Wo_Fat_Midnight_Cometh_Front_Cover_small

Wo Fat - 'Midnight Cometh'

Wo_Fat_Midnight_Cometh_Front_Cover_small

A decade ago, your hometown scene was probably infested with third-rate Lamb Of God and Hatebreed knockoffs. Perhaps it still is. The last few years have seen the trend gravitate to Electric Wizard/Sleep “worship” (to put it kindly) with new stoner-doom-fuzz-etc. acts appearing almost daily. Ain’t nobody got time for that. This is one genre where you need to separate the wheat from the chaff, lest you spend countless wasted hours slogging through boring, meandering mediocrity.

Towards the top of the doom heap stands Wo Fat. Texas seems to be a breeding ground for heavy bands with a healthy affection for both the blues boogie and psychedelic flourishes, perhaps owing a bit to fellow Texans ZZ Top and Roky Erickson. It’s these elements that the Dallas trio exploit to maximum effect on their new album, Midnight Cometh. It’s easy to look at the number of tracks (six) and average song length (about eight minutes) and dismiss it as another plodding stoner rock record. Those assumptions are crushed right from the start; leadoff track “There’s Something Sinister In The Wind” is loaded with  buoyant riffing, Cuban percussion and – most importantly – doesn’t waste a second. One of the best compliments you can give a nine-minute song is that it doesn’t feel that long; there are ebbs and changes that hold a listener’s attention. It’s not easy, but Midnight Cometh even has two additional songs (“Of Smoke And Fog” & “Nightcomer”) that accomplish the same thing.

Wo Fat’s previous two albums – The Conjuring (2014) and The Black Code (2012), both released via Small Stone – expanded on the biker doom template the band initially adhered to, with more memorable songwriting and a ‘swamp jam’ vibe that has carried over and improved even more on Midnight Cometh. “Le Dilemme De Detenu” starts off all heavy guitar hooks before easing into a laid-back segue, then jumps straight into Fu Manchu/Clutch arena-ready rock territory. The band’s chemistry bleeds into every corner of the album, especially on a song full of tight changes and solos like “Three Minutes To Midnight” or the sprawling epic/album closer “Nightcomer.” Each player is at the top of his respective game; they probably don’t even have to look at each other for the changes on stage. Ripple is home to Leaf Hound and JPT Scare Band, so it’s only fitting that a future legend is now in their ranks.

Midnight Cometh is out now via Ripple music. Pre-order it here and here. Follow Wo Fat on Facebook here.

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