Age Of The Wolf/Tel - Vigils (Split Album Review) and Album Premiere Of VIGILS

Release Date: August 13th 2021. Record Label: Electric Talon Records. Format: CD/DD/Cassette

Vigils - Tracklisting

1.Age of the Wolf - Priestess of Cledones

2.Age of the Wolf - Slaves to the Riff

3.Tel - Punish 06:24

4.Tel - Downer

5.Tel - Salvation

Review

USA Doom Metallers Tel and Costa Rican Sludge Metallers Age Of The Wolf have teamed up for a new split release called Vigils. Recorded during the pandemic, this release sees both bands bring their different musical and creative approaches for this release. Age Of The Wolf play heaviest side of the split with aggressive and violent riff-fuelled Sludge Metal whilst Tel play Melodic Doom. 

Both bands have similar ideas and themes to each other but use different methods to get their music across. Age Of The Wolf offers two songs - Princess Of Cledones and Slaves To The Riff. 

Princess Of Cledones is 7:37 minutes of frantic and groove laden Sludge/Stoner Metal with harsh vocals throughout and superbly entertaining blast of Progressive Metal with Thrash based overtones. The song even manages to be riff-centric in places with a 70s Doom style influence being heard in the background. There are some trippy Psychedelic vibes among the harsh grooves and vocals that bring the song to a fine finish.

Second song Slaves To The Riff is 12 minutes plus of the band opening with a long drawn out “DRONE” riff that splits itself off into areas of Doom/Sludge metal with Ambient and Psychedelic textures being added along the way. It’s quite a slow moving song at first but soon finds a faster rhythm on the later stages of the song. The most interesting parts of the song is when Age Of The Wolf play straight-forward Doom/Sludge Metal and bring a Post-Doom or Post-Metal flavour to this song. Perhaps the best song I’ve heard from Age Of The Wolf to date.

Tel are next with their 3 songs- Punish, Downer and Salvation. This is Melodic Doom and Tel shows a more melodic side compared to Age Of The Wolf. 

Punish is 6 minutes plus of Tel doing their own thing with the Melodic Doom sound. Shades of Pallbearer and Mastodon can be heard in the first few moments with droning vocals coming in and out of the background. The song has a well rounded balance of Psychedelic Metal and Doom Metal passages. The excellent vocals offer an exciting adventure which Tel plays to their musical strengths.

Downer brings a subtle Stoner metal groove with this 9 minute opus. The song returns to Melodic Doom Metal territory after a few moments and the grizzled guitars bring a cool “FUZZ” attitude to the song. The vocal chants return and the song soon brings back echoes of Classic 70’s Doom Metal and the stunning piano solo at the end is really the icing on the cake. Powerful stuff from Tel. Downer lives up to its name with it’s bleak sounding passages and superb lyrics the band have written. 

The final song from Tel is Salvation. This is more of an acoustic offering with stunning guitar work married against Ambient noises and textures. The song reminds myself of A Perfect Circle towards the end with both the lyrics and vocals. Though I could be really thinking outside the box there. However, this song ends this split release on a mournful note.

Vigils is a superb split release that will  please both sets of fans with every song hitting the mark and leaving you wanting more.. Quite simply this is a must-have release 

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to David at The Metallist and Electric Talon Records for the promo.

You can buy Vigils from Electric Talon Records on CD/DD/Cassette from August 13th 2021.

You can hear the entire record below thanks to Davide at The Metallist.

Age Of The Wolf Links:

Linktree | Facebook | BandCamp 

Tel Links:

Facebook | BandCamp 

ANCIENT VVISDOM New Song And Video For HUMAN EXTINCTION

Gloomy Doom/Occult Rockers ANCIENT VVISDOM are at hard at work on preparing their upcoming new album Mundus which will be released later this year via Argonauta Records.

Until then you can check out the different sound the band have been working on with their excellent new single - HUMAN EXTINCTION. This song does have a more classic 70s Doom Rock/Metal sound inspired by bands such as Black Sabbath and Saint Vitus.

I'm looking forward to hearing the new album as I've been a huge fan of these guys since their debut album and they've never disappointed. Check out now.

Links:

Facebook | BandCamp

SUMOKEM - The Guardian Of Yosemite (Album Review)

Release date: October 06th 2017. Label: Cursed Tongue Records. Format: CD/DD/Vinyl

The Guardian Of Yosemite – Tracklisting

1.Attack of the Mammoth 07:51

2.Warning 06:43

3.War Pipe/Rite of the Calumet 07:37

4.Ogama 08:43

5.Tisayac 09:33

6.Mescalito/Meeting of the Half Moon 07:01

7.Nantucket 10:05

Members

Jacob Sawrie - Vox/Rhythm

Drew Skarda - Percussion

Tyler Weaver - Lead

Dustin Weddle - Bass

Review

SUMOKEM have dramatically changed their sound since their last album. As their latest release The Guardian Of Yosemite sees the band take influence from bands such as Mastodon, Thin Lizzy and Iron Maiden in places. Overall the album is top heavy with brutally paced Doom, Sludge and Stoner Metal riffs. However, the band show their love for genres such as Progressive Rock, NWOBHM and classic Heavy Metal sounds.

Some parts of the album are genuinely exciting upon your first listen. Whilst other parts of the album take a few listens to fully understand and to appreciate. The heavy sludge/stoner sounds of the opening track – Attack Of The Mammoth – perfectly sets the mood and tone for the whole album. Fast-paced sludge/doom moments merged against the trippy psychedelic stoner vibes leave you wanting more.

The vocals from Jacob have quite an bombastic feel to them. Sometimes OTT but they keep you focused on SUMOKEM's music. Perhaps influenced by Bruce Dickinson at times but Jacob does show his superb vocal range when he starts with those death based growls.

The lyrics are quite fantastical throughout the album but it matches the mood overall album. SUMOKEM carry on the epic mood contained on the opening track that sees the album venture further into Progressive Doom/Sludge Metal territory. With huge NWOBHM sounds allowing the band to create more epic songs to fully dissect and truly appreciate once you've listened to the album a few times.

Standout songs on the album are: Warning, War Pipe/Rite Of The Calumet, Ogama and Nantucket. All proving that SUMOKEM have came on leaps and bounds from their debut album. Fair play to SUMOKEM for releasing something different. They could have easily released The Madness of Lu Shen Ti Vol. 2. Nope, the band regrouped and released this HUGE SOUNDING RECORD. The production is superb and allows the music to flow at a natural pace.

The Guardian Of Yosemite also excels on the technical level. As the band prove what talented and accomplished musicians they actually are. The album contains some of the best technically sounding riffs I've heard this year.

If you're in the mood for a different sounding Doom/Sludge/Stoner Metal album that pays respect to the classic days of Heavy Metal then get with the program and listen to this album now. It's a seriously great album. End Of.

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Cursed Tongue Records for the promo. The Guardian Of Yosemite is available to buy on CD/DD now. The vinyl will be released early 2018 via Cursed Tongue Records.

Links:

Facebook | BandCamp

Lord Vicar - Gates Of Flesh (Album Review)

Release date: May 27^th 2016. Label: The Church Within Records. Format: CD/DD/Vinyl

Gates Of Flesh – Tracklisting

1. Birth of Wine

2. The Green Man

3. A Shadow of Myself

4. Breaking the Circle

5. Accidents

6. A Woman Out of Snow

7. Leper, Leper

Review:

This album is traditional, majestic doom with a professional production containing music made by a band with extreme confidence in their creativity, construction and delivery. The band is comprised of devoted doom personnel who pay tribute to their influences by staying the melancholic course while bearing their own identifying mark of gloom. The album is full of purposeful song structures, passionate guitar solos, and powerful vocals. This is music for those who enjoy spoonfuls of soggy breakfast flakes submerged in a bowl of black bile all while watching the rivulets of rain stream the down dirty windows of their lonely house. Add this band to your collection of Count Raven, Reverend Bizarre and Seamount.

This band and album reverberates everything that makes doom a great genre. This is why we all love doom. Now to the individual songs...

Birth Of Wine - This song is slow and serpent like, weaving in and out of stride with guitar, bass and drums honed and hiked with customary doom. The haunting vocals oscillate between sugar and salt, all complimenting a story to tell. This song undulates and whips.

The Green Man - Are you ready? This is classic doom that stirs your mollusk colored heart. From start to finish, this represents the essential ingredients that are mindfully arranged on the top of the cornucopia of why I listen to this type of music.

A Shadow Of Myself - An instrumental portrayal of your own ghost which is an introduction to the next song.

Breaking The Circle - I had a dream. I saw myself run through the house, round up the poison, pound down the cellar door, tear open the earth and stuff the well with maniac mirth. This songs swings like a pendulum over the gothic pit. Great stuff.

Accidents - A track of rhythm coupled with heavy weight testimonial rock.

A Woman Out Of Snow - This song is a thumping affair, bookended with the delicateness of an angel's dirty wings.

Leper, Leper - This song captures shimmering cymbals like broken mirrors, hallowed drums from dead wood stumps, distorted guitars shooting forgotten flame, and vocals pleading with their truth chords and the aural sacrifice in sharing sonic lung disease. Is it peeling skin or just shedding scales? Are you dying or being reborn? Maybe you should stop worrying because maybe it is the same thing.

This is album is a goat's horn full of lavish doom and slither gloom. Bow your head, for this is not the dead hum we hear from the ever growing legion of doom. These acts of contrition are welcomed and stand out from the throng of those still swampy behind their doom purple ears, those who are willingly baptized in the rain of doom should heed and learn from these shapemasters of the dark. This is doom done as it was meant to be...a ghoulish journey into graven sound.

Words by Nick Palmisano

Gates Of Flesh will be available to buy via The Church Within Records from May 27th 2016.

Links:

Facebook