Holy Slumber - Holy Slumber (Single Release)

Release Date: December 23rd 2025. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD

Holy Slumber - Tracklisting

1.Holy Slumber 03:39

2.Where Demons Crawl 04:43

Review

Doom/Stoner Metallers Holy Slumber release their self-titled debut single and it’s a glorious mix of Doom, Stoner and Heavy Metal with the band firing on all cylinders from the very start. The song has a certain CLASSIC HARD ROCK approach which soon moves into areas of pure HEAVY METAL EXCESS. It’s not the most original of sounds but Holy Slumber creates some fantastic grooves inspired by the likes of SAINT VITUS and The Obsessed with a dash of NWOBHM outlandish melodies holding everything together.

Holy Slumber really finds their own identity on the excellent and standout bonus track Where Demons Crawl as they opt for a heavier and more thrilling OCCULT sound. The whole mood is quite seedy, violent and brilliantly over the top. The vocals are great to hear which only fully sells the OCCULT ROCK and DOOM METAL energy of the whole release. Sure, everything becomes way OVER THE TOP but the grooves are intense and deliver with real passion.

The production values offer a “LESS IS MORE” approach with Holy Slumber showcasing a great band to check out from the excellent Philippines Underground Heavy Metal scene. I would have loved to hear a couple of more tracks to see how HOLY SLUMBER develop their music within a longer release but maybe within their next release as I’m genuinely interested to hear what the guys will release next.

Check this out. As this is a great release from a band who deserve some much notice within the Doom/Stoner Metal scene.

Words by Steve Howe

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Astral Goat Dominion - Only Lucifer And Fuzz (Album Review)

Release Date: October 31st 2025. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD

Only Lucifer And Fuzz - Tracklisting

1.Intro Acida 01:25

2.Lucifer (part I) 06:24

3.Only Lucifer and Fuzz 06:27

4.The Acid Ritual 07:13

5.Malignant Sign ov Evil 06:51

6.Bloody River 08:27

7.Make the Sludge Doom great again 04:18

8.Outro Disperata 00:50

Review

Astral Goat Dominion aren’t your typical Doom/Stoner Metal band as the band create a highly unusual and unorthodox style of music with weird vocal arrangements and outlandish creative themes you wouldn’t expect to go for the WEEDIAN genre. The band feels like ELECTRIC WIZARD jamming with THE MELVINS but still paying homage to the likes of Saint Vitus, Black Sabbath and even KYUSS. Just don’t go expecting a straightforward musical journey with their excellent debut album Only Lucifer And Fuzz.

At some moments the record is just bat-shit crazy and sometimes even confusing but in a good way. There’s a sense of demented gloominess and warped sludgy sounds emitting from your speakers. You will only need to listen to the opening two tracks of Intro Acida and Lucifer (Part 1) that this is going to be one crazed journey into the world of Occult Doom with classic sounding Seventies based Amplifier Distorted grooves generating a sinister atmosphere throughout. There’s some method to the creative madness from Astral Goat Dominion as the vocals are more like chants from a demented madman selling his soul to LUCIFER himself. 

The lyrics are equally as strange but they match perfectly to the experimental driven nature of the song which becomes even stranger on tracks such as Only Lucifer And Fuzz, The Acid Ritual and Malignant Sign ov Evil where the band take a slight detour to Psychedelic Freakouts and Prog Rock just for the sheer hell of it. The journey is deeply rooted in Seventies Occult Folklore and Mysticism whilst the music being influenced by sounds of the Seventies Doom Metal and Nineties Stoner Metal scenes. 

Astral Goat Dominion do have an outlandish Tribal Rock energy to them which allows the band to play extended trippy instrumental jams for the majority of their music which can also be quite jazzy and funky at the best of times. Though, it’s still part of the satanic DOOMED OUT world. The album won’t be for everyone but if you’re in the mood for something different and highly experimental whilst keeping in line with the Doom/Stoner Metal arena then Only Lucifer And Fuzz is downright original.

I applaud Astral Goat Dominion for creating something crazy and thinking outside of the box for their debut release. This record has all the makings of becoming a CULT RECORD in the years to come and could allow the band to obtain a loyal following within the underground scene. 

Excellent and Highly Recommended.

Words by Steve Howe

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Melt - Replica Of Man (Album Review)

Release Date: July 07th 2023. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD

Replica Of Man: Tracklisting

1.Replica of Man 04:47

2.Sight To See 04:20

3.Problem Child 05:42

4.Diviner 03:40

5.Skeleton Girl 04:30

6.Swamp Water 04:54

7.Shame 03:50

8.Sword or the Scepter 04:33

9.Hive Mind 09:13

Review:

Replica Of Man is the second full length album from Fuzz/Doom/Stoner Metallers Melt and they hide a more dangerous style of music within this album. Taking the classic Hard Rock Swagger of Led Zepp and MC5 whilst matching this with the Proto Doom Sounds of bands such as Black Sabbath and Saint Vitus. Melt add a modern day “outlaw” attitude that conveys the Psych Stoner Rock scene from bands such as KYUSS, Monster Magnet and FU MANCHU.

However, Melt don’t sound like those legendary bands either which maybe difficult to understand at first without hearing Replica of Man in full. The album takes many creative side steps by allowing Melt to dictate their own melodic, aggressive and catchy rhythms where the music grows into a harsher style of Punk Rock or Street Doom on tracks such as Replica Of Man, Sight To See and Problem Child.

Melt create and play heavy amounts of stylish sounding Fuzz, Psych Rock, Proto-Doom and Stoner based madness. LSD and hallucinogenic inspired sound effects, lyrics and vocals are just the icing of the cake for Melt where the band go slightly Demonic Rock or Occult Rock based on the listeners Doom Rock perspective.

There’s a few knowing nods and subtle hints of Social Commentary within Melt’s lyrics and it’s quite refreshing to hear but the album is mostly a damn good time in the darker depths of Classic Hard Rock where Melt have no qualms by mixing different genres together for a different style of Stoner Rock. 

Replica Of Man is not the most conventional or straightforward of albums you'll listen to and it has a loose creative narrative which allows Melt to rewrite the rulebook of Doom/Stoner Rock conventions which fully come into play on tracks such as: Diviner, Skeleton Girl, Swamp Water and Hive Mind.

There is a lot to take in with Replica Of Man as they don’t focus within one area of music but a multitude of different themes and genres where melody and composition is their main weapon of choice with their spellbinding arsenal of freaky HEAVY GROOVES.

Replica Of Man has fabulous production values that allows this album to be super freaky and having a euphoric style of 1970’s Hard Rock attitude whilst having the power to play something aggressively modern at the same time.

Melt have delivered the goods with this release and I’m hoping the band will build up more momentum and attention within the Doom/Stoner Rock scene in the near future.

Words by Steve Howe

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Jawless - Warrizer (Album Review)

Release Date: February 02nd 2022. Record Label: Self Released. Format: Cassette/DD

Warrizer - Tracklisting

1.G.O.D (Genuine Obsessive Disruptive) 07:50

2.War Is Come 06:53

3.Dark Muzzling 08:47

4.Deceptive Events 06:27

5.Bad Excursion 05:12

6.Metaphorical Speech 04:19

7.Restrained 05:28

8.The Throne of Tramp 05:54

Review

Indonesian Doom/Stoner Metallers Jawless new album Warrizer is a great mix of fast-paced heavy Doom/Stoner Metal with a few throwbacks to the classic style of slow-paced Hard Rock and Heavy Psychedelics. Maybe not the most groundbreaking album you’re ever likely to hear but there’s a lot of passion and creativity on this record with a deceptive vintage sound running through it all.

The album does a gloomy presence with a fuzzy outlook where the Stoner Metal grooves are concerned. Jawless are classed mostly proto-metal with their mix of Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne creative themes but throw in some fast-paced Motorhead aggression first heard on the early stages of the album especially on excellent opening tracks G.O.D (Genuine Obsessive Disruptive) and War Is Come.

The production is quite sparse in places and maybe could be quite heavier in places but Jawless are an interesting band to listen to. As they do try many different styles of music on this album. The songwriting is a very strong aspect for this release along with the vocals. Though, it’s ultimately the heavy grooves contained on this release that make this such a very cool album to listen to.

Jawless live in the good old days of Doom/Stoner Metal with this album being mostly full of “Classic Sounding” grooves with the added bonus of swirling Psychedelic elements allowing Jawless to show folks they have plenty of promise and perhaps fully coming into their own sound on future releases.

Overall, this is a wickedly entertaining album that gets a lot of things right and for a debut Doom/Stoner Metal album you couldn’t ask for anything more. 

Words by Steve Howe

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