Goddess - Ritual Of The Cloven Hoof (Album Review)

Release Date: May 22nd 2026. Record Label: Majestic Mountain Records. Formats: CD/DD/Vinyl

No King - Tracklisting

1.Godless

2.Inquisition

3.To Be King

4.Blood Fever 

5.Born Again Heathen

6.Devil's Reef

Members

Karl-Martin Buhre: Vocals and guitar

Kenta Karlbom: Drums

John Jansson: Bass

Anders Martinsgård: Guitar

Review

Doom/Stoner Metallers Goddess is the band formed from the ashes of the much missed Goatess who released three amazing albums in their epic career. The founding guitarist of Goatess (Niklas) left the band where the remaining members re-grouped as Goddess and the business of creating epic sounds forged from the legendary sounds of the Seventies Doom Metal scene with a heavier modern Cosmic flavour remains intact. Their debut album Ritual Of The Cloven Hoof takes up the mantle of what the band achieved with Goatess and elevates their sound more closely to the likes of SLEEP, MONOLORD and ELECTRIC WIZARD.

There’s still that classic Proto-Metal and Doom Metal energy heard on the previous Goatess records but Goddess has a more refreshing Psychedelic and stripped back sound. The sound is almost rooted in Sludge Rock and Spaced Out folklore with some classic vocal interplay from Karl-Martin Buhre moving from the classic eras of Ozzy and DIo fronting Black Sabbath. The music is quite melodic with that thrilling Seventies Hard Rock energy developing within the multiple examples of intense musical solos especially from the sludgy sounds that both Karl-Martin and Anders Martinsgård lay down on their excellent guitar solos.

Kenta Karlbom on Drums and John Jansson on Bass keep things grounded with a stunning rhythm section that remains quite closely guarded to the classic GOATESS template whilst moving onto new sonic pastures under the guise of GODDESS. The tracks written for this record are heavier and progressive with Goddess more comfortable with their COSMIC DOOMED OUT surroundings with flashes of first rate Stoner Metal delivery being played very early on tracks such as Godless, Inquisition and To Be King. There are the classic Doom Metal influences that you can hear from the likes of Saint Vitus and The Obsessed but you can also detect that winning Swedish Stoner Metal creative mentality holding everything together.

Goddess aren’t afraid to show that the highly polished style of modern day Doom/Stoner Metal has a real place in their highly cinematic style of music that’s superbly riff-driven on the later stages of the album mostly on the tracks Blood Fever and Born Again Heathen. The lyrics are sometimes outlandish but they fit the Proto-Metal and Classic Doom Metal narrative amazingly well with some wicked levels of Amplifier and Fuzzed Out Heaviness making a wonderful appearance.

Ritual Of The Cloven Hoof perfectly allows Goddess establish themselves Doom/Stoner Metal masters of their own creative domain with a spellbinding record that’s quite dark which you only admire further every time you listen to the album. The production values are sublime with Joona Hassinen handling almost everything and I’ve been a fan of Joona’s work for such a long time. He’s been involved with a multitude of great bands over the last decade or so and perhaps helped establish the Swedish Heavy Metal scene to where it is today. 

Goddess debut album is a masterful album on every level which will no doubt allow them to achieve a similar style of acclaim as Goatess if they keep releasing great records such as this. Goatess maybe dead but LONG LIVE GODDESS!!!

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Viral Propaganda PR for the promo.

Ritual Of The Cloven Hoof is available to buy now on CD/DD/Vinyl via Majestic Mountain Records.

Links 

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram

Doom Metallers MAUNAH sign deal with PROPHECY PRODUCTIONS

Nordic doom sensation MAUNAH have signed a multi-album deal with Prophecy Productions. Their debut studio album will be released via the label in 2026.

MAUNAH comment: "We are a band made up of not-so-young musicians as all of us in Maunah have gathered quite some musical experience over the years", vocalist Søren Sol Koldsen-Zederkof writes on behalf of the band. "Then again, for us signing with Prophecy is a youthful dream come true. We are stoked about the exciting times ahead, and we are very much looking forward to exploring the art of heartfelt doom with such a strong partner as this label."

Prophecy Productions state: "We are all thrilled to welcome Maunah", the label's founder Martin Koller announces. "The current musical market does hardly reward the signing of new acts. Yet in this case, listening to their digital EP resulted in changing from a sceptic mode to wanting to offer these exceptionally talented Danes a deal and inviting them to Prophecy Fest in less than ten minutes. Welcome!"

Photo by Soeren Sol Koldsen-Zederkof

An early Jul miracle was waiting for visitors of the the one-day event Udgårdsfest at the cozy Pumpehuset venue in Denmark's capital city of Copenhagen on December 19, 2025. Third up on the billing was a band that few had heard before and who had never performed live either – well, in this constellation that the members had chosen to call: MAUNAH.

And just like in all great stories about this season, something rather special and unexpected happened: The new Danish band delivered a lesson in captivating and cinematic doom metal that had jaws dropping and eyes popping with the energy, mastery, and self-confidence that can only be expected from veterans. This stunning performance reaped a storm of applause from a slightly shocked audience.

The secret to MAUNAH's immediate success is two-fold: Members are veterans of the Danish scene. Their highly popular frontman, Søren Sol Koldsen-Zederkof, has toured extensively with the beloved Nordic folk band KRAUKA, and he has also released several critically acclaimed albums under the artist name LOS. The other musicians are well established, too. Guitarist Mads MP Laursen has formerly played guitar with IRONGUARD and ENCYRCLE.

The other half of this metal miracle is the old adage that the sum is often greater than its parts. MAUNAH have obviously been a match made in musical heaven. The chemistry between its members is just right. This was already audible on the band's digital EP "Heimaland", which came out on June 20th, 2025, yet their debut live show hinted at even greater things to come.

The Danes are not 'just another' doom act. Their music draws from other metal genres particularly of the atmospheric kind while their sound is also clearly influenced by folk music and alt-rock. MAUNAH entices the listener into an intuitive understanding of a wordless universe, built on tone, atmosphere, and rhythm – in an echo of human languages. The absence of the familiar in the vocals creates a space for a more direct connection with the music and reaches beyond the limits of rational language.

In the Danes' own poetic words: "Maunah is the sound of despair and open skies. Maunah is leaves crunching underfoot, the cold of the forest floor seeping through the soles. And Maunah is the warmth of the sun on the face and oxygen filling the lungs. In the music, the cold of winter meets the summer warmth in the chest, where Maunah pumps blood through the body and music into the air." MAUNAH intend their music to serve as a sensory reminder of humanity's unity with nature, and a rejection of the materialistic and disconnected lifestyle that characterises modern society.

Currently MAUNAH are preparing to release their debut album this September and have already been confirmed for Prophecy Fest 2026.

Line-up

Søren Sol Koldsen-Zederkof – lead & backing vocals, overtone flute
Mads MP Laursen – lead guitars

Janus Holst Aaen – guitars, backing vocals

Jakob Kiilerich – bass
Tim Sejr Larsen – drums

Links

www.facebook.com/maunahband
www.instagram.com/maunahband

Thanks to Prophecy Productions for the details.

Bristol’s Progressive Sludge Quartet URZAH share 3rd single 'The Call Beneath' on APF Records (Mastiff, Video Nasties, Swamp Coffin)

‘A Tranquil Void’ Cover Art (Credit: Putra Satria Nugraha)

Formed in 2020, just before the pandemic hit, Urzah’s intensely collaborative and productive writing process was immediately evident, leading to the quick release of self-titled EPs ‘I’ (2020) and ‘II’ (2022). These laid the foundation for Urzah’s unique brand of ‘progressive sludge’. Inviting comparisons to Neurosis, DVNE, Mastodon and Elder, their forward-looking sound combines the abrasive elements of punk and post-hardcore with atmospheric post-metal passages and soaring melodies.

Urzah’s vision of ‘Earthen Heaviness’, combining oppressive darkness with moments of transcendence and cosmic awe, was realised on their critically acclaimed debut LP ‘The Scorching Gaze’ (2024, APF Records). The band’s sonic world draws on both the intensely personal – rage, loss, grief and self-doubt – and a profound awe and vulnerability in the face of the celestial and natural worlds, framing visceral human struggle within vast cycles of death, decay and rebirth.

 
Since their debut, Urzah has refined their live shows across the UK, playing festivals and headline shows, and sharing stages with a diverse roster of heavy bands including Bongzilla, Tuskar, Mastiff, Greenleaf, OHHMS and Dopelord, as well as progressive atmospheric bands such as Hidden Mothers, Underdark and Nadja, demonstrating their strong cross-genre appeal.

The band recently announced that they are set to release new LP ‘A Tranquil Void on 5th June 2026 via APF Records. The record marks a defining moment for the band, following up their critically acclaimed debut ‘A Scorching Gaze’ (2024, APF) with an even more assured, mature and ambitious full-length. Conceptually, ‘The Scorching Gaze’ and ‘A Tranquil Void’ function as a visual, musical and thematic diptych; where their debut burned brightly with the rage and destruction of an erupting volcano, their new LP captures the cathartic, contemplative still that follows.

Tom McElveen (vocals/guitar) comments on 3rd single "The Call Beneath”, “this track is about dealing with grief for the first time, and letting yourself be pulled into its depths so the earlier version of yourself can die and a new one can be reborn and ‘rise to the surface’. This process can only happen when you stop resisting it. We play with dynamics and moving time signatures to build and rebuild tension, taking us through to the final cathartic stage of rebirth at the pinnacle.”

Listen now: https://lnkfi.re/91RJX1aJ / https://youtu.be/RNRSz6cDeOQ

Across 8 tracks, ‘A Tranquil Void’ pushes Urzah’s sound even further, combining brutal riffs, complicated meter and searing guitar tone with deeper explorations of space, dynamics and atmosphere, incorporating folk influences and drones built from cello and guitar. 13-minute album closer ‘Entwined, Twisted Roots of Chaos’ sees Urzah at their most ambitious; across multiple interlocking sections, enriched by guest vocals from friends in the Bristol scene, the song builds from a haunting whisper to a planet-obliterating roar.

ALBUM TRACK LIST

1. At the Mouth of the Cave
2. The Call Beneath
3. Infernal Star I
4. Infernal Star II
5. Bark & Branches
6. In the Mouth of the Wolf
7. Hunter in the Veil
8. Entwined, Twisted Roots of Chaos

Recorded at Stage 2 Studios, Bath, in November 2025, the LP was produced, mixed and mastered by Josh Gallop. Cello was provided by Luke Clemenger, with additional vocals from Dave Cook (Empire of Dust), Chris Wilson (Row of Ashes) and Victoria Bourne (The Spark’s Desire). The album artwork was created by Indonesian artist Putra Satria Nugraha.

ALBUM LAUNCH PARTY, EXCHANGE BRISTOL – 25th July 2026

To celebrate the release of their new album, Urzah are hosting a launch party at Exchange Bristol (main room) on Saturday 25th July with special guests HUNDRED YEAR OLD MAN, MOUNTAINSCAPE and DEAD SPACE CHAMBER MUSIC.

Urzah are proud to be part of Bristol’s thriving and diverse music scene, so this specially curated line-up is intended to showcase the best cutting-edge, genre-defying and progressive heavy music.

This immersive, atmospheric and crushingly heavy night will feature experimental gothic doom from Dead Space Chamber Music (Bristol), soaring cinematic post-metal from Mountainscape (Reading), crushing atmospheric post-metal from Hundred Year Old Man (Leeds), and brand-new material from Urzah’s long-awaited sophomore album ‘A Tranquil Void’.

LIMITED EDITION ‘SUPERNOVA’ VINYL VARIANT – https://apfrecords.co.uk/albums/a-tranquil-void

To celebrate Urzah’s new album, APF Records will be offering a limited-edition vinyl. The ‘Supernova’ variant features a blue and white burst, evoking the celestial vortex of the LP artwork.

URZAH LIVE:

Saturday 23rd May - Bristol, Loco Klub (Temple of Doom festival)
Friday 29th May - Bath, The Bell
Wednesday 10th June - Portsmouth, Edge of the Wedge
Thursday 11th June - Brighton, The Pipeline
Friday 12th June - Kent, Poco Loco, Chatham
Saturday 13th June - London, The Devonshire Arms, Camden
Friday June 26th - Newport, McCann's Rock N Ale Bar
Sunday June 28th - Torquay, Arena
Saturday 25th July - Bristol Album Launch Party, Exchange
Saturday 1st August - Chelmsford - Bay Days Festival

URZAH ARE:

Ed Fairman - Vocals / Guitar
Tom McElveen - Vocals / Guitar
Dan Bradley - Bass
James Brown – Drums

Links

Urzah website and socials
APF band profile

Thanks to For The Lost PR for the details.

Ryan Güt - The Shastafarian (Album Review)

Release Date: May 23rd 2026. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD/Vinyl

The Shastafarian - Tracklisting

Beggars and Choosers (explicit)

Basically Dead (This Town)

Song for G

On the Up & Up 

Sand to Snow

Crig Lord Archduke Earl of Montague (The Monkey)

DHS (12th St. Remixes)

Veteran of the Psychic Wars

Members

Ryan Güt - Everything

Review

The Shastafarian is the debut album from Desert Rock/Stoner Rock multi-instrumentalist Ryan Güt who is better known for his work with the legendary Brant Bjork, Mario Lalli and Nick Oliveri. Ryan has been part of projects such as Stöner, Mario Lalli & the Rubber Snake Charmers and Hammerface. Ryan’s musical and desert rock credentials have never been in doubt where he’s been part of some of the most memorable Desert/Stoner Rock records of the last decade.

The Shastafarian is an eclectic mix of Psych, Stoner Rock, Desert Rock, Americana, Prog and Jazz for a record that’s quite experimental whilst also being superbly familiar. Ryan channels the music of his youth and what has influenced him within his lifetime. There’s a subtle Blues Rock and Soft Rock charge that takes inspiration from the heartland of Seventies and Eighties AOR along the way but with a superb Desert Rock vibe. I would say The Shastafarian has close ties to Brant Bjork’s classic experimental laid back record Jacoozzi.

You can hear influences as diverse as Prince, The Eagles, Tom Petty and KYUSS but Ryan uses a superbly developed style of classic rock melodies set against a backdrop of Cosmic surroundings which shines a light beautifully on the legendary Californian Rock scene. The lyrics can be quite playful and subversive in equal measure especially on tracks such as Beggars And Choosers, Basically Dead (This Town) and Song For G which opens the album superbly well.

There is an “outsider” quality about this album about not fitting in and perhaps following your own destiny though the power of music that Ryan constructs here makes sure that everyone is welcome here with its warm hearted musical energy. I would say that influence has perhaps been learned by Ryan’s time with Brant Bjork over the last decade or so.

However, Ryan still deserves all the credit for releasing an album that is constantly refreshing and showcasing a lost art of storytelling we don’t truly appreciate nowadays especially on a debut album. The songs are wonderfully constructed which allows Ryan to explore the finer details of the Californian Desert Rock landscape. There are plenty of hard rocking moments to fully lose yourself in but you will be thrown a few curve balls along the way as Ryan embraces quite a nomadic creative structure on tracks such as Song For G, On The Up & Up and Sand To Snow.

The Shastafarian drifts into areas of Post-Rock and Electronica which can be quite classical or even low-key in many ways. The album may perhaps be too experimental for the casual Stoner Rock fan but there’s so much to admire and brilliantly enjoy here as the album takes a refreshing approach into how the Jazzy themes interlock with the classic Desert/Stoner Rock melodies. 

The second half of The Shastafarian perhaps contain the heaviest sounds on the record but still spliced with the earlier Post-Rock/Jazz/Desert Rock movements but still being quite grounded. The lyrics are bold and superbly earnest once more with Ryan fully embracing his storytelling persona with a freakish commanding performance on the standout tracks of Crig Lord Archduke Earl of Montague (The Monkey) and Veteran Of The Psychic Wars.

The lyrics could be inspired by the likes of Frank Zappa and perhaps other worldly WEEDIAN ingredients the whole scene is known for. All I can say is that The Shastafarian never plays out how you fully expect and that makes this such a truly outstanding and highly original Desert Rock record you’ll likely hear this year. 

The Shastafarian is superb and I’m hoping Ryan will be releasing more solo albums in the near future. As he’s a true original which this album proves time and time again.

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Rebelle Rebelle for the promo.

The Shastafarian is available to buy on DD/Vinyl from May 23rd 2026.

Links 

Official | BandCamp | Instagram

CROBU - More Than This (Album Review)

Release Date: May 22nd 2026. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: CD/DD/Vinyl

More Than This - Tracklisting

More Than This

Crows

Awake

The Bleed

Violet

Full Speed Ahead

Even Worse

I Am The Leaf

Members

Andrea (Guitar)

Federico (Vocals)

Alessandro (Drums)

Lorenzo (Bass).

Review

More Than This is the debut album from Stoner Metallers CROBU who add a menacing NOLA momentum to their music with the band inspired by the likes of DOWN, Corrosion of Conformity and Crowbar. The band offset this NOLA murky style of melody against the likes of KYUSS, Black Sabbath and SLEEP. Their debut album is quite a murky and unsettling affair which doesn’t skimp on the aggressive slabs of WEEDIAN based heaviness. CROBU excel in delivering a style of distorted, down tuned and fuzzed out musical passages which has a delicate level of pissed off aggression.

CROBU’s sound isn’t the most polished around with the band adapting a lo-fi quality to their music which allows More Than This to have quite an exciting and unpredictable aura of quality from the very start. The album does feel like a NOLA and SOUTHERN METAL album at first especially within the storming opening tracks of More Than This, Crows and Awake.

However, little by little, CROBU start adding traces of modern day Stoner Metal into the music which gives a record slightly drugged out aesthetic with some classic WEEDIAN musical interplay happening between, Andrea, Alessandro and Lorenzo providing the musical chops for Federico to inject his intense and grizzled musical persona into the mix.

The lyrics are quite grounded with a simple premise to them but they get the job done with CROBU becoming ever more confident with each passing moment. The grooves become more aggressive and super intricate with a grizzled determination exploding into fucked up FUZZ METAL instrumental solos. The music becomes even faster and quite psychedelic with the NOLA creative fumes taking a back seat on the later parts of the album.

You can detect a slight movement into European based Stoner Rock/Metal reminiscent of the likes of DOZER and ORANGE GOBLIN in places which gives a grittier style of melody to develop on tracks such as Violet, Full Speed Ahead and I Am The Leaf.  CROBU have crafted quite a superbly entertaining debut album that covers a wide range of the whole modern day Stoner Rock/Metal scene while allowing themselves to play other areas of music such as Fuzz, Psych. Sludge and Grunge. 

More Than This feels like CROBU have been around for the last thirty years of the whole Stoner Metal movement as this record has a timeless quality to it all. You’ll be surprised what CROBU has in store for you with this outstanding debut album. Add this great album to your collection at the earliest opportunity as these guys are the real deal. End Of!!!

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to CROBU f0r the promo.

More Than This will be available to buy soon on CD/DD/Vinyl.

Links 

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram

Fossile - No King (Album Review)

Release Date: May 15th 2026. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD

No King - Tracklisting

1.Metro Map of Veins 05:49

2.Mongolia 06:02

3.Guardian 05:59

4.Master Race 05:40

5.No King 04:50

6.Hopeless 05:27

7.Sick Dimension 06:31

Review

Firstly I have to thank Doomcakes from the amazing blog Screaming From The Heavy Underground for this great recommendation. As this awesome album would have passed me by.

Finnish Doom/Sludge/Stoner Metallers Fossile debut album No King is quite an electrifying mix of different heavy sounds from the underground scene inspired by the likes of Thin Lizzy, Mastodon, MONOLORD, DOZER and LOWRIDER. The band have a superbly socially aware conscience within their hard hitting lyrics that give this record an extra layer of pissed off aggression whilst keeping in with the grounded reality of the modern day scene. There’s some classic hard rock instrumental solos that remind me of Thin Lizzy and DOZER which allows Fossile to play a fast paced style of Sludge/Stoner Metal throughout the whole album.

Fossile are adept at employing a dangerous style of AMPLIFIER HEAVINESS into their music that fans of MONOLORD will go crazy for as the music can be deliberately slow at times which allows their DOOM METAL persona to take complete control on tracks such as Metro Map Of Veins, Mongolia and Guardian.

There’s also a thrilling NORDIC style of Prog Metal that starts to develop that allows the vocals to have a more restrictive and earnest delivery to them. This allows the record to have a more human and organic feeling especially when the dual vocals take a commanding presence throughout the whole of Fossile’s musical delivery. You can feel that intense Sludge Metal sound coming at you from all directions which is quite a familiar and highly effective musical weapon from the Finnish Heavy Metal Scene that I’ve seen used with bands such as Demonic Death Judge. 

No King runs for forty minutes across seven tracks and feels quite longer than it actually is. That’s a good thing as Fossile do many different progressive things with their music which is superbly original on different parts of the album. As I’ve stated previously, this is quite an aggressive and emotionally charged record but one that’s packed full of sublime melodies that have a graceful atmosphere to them. Fossile know when to drop the hammer and play a thuggish vibe to their music but they show great musicianship when playing a more mellow Post-Stoner delivery which leaves you fully satisfied on tracks such as Master Race, No King and Sick Dimension.

This is a record that’s bold enough to comment on the fucked up moments currently going on with the world and Fossile standing by their convictions which I fully endorse. This is a record with BRAINS and BRAWN in equal measure with Fossile demonstrating a great level of maturity you rarely expect within a debut album but these guys are the real deal.

They’re bound to have an exciting future within the underground scene that should hopefully see them gain a loyal following and release more outstanding records in the future such as this one.

Excellent and Highly Recommended.

Words by Steve Howe

Links 

BandCamp | Instagram

Doom/Sludge Outfit Blüdwyrm Prepare To Release The Blissful Sleep Of Ignorance on Road To Masochist

From Dorset’s gently undulating chalk downs and ancient woodlands comes a new and far from picturesque entry into the UK’s proud annals of down-tuned, dirt-encrusted, slow-motion metal. Despite only lurching into existence in 2025, Blüdwyrm are already building a formidable reputation for themselves with their snarling collision of soul-shaking doom and feral sludge. They’ve shared the stage with the likes of Witchsorrow, Viking Skull, Mephistofeles, Komatsu, Bile Caster, Nomadic Rituals, Bismut and many more – and this summer their debut EP is set to be unleashed. Prepare for the suppurating sound of The Blissful Sleep Of Ignorance!

This trip into the underworld begins with the lead weight ‘Preacher Of My Own Demise’, which rumbles into life on the back of a thick, rolling riff with a snarling stoner groove, before its own colossal mass sends it sliding over the edge of a crevasse, into a slough of sludge and inescapable sucking filth. With all light extinguished we find ourselves in the dark caverns of ‘Isolate’, where a raw, bleeding vocal intones a trance inducing invocation over a relentless, pulsing crawl towards the grave. 

This is oppressive and lightless…doomed, damned and dying. Next up in this litany of grim deeds, ‘The Vultures’ may start with a ragged and stained, rattling groove but it soon collapses into a pained crawl - slower and slower, crushing you down into the dirt – before rearing to its feet with a wailing solo for a last charge to its broken conclusion. Morose, regretful, echoing notes then summon into half-life the decimating, desecrating monster that is ‘Pesticides’. 

A vein of sorrow, like a stream of polluted blood runs through the depths of this ragged ravine, carved out by world-eating riffs, while coruscating vocals and tumbling drums supply the momentum to carry this dying behemoth across the finish line to the accompaniment of wails of agonised feedback. The Blissful Sleep Of Ignorance feels sick and wounded, but utterly defiant and indisputably real. Just like the band’s devastating live performances, this EP delivers a cathartic cleansing and leaves you in a beautifully bloody state of shock.

Looking inwards with an unwavering honesty and reflecting on the world around them through an unfiltered lens, Blüdwyrm bring a palpable emotional depth to the crushing heft and fierce intensity of their music. It’s a powerful combination that gives The Blissful Sleep Of Ignorance an addictive quality that will have you reaching for its vial of dark, bittersweet elixir time and time again. Perfectly imperfect, with open heart and open wounds, Blüdwyrm will be darkening your summer skies from June 5th, when Road To Masochist unleash The Blissful Sleep Of Ignorance on CD and cassette. Everything is about to get a whole lot heavier.

Line-up:

Leo Butterworth: Bass & Vocals

Alex Jones: Guitar & FX

Seb Olds: Drums

Genre: Doom/Sludge Metal

For fans of: Electric Wizard | Weedeater | Cough | Dopethrone

Further Information:

https://linktr.ee/bludwyrm_uk

https://roadtomasochist.co.uk/