Release Date: August 08th 2025. Record Label: Ripple Music. Formats: CD/DD/Vinyl
Ouroboros - Tracklisting
1. Vegas Baby
2. Succubus
3. Lord of Suffering
4. Vale of Tears
5. Machine is the Master
6. Freakshow
7. Broken Man
Members
Steve - Guitars, synths, keys & vocals
Mario - Drums & percussion
Tim - Bass & backing vocals
Review
Doom/Stoner Metallers Borracho have hit a rich vein of creative form for their last few records and that shows no sign of stopping or slowing down with their viciously dark new album Ouroboros. The record still sees the band hitting upon dark and politically charged themes but this is their most “fun” and “riffiest” record in years. The band take a small step back from the heavy Psychedelic sounds of their last album Blurring The Lines Of Reality and focus upon a classic Doom Rock and Fuzz Rock sound.
There are moments of Classic Hard Rock vying for musical domination here which comes across within the opening track of Vegas Baby which shows Borracho’s sense of demented fun whilst showing some cool personal lyrics along the way. Steve’s vocals and gloomy guitars are commanding as ever with Mario excelling on Drums and Tim providing a muscular bass sound that has echoes of Black Sabbath, Truckfighters and FU MANCHU along the way.
Ouroboros becomes a FUZZ ROCK and SURREAL musical odyssey throughout the sublime second track of Succubus which embraces a Post-Doom and Occult Rock mentality with strands of Psychedelic Sludge Rock dynamics which goes into full overdrive within the first few moments. There is a desolate style of dystopian Americana running through the vocals superbly delivered by Steve and Tim. This is one of the gloomiest sounding numbers on the number with a highly inspired take on ELECTRIC WIZARD bleak riffology appearing throughout. With a shift into Grunge, NOLA and SWAMP Metal atmospherics in the second half, this is my favourite track on the whole album. As it’s quite a diverse number with Borracho thinking outside of the box and creating stunning aggressive grooves leave you wanting to hear more.
Third track Lord Of Suffering is another Post-Doom, Psych Rock and Proto-Metal offering with a classic BLACK SABBATH, SAINT VITUS and THE OBSESSED influence being heard from the very start. The vocals from Steve and Tim can be quite PUNK ROCK obsessive at the best of times which gives this song a LESS IS MORE approach with how the music is ultimately played and delivered. Borracho are being quite rebellious here with the switching of Sludge Rock vibes to Doomed Out melodies that brings a free-flowing style of Blues Rock and Desert Rock to the party.
Fourth track Vale Of Tears is the shortest track on the album running under three minutes with Borracho playing a Blues Rock driven instrumental number which is quite slow-paced for the start before a loud vortex of Stoner Metal riffs burst right through and transforms into a heavy SWAMP METAL delivery. The song then changes once more into a meditative Blues Rock swagger before bringing one final round of heavy RAWK to close the song on a sublime finish.
The final stages of Ouroboros keeps up with the DOOM & GLOOM attitude that Borracho has conjured up throughout with some hard hitting themes appearing within the final tracks of Machine Is the Master, Freakshow and Broken Man. When the band hit upon topical and social themes then you begin to realize how great BORRACHO actually are by incorporating real life politics into their music whilst keeping up with the whole WEEDIAN soundscape they project here especially on Machine Is The Master and Broken Man.
Ouroboros is another exciting chapter from one of the scene’s most uncompromising bands with BORRACHO once again showing their true worth to the scene and who should now be considered one of the greats of the modern day Doom/Stoner Metal movement. BORRACHO have the power of RIPPLE MUSIC behind them for this great album and that's all you need to know at how richly observed and sublime the album sounds within the production side of things. As RIPPLE MUSIC always delivers the goods and OUROBOROS is no different.
Words by Steve Howe
Thanks to Purple Sage PR for the promo.
