GRIEF COLLECTOR - En Delirium review

 

GRIEF COLLECTOR - En Delirium

Petrichor

So in my not so humble opinion I think the Robert Lowe era of CANDLEMASS was pretty good. That's all I'm gonna say about that subject. So on tonight's episode of "where are they now?" this is Robert Lowe's latest project. For those of you hoping for a SOLITUDE AETURNUS reunion nah that wasn't gonna happen. 

GRIEF COLLECTOR is a band he's in now with Matt Johnson from SIGNS OF RAIN on guitar & bass plus Brad Miller from AMONG THE SERPENTS. The music is still doom. What else is there for Lowe? Now obviously because it's Lowe you might feel compelled to comparing his past efforts to this. Well don't because this is their debut full length but a few years ago they came out with an EP.

Musically Matt Johnson's guitar style is slightly sludgey at times on the slower moments. Other times his riffs give off that 80's metal underground feel. Maybe it's the production but either way it's a dirty sound and cool. When he dives in with his leads they come out delicate yet overwhelming and powerful.

Brad Miller's drumming definitely provides a good back drop and his fills are a compliment to every cut on here. Of course you wanna know how Lowe sounds on here. Well obviously he's in perfect form. Once in a while he comes off somewhat menacing which I like. But for the most part he's the same great vocalist as ever. 

In the end this is a damm good doom release. And yeah to be cliche, if you're a fan of Lowe's work in his more familiar past bands then you'll want this. Hopefully this will be a steady project for these three individuals. Although there's still that thing Lowe is doing with TYRANT. Nuff Said.

https://www.hammerheart.com/petrichor/

LISTEN HERE:

https://griefcollectorpetrichor.bandcamp.com/

TYRANT - Hereafter review

TYRANT - Hereafter

Shadow Kingdom Records




TYRANT are back, from where is up to speculation. But hey we're talking about a band who back in the late 80's put out two decent albums for Metal Blade Records. They're collector items now as well. With that said, a while ago this true metal four piece from Pasadena, California came out with a comeback album, King of Kings, in the mid 90's. Unfortunately no one was listening.


Fast forward to the now and guess what, TYRANT still exits with original bassist Greg May and guitarist Rocky Rockwell. The drums were picked up by Ronnie Wallace in 2010. And now on vocals is none other than Robert Lowe (formerly of SOLITUDE AETURNUS and CANDLEMASS) who joined in 2017. And yeah it's because of Robert Lowe as to why I was excited about this release.


Yes dear old time loving metalhead, this is not your old riotous version of TYRANT with screaming Glen May on vocals. The best way I could describe this new version is subdued compared to their past classics. Musically this is classic 80's era metal with some fiery solos, catchy riffs, the vocals obviously perfect and song structures compelling. 


Since Lowe is involved you could catch some doom elements. I'd say TYRANT has moved away from JUDAS PRIEST and are leaning towards SOLITUDE AETURNUS or dare I say HEAVEN AND HELL which ain't a bad thing. Rocky Rockwell seems to be leaning hard on the Iomni riff school as well as laying down some solos that'll cut a throat or two. 


The more I play this release the more I like it. TYRANT has reinvented themselves much like SABBATH did when Dio joined the team. Unfortunately we've worked this path before so there are some points where things tend to lack. It has some great tracks which jump out at you. Then there's these tracks which you wanna like but end up being a drag in the doom sense. It's a decent release.


https://www.shadowkingdomrecords.com/

https://shadowkingdomrecords.bandcamp.com/album/hereafter

https://www.facebook.com/TYRANT-172515856798/