stoner

Church of Misery are obsessed with serial killers. When Macabre wrote about Albert Fish, it matched their death metal sound. But when this Japanese four-piece does it, their ’70s grooves throw the lyrics off balance. They sing of infamous serial killers over groovy riffs. On this album, they make raging shotgun slayers sound fun and […]

Jon Blank, bassist for Wino and other bands, died this past weekend of a suspected drug overdose. (See story here.) I am not familiar with his other projects, but evidently he was quite the musician. His work on Wino’s Punctuated Equilibrium was perfect – solid, supportive, supple. When I interviewed Wino recently, he praised Blank’s […]

Bison B.C. blend genres admirably on their Metal Blade debut Quiet Earth, a more complete package than their first release Earthbound. Molding together sludge riffs, prog metal solos, and thrash-like melodies, Bison B.C. leave little breathing room. They strike with gusto in “Primal Emptiness of Outer Space.” Dual guitarists and vocalists James Farwell and Dan […]

Space/stoner rockers Farflung are playing rare live dates in LA (The Echo, 3/19) and SF (Bottom of the Hill, 3/20) before undertaking a week-long tour of central Europe, including the Roadburn Festival. (See dates here.) Stoner rock all sounds the same to me – see this great interview with Roadrunner A&R; exec Monte Conner on […]