CRYSTAL SPIDERS - Molt
Ripple Music
So it might've been late last year or early this year when a friend of mine (and a local musician) sent me a link to this band's three song demo. He also included the words "Raleigh's newest Doom sensation". So yeah I checked it out and thought it was pretty good but I'd hold off on the whole "sensational" tag just yet until they put out something more substantial.
So here we are with this the band's debut full length. After a few listens I'd say yeah this is great. But then again who doesn't like female fronted doom these days? So with that said the CRYSTAL SPIDERS are technically a duo with bassist / vocalist Brenna Leath and drummer Tradd Yancey. Their guitarist is Mike Deloatch. He's not in the promo pick below (?)
For starters I've gotta say Brenna Leath is an amazing vocalist. Her vocal range as well as command of singing styles makes every song on here a treat. She is perfect doing haunting vocals as well as angst punk rock screams, sultry bluesy stuff or just full on in your face rock. Then again I've been a fan of her singing ever since I saw her perform in THE HELL NO which is a melodic metal act she fronts as well. She's also in LIGHTNING BORN which is a sludgey doom project that also features Mike Dean from CORROSION OF CONFORMITY.
By the way Brenna Leath is also good at playing bass. Molt is just down-tuned fucking heavy in a SAINT VITUS way. Tradd Yancey is steady as far as the basic drumwork goes but once in a while steps out to be the dominator on a few songs. Ya can't argue with Mike Deloatch's SABBATH-ian style of riffs. I'd say his various guitar solo work on here is slightly out of the box which make things far more interesting. Once again it's more SAINT VITUS than standard SABBATH worship.
In the end I have to be totally honest. If you look at this from a local music perspective then yeah CRYSTAL SPIDERS are sensational. But I look at this from a world wide view. Remember now, twenty years ago female fronted doom was an oddity. In 2010 it became something of a force to be recognized. So now a band like CRYSTAL SPIDERS are another fish in a huge ocean of similar sounding bands from all over.
But they've got something which goes beyond the great vocals and perfect doom sounds. They don't conform to the cliche sounds of others in the genre. CRYSTAL SPIDERS have influences but walk a different path which makes them unique and cool. I think this album is fantastic. It's definitely something which I'd consider a favorite of the year. I was looking forward to see this band play live in 2020. But with the Covid shutdowns that turned out to be a no. Hopefully in 2021 then but for now get this release.
LISTEN HERE:
https://crystalspiders.bandcamp.com/album/molt
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