High Priest Of Saturn - Sons of Earth and Sky (2016)

A four-piece mix of doom and heavy, psychedelic rock from Norway; this release marks the quintet's second since their demo in 2011. “Aeolian Dunes” comes on pretty thick right from the start with it's obvious Sabbath influence, but then Martin Sivertsen (guitars) and Ole Kristian Malmedal (keyboards) take it right into proggy Pinky Floyd territory, where trippy whirls, light keys and soft guitar nodes make for a trip through the subconscious. Andreas Hagen (drums) follows in tune along with bassist and frontwoman Merethe Heggset, as the band bring us right into church organs and groove that send us straight into the fourth dimension. When I first heard the piece, it sounded kind of like any female fronted doom (Demon Lung, for example) but when the band opened the window and let the air in a little, I had no idea that the wind was going to blow so strong that it pulled me literally outwards into the fucking stratosphere. It's also a pretty safe bet that I liked that feeling and hope that the other thirty minutes of this record will deliver the same or at least a similar feeling to that ten-minute metaphysical monster. “Ages Move The Earth” has a lighter vibe from the start, with an odd trippy effect coming from Heggset's vocals that make her feel like she's trying to communicate from another dimension entirely. There are still some thick parts to be had, but nothing that takes away from the atmosphere, which is most important. “Son Of Earth and Sky” continues to totally chill me out, while “The Warming Moon” has a little more thump, which doom fans will appreciate. Despite the fact that there are doom fans here, you've really got to accept the fact that most of the material here is really trippy, proggy and psychedelic as hell. There are comics I'd like to read while listening to this kind of stuff, just to enhance the trippy and metaphysical nature of them. When we come to the end, we're faced with another very slow moment in “The Flood Of Waters” which I can certainly say will extend your journey. The disc itself comes in at about forty minutes, so it's not quite a full hour of psychedelic doom/rock fare, but you're definitely going to appreciate what has happened here and I'd definitely consider it one of the best psychedelic experiences I've heard from a doom act in a while. If you liked that Tusmorke I reviewed earlier, pick this one up for a little more meat coupled with yet another amazing trip.

(5 Tracks, 40:00)

8/10

Tusmorke - Fort Bak Lyset (2016)

Norway's Tusmorke are back and I've been waiting a long time to review this one, because like their last, I really enjoyed it. One song that really got me into these guys was “All Is Lost” a track I don't think I'll ever forget. I've played it several times and it always elicits the same feeling every time I do so. But truly every song was worth listening to on 2014's Riset Bak Speilet.

Running in at about forty-five minutes, Fort Back Lyset is just about as long as we'd expect for these guys and certainly feels much longer than that with all the trippy parts that occur on this record. The band combine folk rock and progressive music together here, which sometimes lifts you up and takes you into another world altogether. To me, that's one of the best feelings that you can have in a non-metal act and if I wasn't such a big metal head, it's assured that I'd be a damn hippie. In any case, “Et Djevelsk Marenitt” definitely brings us into that funky psychedelic world, and it comes along with flutes to add a bit more Tolkien flair to the performance. Keep in mind that the song itself starts out like something you might hear in a fairy forest before it drops LSD, but I'd seriously have it no other way. Once we get past that point, there's no going back as “De Reiser Fra Oss” works to remind us that the trip has already begun and if you're not seeing the floor melt by now, you soon will. As well as the ceiling and the walls. The rest of the world might indeed look like a Dali painting doused with a hint of Tolkien or George R. R. Martin. Imagine Game Of Thrones if the production team were taking hits of acid during the design phase, or hired Lewis Caroll on Laudanum.

Other than really trippy atmospheres that make the walls and ceilings turn to butter, the band also offer plenty of catchy moments. Even though the lyrics are all performed in the band's native Norwegian this time around, these sections are so catchy that it doesn't even matter. I don't even know what “yar” means, but let me tell you, I was certainly singing right along with them during the opener “Ekebergkongen” and the disc's title track. In addition to this, there's also a little bit of a lighter piece in “Spurvehauken” which seems almost like a forlorn ballad with a psychedelic injection. The way that these guys combine psychedelic funk music with Norwegian folk is something that I think is unparalleled, and just one listen of this stellar album is all you need to be convinced of their talent. If you're looking for a literal folky trip, then please give this one a listen. There's no one out there quite like Tusmorke.

(7 Tracks, 44:00)

8/10

Church Of Misery - ...And Then There Were None (2016 Bonsai Bonus)

Japan's Church Of Misery never really have disappointed as far as I'm concerned and the stoner/doom metallers continue with their anti-trend/anti-corporate attitude in the vein of yet another potent doom release. Needless to say, doom isn't very popular in Japan for some reason and I haven't heard this approach from too many other bands in the region. Needless to say, quality is better than quantity and that's exactly what you'll get here. Musically, it reminds me of something like Corrosion Of Conformity, EyeHateGod, Black Sabbath, Acid Witch, Electric Wizard or Cathedral, except with a much coarser, almost demonic vocal approach at times. The band love playing around with psychedelics as you're going to hear in a few places (the album opener “Hellbenders” begins especially with psychedelics, right after a murder – it could be taken as the soul's ascension to the otherworld in a way) but more than anything else on this disc, I hear the good old blues. There's not a goddamn thing wrong with the blues, and there wouldn't really be a metal or even a rock music in general without them. Elvis certainly had his blues numbers, but what we're talking about is far from Elvis, even though the feeling is definitely still there. Take out the harsh vocal approach and the murder references and you've got yourself a thumping blues album. 

Normally I go through these Bonsai Bonuses track by track, but this is one album where I don't really think that's necessary and that's not because this album is a sub-par disc or not worthy of such coverage, but because it's pretty straightforward and I don't feel the need to have to talk about or defend certain approaches. There's nothing about Church Of Misery that even feels normal for Japanese rock or metal and I don't even think the J-Metal term works to describe these guys. Trust me, the roots of heavy metal are found here, and seeing as these guys have been around since '95, there's really no need to introduce them. The listener is going to get a memorable doom experience that I feel is very classic, pretty grotesque and altogether fucking awesome. If you love really sadistic lyrics and catchy as hell blues, then you're going to eat this one up. It's the kind of disc that you enjoy for the base element (blues, groove, solos, psychedelics) but every now and again the band will add in some extra bits here and there to keep you entertained. You know, if I was looking for a good dose of bluesy doom with enough insanity for my depraved mind (guro, guro, guro!) then I'd definitely find this one a pick up and play. There's not a bad song here, with all six (not counting the instrumental section, “Suicide Journey” which definitely goes out there a little bit) delivering exactly the kind of classic approach we'd expect, with a little bit more modernism in the harsh vocals, and a little more imagination in some areas than you'll get with other bands. If you've got to have doom, you've gotta have ...And Then There Were None.

(7 Tracks, 43:00)

8/10