Legends of the Desert: Volume 4 featuring Eagle Twin & The Otolith (Album Review)

Release Date: September 20th 2024. Record Label: Desert Records. Formats: CD/DD/Vinyl

Legends of the Desert: Volume 4 featuring Eagle Twin & The Otolith - Track Listing:

1. Eagle Twin - Horn Vs. Halo 11:39 video

2. Eagle Twin - Qasida of The Dark Doves 08:28

3. The Otolith - Crossway 08:53

4. The Otolith - Phosphene Dream 10:49

Review

Legends of the Desert: Volume 4 is the next exciting installment from Desert Records series of joint albums this time featuring Eagle Twin & The Otolith. This chapter sees both bands bring their own stylish and acclaimed take of Drone, Doom, Sludge and Stoner Metal that’s quite different to each other. Both sets of tracks from each band lasts around twenty minutes with Eagle Twin being up first with their two tracks of Horn VS Halo and Qasida Of The Dark Doves.

Eagle Twin have been playing their down-tuned slice of Droned Out Americana since 2007 across acclaimed multiple releases and this sees the band get straight down to business of laying down pulsating progressive leaning Droned Out Fuzzed Up Sounds with their gruff trademark vocals to match. 

Their two tracks are the heaviest of the split and personally my favourite part of the album. As it has a heavy sludgy monolithic beat throughout both tracks where the music is vividly melodic with the down-tuned aggressive pastures that results in heavy destructive grooves with quite an organic delivery as well. 

The Psychedelic Fuzzy Instrumental passages have a more dramatic Post-Metal sound compared to their previous releases but it’s the grizzled and gruffy vocals that is quintessential Eagle Twin territory and overlapping instrumental passages with a mighty air of distorted progressive metal holding everything together.

I have to admit that Qasida Of The Dark Doves has a more straightforward riff-centric style from Eagle Twin for the most part and I loved the screeching guitars that has similar themes to bands such as The Melvins and Mastodon in places but this is still classic EAGLE TWIN through and through.

Up next is The Otolith and they are more than capable for the challenge by delivering their own sublime tracks of Atmospheric Doom/Stoner Metal based folklore which has a more experimental delivery compared to Eagle Twin. I was blown away by their 2022 debut album Folium Limina and their two offerings of Crossway and Phosphene Dream carries on with a similar vivid sound with more emphasis on the folkier aspects of their lyrics with a brilliantly intense vocal performance from everyone involved.

The interplay between the sludgy instrumental sounds and traditional instruments such as Violin and Piano is a joy to behold that appears within Crossway leaving me quite dumbfounded once again at how spectacularly heavy The Otolith can be whilst bringing a Classical Music element to their overall sound. There are echoes of Drone and Ambient delivery within the hidden Post-Rock flow which allows their music to have a more dramatic and progressive feeling compared to Eagle Twin.

Legends of the Desert: Volume 4 is going from strength-to-strength with each passing release but this is perhaps their heaviest and finest release to date with two bands at the top of their creative powers. This is forty one minutes of Doom, Sludge and Stoner Metal perfection which showcases two highly different bands to each other but delivering a split record of the highest order. 

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Desert Bloom PR for the promo.

Legends of the Desert: Volume 4 is available to buy now on CD/DD/Vinyl via Desert Records.

Eagle Twin Links

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram

The Otolith Links

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram

MASSIVE HASSLE - Number One (Album Review)

Release Date: October 27th 2023. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD/Vinyl.

Number One - Tracklisting

1.Lane 05:32

2.Twos 04:13

3.Drifter 04:16

4.Kneel 03:47

5.Knife 05:43

6.House 03:36

7.Drink 02:46

8.Fibber 07:11

Members

Bill Fisher

Marty Fisher

Review

Number One is the debut album from Psych/Stoner/Blues Rockers MASSIVE HASSLE which is fronted by the hugely talented Fisher brothers - Bill and Marty. The guys are perhaps better known for being part of MAMMOTHWING, Dystopian Future Movies and the mighty Church Of The Cosmic Skull. So their talent and creative vision should never be questioned and MASSIVE HASSLE is perhaps my favourite project of theirs yet.

MASSIVE HASSLE combine Classic Blues Rock with solitary Jazz Rock overtones which moves into a thrilling style of aggressive Psych Stoner Rock where the screechy guitars embrace the mythos of the Californian Desert/Stoner Rock scene with the gloomy UK Kitchen-Sink style Indie Rock blues within the creative fabrics of the whole album.

MASSIVE HASSLE have a dramatic flair within the storytelling aspect of the majority of the songs starting rather restrained with it’s solid Blues Rock foundations but MASSIVE HASSLE kick up a gear when a LOUD WALL of Fuzz Drenched based Stoner Rock grooves kick down the doors and lead the listener into a heavier PSYCHEDELIC world. Opening tracks Lane and Twos expertly lay down the foundations on what is to follow with Billy and Marty providing sublime emotionally charged vocals and intense instrumental sounds that have moments of flashy Progressive jams whilst retaining an air of Classic Hard Rock authority. 

Bill and Marty have used this way of delivering music before with their other musical projects but MASSIVE HASSLE has a great sound of its own especially when the heavier distorted grooves fully take the lead with moments of Sonic and Psychedelic interplay appearing on various stages of the album.

The remaining tracks of the album continue the same creative journey as the opening two songs with melancholic lyrics offering a bittersweet and emotionally charged experience with MASSIVE HASSLE perhaps showcasing their love and admiration for various Hard Rock and Stoner Rock artists whilst still doing their own thing.

Number One can be quite experimental on tracks such as Drifter, Knife, House and Drink. However, MASSIVE HASSLE never forgets their catchy and bewitching style of Doomed Out Stoner Rock with a soulful Blues Rock edge offering some of the heaviest, freshest and freakiest sounds on the whole album.

The standout track has to be the final track Fibber which runs past the seven minutes mark and sees MASSIVE HASSLE open with a sultry and almost semi-acoustic Blues Rock sound before launching into a full on Sludge/Stoner Rock assault that brings a sense of gloominess to the album. The intense vocal harmonies work spectacularly well with the distorted psychedelic heaviness that lies within the noise driven sounds of the track with the band allowing the listener to soak up all the DOOM and GLOOM surroundings that will leave you wanting to hear more.

Number One is a deeply engaging and wonderfully different style of Heavy Rock where MASSIVE HASSLE deliver their own unique and original style of music to the Psychedelic Stoner Rock scene. 

Words by Steve Howe

Number One is available to buy now on DD/Vinyl via MASSIVE HASSLE

Links

Official | BandCamp | Instagram