As I spend more time with the genre, and grow more disillusioned with it, I find myself asking what exactly draws me to stoner metal, rock, blues, and, most of all, their current iterations. After all, the last decade has seen these genres rise to ascendancy, ushered in by bands…
Kelly Carmichael might not be a name you immediately recognize but honestly, that’s more your fault than anything. Carmichael is the beating heart behind Internal Void and has worked with the legendary Pentagram on their sixth release, Show ‘Em How. Now, the veteran guitarist returns with an album titled Heavy…
While “don’t judge a book by its cover” is one of the most often repeated cliches, we all commit the sin of prejudgement on a daily basis. There’s nothing to it; the vast amount of information and culture we can potentially partake in just doesn’t leave us a choice but…
When metal was having another of its golden ages, like the one we’re having these days, it spawned so many new bands that even some of the more important among them have been somewhat forgotten by the scene as a whole. In the late 70’s and mid 80’s, metal was…
I swear, I just can’t get enough of the outpouring of fantastic content from progressive doom and stoner these past few years. I think the secret of its appeal, for me at least, is that the genres seem to have woken up to the fact that the guitar-work is probably…
Doom metal and heavy metal have a ton of intersection. They’ve always had it but it seems to be escalating as the traditional metal revival movement continues to refurbish and remake a lot of the ideas and sounds that first made up metal. This is probably because doom and heavy…
It’s weird that heavy metal is known for being repetitive; it’s a master of classification I believe. When you narrow “heavy metal” down to the very specific style of it made from the mid-70’s to the mid-80’s, specifically centered around NWOBHM and the American response which it triggered, you certainly…
You know the part: the drums, thick and resonating, pick up pace, the bass licks in anticipation of the crescendo and all of a sudden the synths are there, Hammond goodness washing over the soaring guitar parts as the vocals explode into a high note. This structure of “ensemble buildup”, where the entire band join forces to form the climax of a track, is a staple of many genres but progressive rock has always been the best at it. King Crimson’s “Starless”, Yes’s “Heart of the Sunrise”, Wishbone Ash’s “Warrior” (containing one of the world’s most famous and most forgotten solos), Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon and many, many other tracks and albums come to mind. Even younger bands operating today and paying homage to the style (like Malady, Wobbler, Witchcraft and more) adopt the prominence of the climax and full band collaboration.
The year is 1984 and Iron Maiden are in an interesting position. Hot off the tails of two great releases and their first major tour, the band are starting to feel the pressures and joys of success at the same time. This is a crucible in which many bands have faltered, unable to reproduce the original sound which garnered them their first modicums of recognition. Line-ups shake, creative differences being to tear at the structure of the sound, as each member brings forth their own vision as to what the future should contain. In this situation, there were many divergent paths down which Iron Maiden’s story could have gone; they had already faced several major line-up changes and their future was anything but secure. They could have easily broken up or lost track of what made their first albums work.
But, instead, they made Powerslave.
Has there ever been a more aptly named compilation that A Thousand Arms’s Erosion? Probably named, as this compilation is filled with tons of geographically diverse stoner, doom, and everything in between. You have your feedback based meditations on the farthest reaches of space/the psyche, the heavier thundering of crashing waves on cliffs and the decidedly dipped in the good leaf. Most of all though, A Thousand Arms continues its efforts to bring to the light of day more obscure and less optimally located bands, shinning a light on some names you’re bound to find surprising and, hopefully, pleasing. As the compilation, which is divided into two sides, features tons of music, we’ve taken the liberty of being your guides. Let’s get started!
