HORSESKULL - Chemical Winter Blues
Self Released
I believe I said it years ago (ah yeah five years to be exact) but I'll repeat, the whole stoner/sludge sub genre of doom has been milked dry. In fact the cow is nothing more than picked bovine bones which even hipsters have broken in order to suck out the marrow. These days it's either bands trying their best to ape critical faves like (choose one: BARONESS, ELECTRIC WIZARD, NEUROSIS or SLEEP) or going all out hyfinated as in post this or blackened that. So whenever a release by a band of the stoner/sludge catagory comes along for me it's not who they try to be but who they really are.
HORSESKULL are a four piece band who hail from Raleigh, North Carolina. They are not a band of upstarts riding a wave of trendy popularity instead they are veterans who have already walked threw the sub-genre's second wave when they were called SOUL PREACHER. They reached their peak at a time when the genre was peaked out and finally called it a day. Then in 2011 members Michael Avery on guitars and effects, Anthony Staton on vocals and guitars, Robb Hewlett on bass joined up with Steve Smith on drums to take their patented stoner/sludge sound to another realm.
After releasing a phenominal self titled full length in 2014 which laid out their departure from the past and a pissed off push forward, HORSESKULL now rolls out their sophmore full length. For the longest time I thought that the band's ultimate strength is the energy they create on stage. (Bias Alert: Yeah I'm a fan, seen em live a bunch of times and will be seeing em again in a week.) On Chemical Winter Blues the band channels that live setting energy right from the onset. Opener "Black Dawn, Bright Day" is a sonic wake-up call and sits well with HORSESKULL's motto; Turn up, Tune down, and DOOM OUT! The song has it's obvious SABBATH-ian influence (don't they all in this genre?) with subtle hints of PAGAN ALTAR and maybe some REVEREND BIZARRE.
Other cuts like "Hypocrites and Pigs" and "Luckless Bastards" are full on aggressive doom. This ain't about peace, love and dope people. Think more like bongs, guns and hate (trust me I know something about that). Chemical Winter Blues is five cuts in all and there are two long psych/mindbending ones. "The Black Flame of Cain" runs around ten minutes and comes off as a lamenting pagan calling out on the sorrows of his curse. "Lost All I Had Then Lost Again" sounds like a tale from the dark side, or maybe someone headed to the electric chair, which goes on for over seventeen minutes. It's the closer and yet you're screaming for more afterwards.
I'm definately liking this new one more because of the live in your face asthetic plus the band relies on more depth overall. Anthony's vocals are like calls from a shamen. The guitar work, by Anthony and Michael, show a low tuned assault instead of just typical grooving riffs. The leads are hypnotic as if an acid tinged power drill maniac was on the loose. As far as the rhythm section of Robb and Steve. The drumwork either powers you down or leads you out on a trail of hyponotism. The bass work is obviously a callasp on reality, crushing most often. Yeah I love this one.
https://horseskull.bandcamp.com/album/chemical-winter-blues
https://www.facebook.com/Horseskull/
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