Maybe in 2030 we’ll stop doing these lists featuring a number corresponding to the given year and make it a little easier for us but for now we’re still finding it hard to whittle down the artists and albums that kicked ass for us so if it ain’t broke then don’t fix it, y’know? And 2022 delivered yet again!
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There’s one every year for us, isn’t there? One unexpected/unknown artist with a record that completely knocks our socks off. In recent years, bands like Corlyx, Forming The Void, and SPICE have just come completely out of left field with these albums that absolutely slay from start to finish. And in 2022, we’re blessed with Denver’s Abrams and their magnum opus entitled In The Dark.
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One of the added perks of typing up a new review is rediscovering a band you dug but one that might not necessarily be in the forefront of your current regular rotation. Don’t get me wrong, I still LOVE Miss Lava’s Sonic Debris (Holy shit, has it really been almost five years since that dropped???) but know I definitely haven’t paid as much attention as it deserves in recent months. That said, the Lisbon quartet is back with a bold new album that’s every bit as fueled by the RAWK as Sonic Debris is.
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Firstly, they’re pronounced “Man Go”, okay? Now that that’s outta the way we can commence talk about the rawk. And what rawk there is to talk about! On The Heat, Mangoo’s third magnum opus, these Finnish rawkers have captured some kind of awesome that rawks, trips, and rolls like no other. [Read more…]
2016 is turning out to be a great year for the riffage. So far both Miss Lava and Gozu (To name a few standouts) have released albums schooling the kids on how to rawk properly. Not to be outdone by their peers, It’s Not Night: It’s Space’s latest is equally impressive. It’s also quite the coincidence that all three bands are either former or current members of the Small Stone Records roster. [Read more…]
Who knew that Portugal would produce one of the finest desert rock albums since the days of “generator parties” in Palm Desert? Miss Lava is their name and rocking with an unbridled intensity is their game by combining Kyuss’ wall of sound with Monster Magnet’s psychedelia and a little of COC’s Southern-fried jam sensibility just for shits. [Read more…]
With a mix of that Southern-fried Black Crowes twang and Led Zeppelin’s classic bravado, Free Wheelin‘ by Vancouver’s La Chinga is destined to live long and prosper in the hallowed halls of rawk. [Read more…]
If Torche and Roadsaw had a baby, the resulting bouncing baby boy would be Ohio’s Lo-Pan. Take those sludgy riffs and clean vox that bring to mind Roadsaw’s Craig Riggs and you have the recipe for something great. On Colossus, their fourth, Lo-Pan continually defy expectations to craft a monumentally monolithic masterpiece from start to finish.
“Regulus” instantly sets the tone for an album that’s filled with melody undercut by bone crushingly heavy riffs making for an interesting dichotomy throughout. “Black Top Revelation” shares some DNA with Small Stone labelmates Gozu while “Marathon Man” is a riffercise and a half.
The title track sounds exactly as you’d expect: either like the 96-foot tall statue for which the album was named or for a certain X-Man covered in organic steel. Yep, it’s that heavy. Meanwhile, “Vox” is a sonic eargasm and features Colossus cover artist Jason Alexander Byers (He, of Disengage and Black Black Black also) pitching in on the mic.
“Eastern Seas”shows off drummer J. Bartz as he crashes and churns like the waves of a mighty ocean while Jeff Martin’s vocals soar above swooping in to save listeners from the murky depths. Colossus finishes up with the rollicking “Relo” and “The Duke” which gives listeners a few more chances to appreciate the majesty of Skot Thompson’s bass and Brian Fristoe’s guitar wizardry.
Is this an album you need to own in 2014? Definitely! Colossus is out on October 7th through Small Stone Records. Yours can be pre-ordered right here. You can also catch Lo-Pan on tour now with Black Cobra. For dates and more, head on over here.