Release
date: July 13th
2018. Label: Transylvanian
Tapes/Doom Stew Records.
Format: CD/DD/Vinyl
Vol
II
– Tracklisting
1.Circle
06:28
2.Black
Monk 06:21
3.Sensei
07:39
4.Ancient
Ones 07:04
5.Crone
06:16
6.Shine
And Burn 08:11
Members
Kris
Reynolds - Bass
A.J.
Belluto - Drums/Vocals
Ruby
Haynes - Guitar/Vocals
Review
BEIRA
new album Vol II is a heavy stylized mix of Doom, Sludge and Stoner
sounds. The whole album has a very raw and honest feel with the album
feeling like it was recorded live or in a very short space of time.
That's not a bad thing as BEIRA throw you straight into the action
with the excellent opening song - The Circle.
The
song has a very caustic approach for the first few minutes with the
raw sounding clean vocals. Things take a very nasty turn when
harsh/death vocals appear. This is where the album becomes heavier
and more doom orientated. This was an unexpected turn of events as I
was expecting BEIRA to keep up with the Punk/DIY sound they created
on the earlier moments of the song. BEIRA even manage to include
distorted moments of Heavy Psych Rock/Metal on this song.
The
opening track is a good indication on what to expect for the other
songs on the album. As they mostly follow the same route but BEIRA
still manage to include different elements of music on certain parts
of the album. Maybe the production could have done with more work and
more volume added to the mix. As I did struggle hearing certain
songs.
However
this only happened a few times whilst listening to Vol II. The other
songs on the album such as Black Monk, Sensei, Ancients Ones and
Shine And Burn - offer a real menacing threat with their bombastic
styles of Doom and Sludge Metal offset by brutal Hardcore/Death based
growls. The instrumental work is what impresses the most as BEIRA
manage to highly original riffs on their own unflinching and
uncompromising terms.
Vol
II won't be for everyone and is perhaps more suited for the more
adventurous Doom/Sludge/Stoner Metal fan. The album really comes
alive when the Apocalyptic sounding Post-Doom moments appear. If
you’re fan of doom metal heavyweights such as CONAN then you will
find much to enjoy here. Overall, Vol II is a very good album indeed
and BEIRA prove they have a few tricks up their sleeves to scare even
the most jaded of Doom/Sludge Metal fan into heavy submission.
Words
by Steve Howe
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