beat of the
drums. Verdict: A sonic tale of universal dimensions and clearly a
contender for Top 10 of 2015.
Words
by Niels Fuzz Bartholdy
Thanks
to Dave at US/THEM PR Group for the promo. Ancient Of Days is now
available to buy on CD/DD/Vinyl from RidingEasy Records now.
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