Nebula Drag - Blud (Album Review)

Release date: September 27th 2019. Label: Desert Records. Format: CD/DD/Vinyl

Blud – Tracklisting

1.Dos Lados

2.Knives

3.Always Dying 05:06

4.Dogs or Gods

5.We All Want to Know 04:14

6.Faces

7.What Went Wrong

8.Numb

9.Infinite Vacation

10.Mental

Members

Corey Quintana -Guitar/Vocals

Stephen Varns -Drums

Garrett Gallagher-Bass

Review

Nebula Drag second album Blud shows you how far the band have progressed since their debut album. As the band have returned with a heavier and more psychedelic sound. Partially inspired by KYUSS but Nebula Drag offer their own twisted take on the classic Stoner Rock/Metal sound.

Opening song - Dos Lados – dives right into playing a heavy progressive groove with Nebula Drag adding spaced out vibes for a world weary sound. The song firmly comes in to focus when lead vocalist Corey’s vocals appear and everything moves up a gear. The instrumental work is quite intense in places with the band showing their love for nineties Grunge and Stoner Metal. The lyrics are good but it’s the heavy atmospheric riffs that make this song work and allow Nebula Drag to explore this sound further on the rest of the album. 

Second song – Knives – has a Fuzzier style of music with the pounding Desert/Stoner Metal vibes once again transporting the listener back to the hey-day of Stoner Rock/Metal and you can hear elements of Kyuss and Monster Magnet fused into Nebula Drag’s DNA. The lyrics are quite hard-hitting in places and shows you that the band mean business on this album. Corey’s vocals impress yet again with the music having a more distorted sound compared to other songs on the album.

Third song – Always Dying – is a more personal song with the band putting their hearts and souls into this song. It’s a more “Blues” based offering that shows you a different side to Nebula Drag. Add a slightly bleak “Americana” atmosphere and this song ranks as one of the best songs on the album. The song is played at a deliberate slow pace but still offers a heavy experience when the faster riffs appear on the second half of the song. 

Fourth song - Dogs Or Gods – is a trippy and surreal take on all things Stoner Rock/Metal with different noises and ambient sounds that are set against a backdrop of finely played Stoner Rock/Metal grooves. The lyrics aren’t the best but the riffs make everything worthwhile and you’re rewarded with another engaging vocal performance from Corey. The song does see Nebula Drag add a gloomier atmosphere to their overall sound and it’s quite exciting to listen to.

The second half of the album carries on the good work that Nebula Drag showed in the first half with the band creating heavier and more spaced out progressive sounds with songs - We All Want To Know, Numb and Infinite Vacation being the main standouts. The whole feel and flow of the album has a vintage and timeless quality to it and that’s mainly down to the fantastic production contained within this album.

Overall, Blud offers a captivating and exciting journey into the wild realm of Psychedelic Stoner Metal that will see Nebula Drag forge an exciting future for themselves within the Stoner Metal community.

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Desert Records for the promo. Blud will be available to buy on CD/DD/Vinyl from September 27th 2019 via Desert Records.

Links

Facebook | BandCamp