Release Date: October 4th 2024. Record Label: Inverse Records. Format: Digital
Bored Machine - Track Listing:
1.N.O.T.S.Y.
2.Birthday Boy
3.No More Air
4.Homo Economicus
5. Follow The Money
6.Look At The Sky
7.Blue Lake Escape
8.Waiting For The Ride
Members
Markku Makkonen: Guitar, Vocals
Jussi Vehman: Bass, Vocals
Jape Makkonen: Drums
Review
Finnish Doom/Stoner Rockers Rückwater second album Bored Machine takes a slight detour into the Alternative Rock/Metal arena compared to their debut release. There’s a Grunge influence with flashes of Alice In Chains and Soundgarden. The music is mostly delivered through the sonically tight and highly melodic Doom/Stoner passages that have enough Hard Rock Angst appearing within the vocals and slightly boisterous lyrics.
The frantic sounding guitars have a slight Punk Rock and Garage Rock swagger that also allows Rückwater to have a determined grittier outlook within the heavier parts of the record. Sometimes the album does take time to find the right balance of Heavy Doom Rock grooves and full out Stoner Rock/Metal aggression but Rückwater do create a loud of killer sounds and tracks along the way that almost perfectly capture the 1990’s and 2000’s Doom/Stoner Rock scene with that subtle Grunge sound.
The dual vocals from Markku and Jussi become way more Progressive and quite threatening on the gloomier parts of the record on tracks such as Birthday Boy, No More Air and Homo Economicus. The Soundgarden/Alice In Chains influence resides strongly in this part of the album with echoes of KYUSS and FU MANCHU allowing the Stoner Rock/Metal aspect to never be far away. The album does become quite HEAVY METAL obsessed with flashes of Post-Stoner and Psych Rock attitude which leads into heavy jagged instrumental solos with a twinge of THRASH and high amounts of distortion.
Rückwater allows the rest of the album to grow and breathe naturally with a harsh sense of reality shaping up the foundation of not only creative outline but also how the album develops on tracks such as Follow The Money, Look At The Sky and Waiting For The Sky seeing Rückwater developing heavier strands of Sludge Rock with a deep sense of urgency.
One of Bored Machine’s strengths is the vast amount of different sounds and instrumental passages that Rückwater has developed here. This is most definitely an album built on a MOUNTAIN OF RIFFS that allows the band to create another highly engaging and superbly entertaining record that can be quite subversive throughout the whole thing.
Excellent and HIghly Recommended.
Words by Steve Howe
Thanks to Inverse Records for the promo.
Bored Machine will be available to buy on digital download via Inverse Records from Friday October 04th 2024.
Links
Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram
