Doom fans in Chicago celebrated the coming of spring with a rare concert by the legendary doom band Candlemass at Reggies Rock Club. Candlemass It was the Vernal Equinox, and during a Leap Year, no less, that created the perfect alignment of elements, known and unknown, in the universe necessary for Candlemass to perform in the US. They are not here very often. It seems they have crossed the Atlantic primarily for the Hell’s Heroes festival in Texas, and they are doing a couple of other dates while they are here. According to the band’s website, apart from the festival, Candlemass is only play ..read more

Psychedelic rock instrumentalists Pyramid return with more mind alluring constructions on Beyond Borders Of Time. Pyramid is an instrumental prog rock band from Germany. They released their debut album in 2019, Mind Maze. After a lineup shuffle, they are bringing forth new music in their emergent trio form that is an expanding universe of its own. The band is Michael Kümpflein (bass, synth), Lukas Schomann (drums), and Shane Saban (guitar). The music on this album is progressive rock, heavily laden with bluesy sensibilities and stoner intimations, conjuring psychedelic discernments. The openi ..read more

Boogie metal maestros Leather Lung release their first long-player, Graveside Grin. Leather Lung specialized in EPs for the last ten years or so, ripping out four of them: Reap What You Sow (2014), Lost in Temptation (2016), Lonesome, On’ry and Evil (2019), and Dive Bar Devil (2022). The music is stoner goodness with the heaviness of sludge infused when needed, and plenty of bouncy hooks. Boogie metal, some people call it. It is infectious, I can tell you that. It gets in your blood. The band is Mike (vocals), Zach (guitar, vocals), Ben (drums), Jesse (bass, vocals), and Greg (guitar). “Spit ..read more

San Francisco heavy psych band Disastroid stokes a moody mist on their new album, Garden Creatures. Bay Area fuzz masters Disastroid have been plying their trade for decade or so. Over the course of a couple of EPs and three previous full-length albums, Disastroid has laid down a trail of smoke thick enough for anyone to follow. Their music is a grungy kind of stoner rock that sometimes takes a crooked walk but always ends up somewhere agreeable. The band is Enver Koneya (vocals, guitar), Travis Williams (bass, guitar), and Braden McGraw (drums). The title track starts the set rolling. “Garde ..read more

Progressive heavy psych band Mr. Bison deliver stories of destiny on their latest album, Echoes From The Universe. Formed in Toscana, Italy in 2009, Mr. Bison is a heavy rock band that integrates progressive sounds and psychedelic treatments into their music. They have released four earlier albums – most recently 2020’s well-received Seaward – and a split with Spacetrucker. The new record is a concept album that “is the attempt, as human and temporal beings, to escape the idea of an alleged destiny predetermination by managing to build one’s own individual life path trough will power.” The ba ..read more

Three-piece desert rock band Sundrifter bring forth their third album, An Earlier Time. Sundrfiter is a band from Boston that started off in 2012. Having made waves with their earlier albums, 2016’s Not Coming Back and the even more impressive Visitations from 2019, the stoner threesome returns now with their best work yet. The band is Craig Peura (vocals, guitar), Paul Gaughran (bass), and Patrick Queenan (drums). The album takes off with “Limitless.” The beginning bars are full of energy and press forward, while the settled riff that beds the vocals has a doom feel to it. This is a great co ..read more

Trieste rockers TSO have a new album: Hellcare. TSO is a duo that formed in Italy in 2013. They have released two previous albums, In-Sanity (2016) and Hearth (2019). Their music keeps grunge alive and expands its shadowy borders. The band is Andrea and Marco Abbrescia, both of whom are credited with drums, bass, guitar, and vocals. The new set consists of eleven tracks, starting with “Already Knew.” The music is filled with sorrow and laid out in a thick grunge lane. Slow, almost mournful, the tone is set for the album at the beginning. “Miss Comprehension” follows, and it is more angular wh ..read more

Heavy desert rock collective Big Scenic Nowhere release a new album, The Waydown. Talking about the new record, the band says, “Most of these recordings go back to 2021. Two tracks are from late 2020. One track is from 2018. Usually, the way we record is we get together and jam and then edit the jams down to songs afterwards. All of the songs on the album were constructed that way, except for ‘100,’ ‘Bleed On,’ ‘Summer Teeth,’ and ‘Sara Smile.’” Several guests show up throughout, including Per Wiberg, Reeves Gabrels, and Eliot Lewis. The Waydown follows two previous long-players, Visions Beyo ..read more

German stoner band Colour Haze deepens their legacy with a new album, Sacred. Colour Haze came together in Germany in 1994 playing heavy psychedelic stoner music. As the years passed and they honed their sound, the musical tendencies moved toward the melodic end of the scale, preserving stoner sensibilities. Sacred is Colour Haze’s fourteenth full-length album. The band is Stefan Koglek (guitar, vocals), Manfred Merwald (drums), Jan Faszbender (keys), and Mario Oberpucher (bass). There are seven tracks on the new album. The set opens with “Turquoise,” and immediately we hear the mellow earth ..read more

Cleveland occult metalists Ancient VVisdom bring more tales forth on their new record, Master Of The Stone. I hear Ancient VVisdom formed in 2009 in Texas, then immigrated to Cleveland, Ohio. They are a heavy metal band that has a tendency to focus on occult themes. There have been a few lineup changes over the years, and the band now is Nathan Opposition and Michael Jochum. Master Of The Stone follows the well-received Mundus from 2019, also released by Argonauta Records. The heavy clomp of the Dark One’s hooves can be heard in the opening bars of “Sold My Soul To Satan,” establishing a fero ..read more