Hey! Listen to Barishi!

Eden Kupermintz
Listen To This!
Progressive stoner metal is in an interesting place right now. On one hand, there's a slew of releases being published. Bands like Family, Warm, King Goat and, of course, Intronaut and Baroness are all bringing their on take on odd time signatures veiled in thick riffs and a waft of smoke. However, there are also appears to be a certain lethargy and repetitiveness which is inherent to the sub-genre as a whole. Something about the main type of dynamic between vocals, riffs and production is stagnant, going beyond signature and style and into the realms of repetition and imitation. It's a good thing then that we have Barishi to break the mold. Their brand of progressive stoner metal takes plenty of risks and is the better for it; Blood From a Lion's Mouth was released a couple of weeks and is a great indication of the possibilities of the genre.

Warm – The Human Exemplar

Eden Kupermintz
Reviews
Grunge is not a genre which I enjoy. However, many of its elements can be incorporated into other styles with pleasing results. The most successful of these, to my ears, are the vocals. Something about that raspy Chris Cornell dynamic just gets me going, reaching into places of excitement and lazy wonder. When you take these and you overlay them into metal, mostly the slower, more fuzzy sub-genres, you get an instant match. In the honey-rich lows of such bourbon infused drawls their lives a tension which meshes beautifully with feedback and deep drum rolls. Here, then, is where I introduce you to Warm. The band does, and has been doing since 2011, exactly what I just described. Their brand of stoner is reinforced with a vocalist who has learned well the lessons of the 90's and their rock.