Sunday 15 September 2019

Ealdor Bealu - Spirit of the Lonely Places (Album Review)


Release date: July 20th 2019. Label: Self Released. Format: DD/Vinyl

Spirit of the Lonely Places – Tracklisting

1.Sink like Stone 06:52
2.Firebird 06:38
3.Smoke Signals 07:32
4.Isolation 09:21
5.The Four Horsemen 08:44 

Members

Carson Russell: Guitars, Vocals
Rylie Collingwood: Bass, Vocals
Travis Abbott: Guitars, Vocals
Craig Hawkins: Drums, Percussion

Review

Spirit Of The Lonely Places is the new album from Heavy Psych Rockers - Ealdor Bealu – and the Boise, Idaho natives bring a more earthly sounding style of Psychedelic Stoner Rock that impresses from the start. Ealdor Bealu feel inspired by Drone Rock Legends – EARTH – in places and their lyrics and almost drone based sensibilities has a quirky and intelligent feel to it.

The album is not your most straight forward album with the band adding elements of Folk, Drone, Doom and Experimental Rock to their overall sound. Add an almost claustrophobic 90s Alt Rock vibe and this album is quite mysterious in places. The vocals from Carson, Rylie and Travis are impressive indeed and they’re spliced throughout the entire album.

Ealdor Bealu create music by their own rules and songs such as Sink Like Stone, Firebird and Isolation is a testament to the band’s talent in creating highly progressive sounds that pushes the boundaries of Psychedelic Stoner Rock with it’s gloomy Doom Rock surroundings. The riffs are excellent allowing the band to fully explore different styles of music within the songs epic run-time.

The album can be deceptively quiet and loud at the same time with the band reaching high volumes of cinematic style Doom based Stoner Rock grooves. The album isn’t going to be for everyone as Spirit Of The Lonely Places has a more adventurous spirit compared to some of the other Psychedelic Rock albums I’ve heard this year.

The production is exquisite with the album being mastered by Brad Boatright for outstanding sound production values. Ealdor Bealu have released a forward thinking album with a deeply hidden emotional core that you don’t expect and one that will last long in the memory.

Excellent and Highly Recommended.

Links:

Facebook | BandCamp