Release
date: September 1st2017.
Label: All Good Clean Records. Format: DD/Vinyl
Blight
– Tracklisting
Home
Rat King
Oak
Endless Queen
Stone
Fog
Cellar Door
Acid Wedding
Returning
Members
Simen Mathiassen -
Drums
Sverre Dalen - Bass
Jostein Wigenstad -
Guitar
Magnus Riise -
Guitar / Vocal
Review
You ever wondered what Pink Floyd
would sound like if they decided to include Desert/Stoner Rock vibes
into their legendary Progressive Rock sound. Well I think Red
Mountain's excellent new album - Slow Wander - would be the wonderful
result. As Red Mountains take a more Psychedelic/Prog Rock approach
on their new album. Not a million miles away from Pink Floyd
themselves.
Slow Wander sees the band play
strands of classic sounding Prog Rock and merges it with elements of
modern sounding Desert/Stoner Rock vibes.
Opening track - Home - opens the
album with supreme confidence as Red Mountains play a loud bombastic
style of Desert/Stoner Rock with a prog rock style influence being
heard within the vocals. The one thing that stands out on this album
compared to their debut album is the production. Whilst Red
Mountain's debut album was a great album, its production was slightly
muffled and let down in places.
They have no issues with Slow
Wander, as the album sounds loud and fresh from the start. When the
band start playing heavy psychedelic noises on the opening track -
Home, you feel every note and vocal coming at you from all corners.
Home sets the scene for the rest of the album. As heavy psychedelic
desert/stoner riffs give way to the more adventurous progressive rock
rhythms.
Second track - Rat King - is one of
the best songs on the album with its ample delivery of Progressive
Stoner based moments. The vocals and lyrics compliment the music
superbly well. Rat King has a grunge feel to it as the song moves to
its natural conclusion.
Third track - Oak - is where the
Stoner sound is gone and replaced with a more direct seventies
sounding psych/prog approach. A very cool and mellow tune to show how
expertly Red Mountains can change the mood of the album for the
better.
Fourth track - Endless Queen - is
the longest song on the album running for around eleven minutes. Red
Mountains strip the Desert/Stoner Rock sounds yet again and to focus
more on the laidback prog rock vibe. The vocals are quite laid-back
and the song has moments of dream-like post-rock appearing here and
there.
The next song - Stone - sees Red
Mountains return to their Desert/Stoner Rock roots. It's a heavier
and upbeat song with a lot more groove compared to the other songs on
the album. The final four songs on the album - Fog, Cellar Door, Acid
Wedding and Returning - manage to merge both the main primary sounds
of the album especially on Fog and Acid Wedding.
Slow Wander is an outstanding album
from Red Mountains and it's one that has the potential to surprise a
lot of people within the Stoner Rock and Progressive Rock
communities.
Words by Steve
Howe
Thanks
to Red Mountains for the promo. Slow Wander will be released on
DD/Vinyl via All Good Clean Records from September 1st
2017.
Today's
guests are about to release their stunning debut album – Down With
The Sun – on Sept 1st
2015. It's a stunning hybrid of Sludge, Doom, Stoner, Grunge, Desert
Rock and Psychedelic Rock. Not many bands can pull that off for their
debut album but Red Mountains do this with ease.
Red
Mountains first grabbed my attention with possibly the finest song
from the album – Sun. A song packed with groove, emotion and the
right amount of Desert Rock/Stoner Metal riffs. The album will be
released on DD/Vinyl through Nasoni Records on Sept 1st
2015. This is a band I'm tipping for huge things in the next couple
of years. That's how good they are.
I
described the album as: “Down
With The Sun is an exceptional debut album from a band that has
created something special here. Red Mountains are going to make a
lasting impression within the Stoner Metal community with this album.
Down With The Sun is going to end up on a few Album Of The Year
lists. That’s how good it is. Ignore this album and miss out.
Simple as that!!”
I've
was given the chance recently to catch up with the band and here's
what they had to say.
Hi
guys, thanks for doing this interview. How are things with you today.
Hi
Steve, and again, thanks for the great review! We're just happy to do
this interview.
Can
you give our readers a brief history of how the band came together
and where it is today.
We
all met while studying for a bachelor's degree in music in a town
close to Trondheim. We all listened to a lot of different music, but
we also had a lot of common favourite bands. Simen (The Drummer)
initiated the whole thing, with a vision that we could create
something new to add to the stoner scene. Sleepy Desert Blues was the
first song we did, and that's Simen's song all together. We started
writing songs together and we thought it turned out pretty cool, so
we decided to make an album out of it. That leads us up to today,
we've spent the last year finishing up the record.
You're
about to release your debut album - Down With The Sun. So are you all
excited about the forthcoming album release.
It's
those kind of things you dream of as a little kid going through your
parents' vinyl collection. We can't wait to see it off into the
world. There's a lot of hard competition out there, so we're wishing
it all the best on its journey, hoping it will reach far and wide.
What
can people expect from the album.
Expect
the unexpected! That was cheesy, but it might just be true.
Was
it an easy or hard album to write and record for.
We
didn't really get stuck in the writing of any of the songs, they all
felt like they came pretty naturally. The recording also went pretty
smooth, with the help of brilliant Eirik Øien behind the levers. The
second album might be another story, as we'd like to try out some
other ideas and think new. While at the same time keeping our sound.
Your
sound is very refreshing and different at the same time. As you guys
blend - Stoner, Doom, Noise, Psychedelic, Grunge and Sludge. It's
quite a progressive album in many ways. Would you go with that
description or do you call it good old fashioned Rock and Roll.
It's
definitely progressive to some extent. Rodents being the best example
probably. We thought it'd be cool to lead people into thinking they
were listening to a proper rock&roll act, and suddenly they're in
Sludge Valley, doomed for eternity. And they kind of forgot how they
got there. In the end, it's all about the atmosphere though. It's
loud sleepiness that sometimes wakes you up.
You
released "Sun" as the first single from the album. Has is
it surprised you the responses/praise it's received from fans and
critics alike.
Yes.
We got this one review that was pretty ambivalent about the single,
but we still appreciated it. Anyone who sits down, gives it a go and
give their honest opinion really. But of course, all the good reviews
put a big smile on our otherwise doomed faces.
The
other thing that I love about your album, is your ability to change
the mood of the song. One minute it can be a delicate Desert Rock
vibe and the next it moves onto heavier sludge rock territory. I mean
your songs all finish differently from where they began. How hard was
it to do that when recording the album.
Well,
the whole thing was recorded live song by song. It's the only way for
us to capture the live feel of it, recreating what we do on stage. So
all the dynamics and different sounds are pretty much what we do when
rehearsing and playing gigs. That makes it a lot easier to go into
the studio, you just kind of do your thing and hope the guy in the
control room knows whatever he's doing. And he did. The sound he
pulled out is astonishing..!
You're
album is being released on Vinyl through Nasoni Records. How did you
hook up with those guys. And I bet you're excited to release your
debut album on Vinyl.
As
we had finished up the recording, mixing and mastering of the album,
we started spamming people. We sent enough emails to impress Edward
Snowden himself; you have to take into consideration that half of
those email addresses you find on the grand internet outdates WWII.
But seriously, a lot of emails. We got a couple of rejections at
first. All of the sudden Nasoni gets back to us, with a very
uplifting message. So basically, they're pressing 300 coloured vinyls
in limited edition. If that sells out, another 200 are on their way.
The fact that indie labels such as Nasoni exist, makes it possible
for bands like us to actually reach out beyond our crammed up
rehearsal spaces and local gigs.
Did
you have much involvement with the design of the Vinyl. Or did you
leave it for the record label to decide.
We
started looking for the artwork before we got the deal with Nasoni.
We were looking at other cover designs and had a small collection of
great ones. The one that stood out though was that of Earth's album
"Primitive and Deadly". Our first thoughts were something
like "well, that's gonna be too many zeros at the bottom of the
bill.". But figuring the worst thing that could happen was to
get the suspicion confirmed, we sent Samantha Muljat (you guessed it)
an email. And it all worked out, we got a good deal and started
pitching ideas. She also did the design for the single (Sun), which
was a piece of art on its own.
We
have to talk about the fantastic album cover. Really captures the
mood of the album and the Desert Rock/Stoner Rock scene in general.
Who designed the cover.
The
design was done by magnificent Samantha Muljat at Bloodbank Design
(bldbnkdsgn.com). The cover is actually the first draft we got (well,
we got no draft really, we just got that), we barely changed it. And
it does indeed capture the mood of the album, she had "Sun"
on repeat to catch the vibes. Looks great. And she's great to work
with, a person that just loves what she's doing. There's a great
signature in her work.
Will
you be touring much to promote the album.
We
are playing a couple of festivals this summer before kicking off a
little tour throughout various cities in Norway when we release the
album in September. For now we've only booked concerts here in the
Land of Ice and Snow, but we sure hope to go on tour in Europe
sometime very soon. It's warmer and the beer is a lot cheaper. But
we've also got plans for a second album, whichever opportunity
reveals itself first will be our next move.
Words
by Steve Howe and Red Mountains.
I
want to thank Red Mountains for taking the time out to talking to me.
Down With The Sun will be available to buy on DD/Vinyl from Nasoni Records on Sept 1st 2015.
Release date: Sept 1st
2015. Label: Nasoni Records. Formats: DD/Vinyl
Down
With The Sun: Tracklisting
Six
Hands
Sun
Rodents
Sleepy
Desert Blues
Silver
Grey Sky
Moral
Panic
Band
Members:
Simen
Mathiassen – Drums
Sverre
Dalen – Bass
Jostein
Wigenstad – Guitar
Magnus
Riise - Guitar / Vocal
Review:
I
first became aware of Red Mountains earlier this year when they
released – Sun – from their forthcoming debut album – Down With
The Sun. Sun excited me quite a bit as it showed a band with a great
vision with all things Desert Rock, Psych Rock and Stoner Metal. The
song had me from the word go and I wanted to hear more. As it’s one
of the best Stoner Metal songs I’ve heard this year.
So
I was pretty excited to receive a promo for Red Mountains debut
album. Sun still remains the standout track on the album but the
other 5 tracks on the album are great in their own way. The thing I
like most about the album is how different the songs are to each
other. Red Mountains play through a maze of different genres, noises
and sounds.
Down
With The Sun is a very diverse album as you’re instantly drawn into
Red Mountains almost barren desert fuelled world. Opening track –
Six Hands – opens with a heavy guitar riff that oozes confidence
before the haunting vocals of – Magnus – appear. The lead vocals
have a slight 90s grunge vibe. This is primarily Stoner Metal
territory as Red Mountains create huge riffs that have a distinctive
psychedelic touch towards the end of the song. The atmosphere becomes
slightly subdued which allows Red Mountains to play a few impressive
guitar solos. The drumming is commanding through out as each member
shows you what they’re capable of even this early on the album.
Second
track – Sun – is a song I’ve been raving on about for the last
3 months or so when I first heard it. It’s a song that will send
chills down your spine. An intriguing mix of early Monster Magnet
style space rock riffs with the heavier desert/stoner metal vibes
from Stoner Metal innovators – Kyuss. The vocals only appear for a
couple of minutes before the song becomes an instrumental affair with
the band experimenting with their sound. Psychedelic/Desert Rock
sounds appear towards the end of the song as Red Mountains slow
things right down as the mood of the album becomes reflective and
more forgiving.
Third
Track – Rodents – is a more hard rock affair with the band
leaving the trippy psychedelics behind and creating a song that is
very different compared to the first two. Well for the first few
minutes the song is very different as Red Mountains become a 70s
Classic Rock inspired unit and then they return to normal spaced out
territory. The music becomes slightly psychedelic and the
Stoner/Desert vibes return with a bang. You do get the feeling that
Rodents is comprised of two different songs as the 2nd half is very
different from to the 1st half. Red Mountains deserve credit for
trying something different here by blending Classic Hard Rock with a
more modern Psych Stoner Metal sound.
Fourth
Track – Sleepy Desert Blues – is perhaps the trippiest and far
out there moment on the album. As it’s a mind-expanding journey
with Red Mountains channelling the sounds of The Doors. The trippy
and almost ambient psychedelic noises will appeal to fans of OM,
Kyuss and even Hawkwind. Red Mountains even find the time to play
some experimental jam-based riffs. It can be very slow at times but
that works to the bands advantage as there’s a lot going on with
this song. The drumming is the main standout here as they slowly
became the main focus with the guitars adding different layers of
noise that has echoes of 70s Progressive Rock.
Fifth
Track – Silver Grey Sky – is another epic from these trippy
rockers as once again Red Mountains prove how creative they can be.
As the band throw everything at you, Psych Rock, Space Rock, Desert
Rock, Stoner Rock are now joined by an Ambient Post-Rock sound as Red
Mountains will expand your mind into another dimension. The vocals
only appear for a few minutes before the crazy jam-based experimental
sounds transport you to the barren desert wastelands once again.
The
final track – Moral Panic – sees Red Mountains become slightly
possessed by the trippy vibes as they venture into more demonic
waters. The album has now gone full circle as Red Mountains return to
the realm of Stoner Metal with a more familiar sound created on the
first song. That doesn’t stop Red Mountains branching out into as
many different musical directions as they possibly can. Whatever mood
Red Mountains venture into, the album builds upto an exciting finish
and it’s a musical journey you want to experience as many times as
you can.
Down
With The Sun is an exceptional debut album from a band that has
created something special here. Red Mountains are going to make a
lasting impression within the Stoner Metal community with this album.
Down With The Sun is going to end up on a few Album Of The Year
lists. That’s how good it is. Ignore this album and miss out.
Simple as that!!
Words by Steve Howe
Thanks
to Red Mountains for the promo. Down With The Sun will be available
to buy on DD/Vinyl from Nasoni Records from Sept 1st 2015.
