"The OD Sessions": Warlung Far Exceeds Your Recommended Dosage of Riffs (Live Studio Session Premiere)

If there’s one thing that Warlung‘s 2020 album Optical Delusions proved, it’s that these dudes can write one hell of a riff. The album grooves and bounces like any high-tier stoner rock record you care to compare it to, but it does so with a sense of progressive nuance and intricate song constructions that are absurdly rare to find in conjunction with that punchiness. It really takes some peering into the inner workings to understand everything they’re doing here: unlike so many bands that can be vaguely compared to Black Sabbath, Warlung’s music gets more interesting the more you hear it.

As it happens, it’s also a lot of fun to watch. The band recently stepped into King Benny’s House of Sound to knock out a live studio session, complete with high-quality video and audio recording to document it. It’s time to step back into the illusory world of Warlung and get high on the band’s rock-solid riff supply: here’s “The OD Sessions” in its entirety for a half-hour break from reality.

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Simply put, you can’t take it for granted that a band can write songs this killer and play them this tight, too. But here, Warlung’s chops are frighteningly top-notch: there’s apparently no studio magic behind their pitch-perfect vocals and flawless riff execution, and quarantine hasn’t dulled their live cohesion one bit. Optical Delusions released in the throes of the pandemic back in October, which was well past the point of touring in support being an obvious no-go: sessions like this one are about the closest thing to playing out as possible. Here, the band knocks out a six-song set in half an hour, with big smiles all around as they slam through their material leaving barely any downtime between tracks. Realistically, it was already a given that I was going to see Warlung if they can swing a tour in the future, but watching this session should dial that up for all of us to a critical life priority.

From the band:

“Our friends over at King Benny’s House of Sound hit us up for a live studio session to help break in their freshly remodeled studio. We collaborated with our boys in Dang Media Group to film us playing tracks off our latest record Optical Delusions.”

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Optical Delusions released October 9th, 2020 via Heavy Psych Sounds.