Tuesday, 19 March 2019

LáGoon - The Unwelcome (Album Review)


Release date: March 04th 2019. Label: Forbidden Place Records. Format: CD/DD/Vinyl/Cassette

The Unwelcome – Tracklisting

1.The Unwelcome 04:43
2.Wheel Bite 04:09
3.The Thirst 04:50
4.Worship the Van 03:57
5.Chop City 02:47
6.Last Hex 05:36
7.Alligator (In Your Head) 03:59
8.Live Through Death 04:05
9.Adieu, Desierto 02:02

Members

Anthony Gaglia (Guitar/Vocals) Brady Maurer (Drums)

Review

One of Stoner Rock craziest duo’s return with their 3rd record within a 12 month period. LáGoon return with a more darker and crazier sound on The Unwelcome. This is perhaps their darkest, trippiest and most catchiest release to date. If you’re in the mood for lo-fi Stoner Rock merged with Punk Rock, Doom, Fuzz Rock, Classic Rock and Heavy Metal then LáGoon have you covered with this album.

All of the songs are quite gloomy with the band taking influence from a wide range of different artists. The opening song – The Unwelcome – feels like the twisted offspring of Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats and Garage Rock era Alice Cooper. The music is hazy and trippy with lots of psychedelic grooves keeping the music played a cool subtle pace.

LáGoon forge their own creative path on this album and it’s perhaps their strongest record to date with the band creating a more focused sound compared to previous releases. Songs such as Wheel Bite, The Thirst, Worship The Van and Chop City maybe Punk Rock orientated. However listen to the eerie Doomed Out Psychedelic Sounds being played in the background and you can feel this album starting to move into many different directions.

The production is clear and crisp and offers the listener a distorted vintage sound which makes the album sound very different and unique in places. The second half of the album is perhaps doesn’t quite match the excitement of the 1st half but LáGoon have other cool songs to check out such as Last Hex, Alligator (In Your Head) and Live Through Death.

The Unwelcome is another great release from this hugely talented duo. If you’re new to the world of LáGoon then this is the best place to start. Long-time fans will no doubt enjoy this slice of Heavy Stoner Rock Weirdness that is THE UNWELCOME.

Words by Steve Howe

Links:

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