Release Date: January 31st 2025. Record Label: Glory Or Death Records. Formats: DD/Vinyl
The Other Side - Track Listing:
1.Disconnected 05:42
2.Caught Inside 04:23
3.Borrowed Time 07:51
4.Cyclops King 05:58
5.Last Gladiator 04:20
6.The Other Side 05:52
Review
Californian Desert/Stoner Rock Riffster Idol Lord new album The Other Side displays a level of distorted Fuzz/Space Rock heaviness on their excellent debut album The Other Side that should mark them out as future stars of the underground scene. Their album has echoes of FU MANCHU, KYUSS, TRUCKFIGHTERS and SLEEP within its creative domain. The record is quite aggressive and dominantly sleazy in all the right places which is played to great use and effect on the superb opening track of Disconnected.
Idol Lord demonstrates a great use of paranoia and distortion within their music which equates to some fantastic sludgy instrumental movements along the way. The vocals are quite Punk Rock obsessed in places with a level of seriousness throughout the album. Idol Lord are always aggressive with their passionate use of abstract based sonic passages and melodic grooves that display an awareness of Grunge, Hard Rock, Doom and Sludge Rock structures.
The music is boosted by the non-stop use of distorted and down-tuned sounds which transforms the classic Californian Desert/Stoner Rock music that Idol Lord employ here to a more desolate Doomed Out landscape where the Fuzz Rock element has a more destructive KINETIC energy which becomes more central to the album especially on tracks such as Caught Inside, Borrowed Time and Cyclops King.
The lyrics do appear quite fantastical at times but this still allows The Other Side to have quite a grounded appeal even when the record does become ever so more OTT and fantasy based at times. My advice is just to go with it and lose yourself with the cerebral style of 1990’s Stoner Rock/Metal which builds upto some huge sounding GUITAR SOLOS along the way.
The powerful rhythm section is definitely from the classic era of Fuzz Rock and Grunge which is the creative glue that holds everything together. The final two tracks of Last Gladiator and The Other Side delves deep into the heavier and murkier waters of down-tuned Stoner Rock/Metal with Idol Lord leaving a lasting impression which allows The Other Side to become a superbly entertaining and must have album to add to your collection right now. It’s seriously that good. End Of.
Words by Steve Howe
Thanks to Glory Or Death Records for the promo,
The Other Side is available to buy on DD/Vinyl now via Glory Or Death Records.
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