Holy Serpent - ENDLESS (Album Review)

Release date: October 18th 2019. Label: RidingEasy Records. Format: CD/DD/Vinyl

Endless – Tracklisting

1.Lord Deceptor 06:47

2.Into the Fire

3.Daughter of the Light

4.Hourglass 05:26

5.For No One 07:44

6.Marijuana Trench

Members

Scott Penberthy - Guitar/Vocals

Nick Donoughue - Guitar

Dave Bartlett - Bass

Lance Leembrugen - Drums

Review

Endless is the 3^rd album from Australian Heavy Psych Rockers Holy Serpent and sees the band continue their partnership with RidingEasy Records. This album continues where their 2016 effort TEMPLES left off but with more emphasis on progression and storytelling. The album has a more Doom orientated sound perhaps influenced by Uncle Acid in places.

However the Stoner Rock grooves allow Holy Serpent to create a richer and heavier style of music. The album opens with the excellent sounding – Lord Deceptor – which captures the seedy 70s Doom Rock environment surprisingly well with elements of Occult Rock spliced with epic amounts of Fuzz Rock. The vocals are rooted in 70s Hard Rock and offer the band a more vintage feel compared to their previous albums.

Second song – Into The Fire – opens with a more powerful Sludge Rock sound and it’s a welcome change with the band becoming that little bit more dangerous and edgier as well. The riffs are plentiful and powerful with Holy Serpent biding their time in playing their trademark Psychedelic Stoner Rock vibes. The song is more progressive than you initially would expect and allows Holy Serpent to experiment with their music. The vocals feel distant in places but have an emotional core to them that I didn’t expect. The lyrics are superb and give this song and perhaps bring the album truly to life.

Third song – Daughter Of The Light – is perhaps the gloomiest and doom based offering on the album as the whole environment becomes bleaker as a result. The dark vocals have a sinister to feel to them but it’s the music that impresses the most. As Holy Serpent bring a more subtle feeling to their hybrid Psych/Fuzz/Stoner/Doom Rock sound. One of the standout songs on the album.

Fourth song – Hourglass – is a love letter to the classic 70s Doom Rock/Metal scene as Holy Serpent play some epic Black Sabbath riffs on the album and leave you with wanting more with moments of modern sounding Fuzz Rock grooves being added for dark and twisted measure.

The remaining 2 songs – For No One and Marijuana Trench – have a more Stoner Rock approach with the Heavy Psychedelic sound still being the main driving force for Holy Serpent to build their music from. Marijuana Trench is the best song on the album and it’s a great song to end the album with.

Endless is a fantastic sounding album and everything sounds perfectly creepy from start to finish. This is perhaps Holy Serpent’s best sounding and most mature album to date. If you’re new to the world of Holy Serpent then this album is the best place to start. If you’re a long time fan of the band then you’re going to love it like I did.

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Dave at US/THEM PR for the promo. Endless will be available to buy on CD/DD/Vinyl via RidingEasy Records from October 18^th 2019.

Links:

Facebook | BandCamp

Void Cruiser - Wayfarer (Album Review and Exclusive Song Premiere)

Release date: February 27th 2017. Label: Argonauta Records. Format: CD/DD

Wayfarer - Tracklisting

1. A day on which no man was born

2. I didn’t lie but I know now that I should have

3. As we speak

4. Madonnas and whores

5. Seven years late

6. All over nowhere

7. Maailman kallein kaupunki

Band Members

Guitars & Vocals – Super Salo Bros.

Bass & Vocals – Lassi “T-Hug” Tähtinen

Drums – Teemu ”T-Bag” Rantanen

Review

Void Cruiser's second album - Wayfarer - is a Psychedelic Doom/Stoner odyssey where the band blends ambient sounds and ethereal desert/post-rock vibes for a heavy round of psychedelic weirdness. Opening track - A Day Which No Man Was Born - is structured like a classic post-rock song before the heavy ambient doomy sounds appear. 

Shades of Minerva era Deftones -open the song before the progressive and psychedelic riffs finally take over. It's purely an instrumental affair and shows Void Cruiser mean business on this album. A thumping bass heavy driven riff is the main highlight here with the other instruments playing their part as well. A wise choice to open the album with this song as it's one of the standout tracks on the album and it firmly holds your attention from beginning to end.

Second track - I Didn't Lie But I Now Know I Should Have - continues on the spaced out journey with another action packed ride where the band now add vocals to the mix courtesy of lead vocalist. It's a Post-Rock/Doom/Stoner Rock sound where the band expertly blend heavy and quiet sound dynamics for a surreal listen at times. The vocals are quite euphoric at times that only adds extra weight to Void Cruiser's overall sound.

Third track - As We Speak - is a more direct Doom/Stoner Metal offering with the band going for a simpler approach with the heavy distorted atmospherics giving way to a clearer sound. It's still psychedelic places but with the three minute running time, the band have less time to experiment and they concentrate in creating Post-Rock/Stoner vibes.

Fourth track - Madonnas and Whores sees Void Cruiser stepping away from the albums earlier sounds with a straight-forward Hard Rock song with the familiar Doom, Psych and Stoner elements being slowly played in the background. It's a very cool change of pace as it shows Void Cruiser isn’t afraid to change the album's tone and direction when the time calls for it. This song has a classic Kyuss groove near the very end.

The final three songs - Seven Years Late, All Over Nowhere and Maailman kallein kaupunki - sees Void Cruiser play the usual Psych Doom/Stoner Metal sounds and with the band experimenting with their sound yet again. The biggest change is perhaps the vocals as they change quite frequently. The major surprise is perhaps the final song - Maailman kallein kaupunki - as it's sung in their native language.

I'm surprised that these guys aren't better known within the Doom/Stoner Metal community as these guys have something exciting about them. Wayfarer can be a difficult album to define and listen to at times. As Void Cruiser play a different range of sounds. Whilst the first half of the album is Cosmic/Spaced Out Doom, the rest of the album ventures into different genres such as Hard Rock, Psych and Fuzz.

Wayfarer is a confident and wildly exciting album that will find a dedicated audience within the Doom/Stoner Metal community.

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Barbara at NeeCee Agency for the promo. Thanks to Gero at Argonauta Records for streaming the song. Wayfarer will be available to buy on CD/DD via Argonauta Records from February 24^th 2017.

Links:

Facebook | BandCamp

You can hear the excellent new single - As We Speak - from their spellbinding new album.