Son of Cain deliver COC grooves and style mixed with the intensity and vocal approach of prime era Danzig, the end result is a mixture of dark and dangerous rock n roll
“Closer To The Edge” CD//DD//LP track listing:
1). Hit the Road
2). Born to Fail
3). Beyond
4). Like Stone
5). Old Man
6). Reach The End
7). Dead Corner
8). Human Prey
9). Boiled
10). Outro
The Review:
Son of Cain deliver COCgrooves and style mixed with the intensity and vocal approach of prime era Danzig. Sounds like your kind of thing? It will be, if you like those two bands. In particular, Danzig is writ large through the very core of this release. It's dark and hard rocking at the same time, it's as if the Evil Elvis upped sticks and move to... Portugal?!
Yep, this band is European and not from the USor even South America. Their geographical location doesn't matter to me at all- this is quality stuff and the two piece line up (drums/vocals and guitars/bass, unusually) handles the material well.
There is nothing you have not heard before, but so what?! Most bands are STILL copying Sabbathriffs, so a respectful nod to Mr Danzig is fine by me. From the opener “Born to Fall”, to the “Outro”, the influences are stamped on the bands sleeves (leather/denim/studded gauntlet- I assume). There is more to this than pure pastiche, though. “Beyond”is a rough rocker of a track and “Like Stone” is as hard and heavy as the title suggests.
The two band members nail the grooves admirably and the sound is rough and raw- Rick Rubin is not needed here as the energy crackles out of the speakers. “Old Man” really is like Prime Danzigcirca “Lucifuge” or thereabouts. The latter half of the album (you get ten tracks in total- without 99 bonus tracks!) is just as strong, with “Reach The End” rushing out fast and keeping a punk-ish energy in its frantic delivery- which contrasts well with a more laid back vocal.
“Dead Corner”utilises dialogue from what is surely one of the best films of all time and sets the tone for a low down and dirty song. The final trio of “Human Prey”- which showcases excellent melodies and use of variety/dymanics, “Boiled Up” and “Outro” keep the energy levels up and the vibe cranked to maximum darkness. This is dark and dangerous rock n roll- very enjoyable.
It’s a special edition for the 666 PACK REVIEW this month! THE SLUDGELORD attended Psycho Las Vegas recently, so this month we’re going to rate 6 bands that played the festival. Between the non-stop shenanigans and Instagram takeover, we found time to actually watch the bands. For future potential victims that submit material to THE SLUDGELORD for review, here’s some advice: This festival is where you want to be someday! If you’re new to this, each and every month we handpick 6 review submissions (this month six bands that played Psycho Las Vegas) and critique them by only using 6 words, then we rate them on a scale from 1 to 666! Check out our Las Vegas themed rating scale below:
1– It would have nicer if their tour bus got lost in the desert on the way to the festival.
2– One of the Psycho Las Vegas guest DJs was Andrew W.K., he actually stirred up more excitement than the performance this band put on.
3– It was kinda average, just like staying at The Excalibur Hotel and Casino these days…
4 – You know the feeling that you get free drinks while your gambling? Yeahhhhh….
5– This band deserves to have a Las Vegas casino named after them and they should be the house band.
666– They hit the progressive jackpot (Enter ching! ching! ching! ching! money sounds here…)! Viva Psycho Las Vegas and THE SLUDGELORD!
Caveat: Even though the 666 PACK REVIEW is meant to offer humorous critique, there are no safe spaces here and your gripes will only make you sound like a bellyacher. THE SLUDGELORD is a picky listener…and doesn’t care what you think of his opinions….
It's impressive that, only a year and a bit after their debut, Beastmaker have taken their sound and improved upon it with sharper song writing and an impressive grasp of what makes music of the trad doom genre tick.
“Inside The Skull” CD//DD//LP track listing:
1. Evil One
2. Heaven To Hell
3. Now Howls The Beast
4. Of Gods Creation
5. Give Me A Sign
6 Nature Of The Damned
7. Psychic Visions
8. Inside The Skull
9. Night Bird
10. Sick Sick Demon
The Review:
One year after “Lusus Naturae”, California's Beastmakerreturn for more retro true doom. This time around, they have improved on all elements present on their debut. Mixing Pentagram, Sabbath, Danzigand a healthy dose of classic horror appreciation the band have struck on a winning formula.
Once again, the sound is raw and live sounding; the bass clanks, the drums pound and clatter and the vocals are a pleasing mixture of melodic and sinister. Right off the bat, you know what the record will be like: riffs, hooks and macabre atmosphere aplenty. “Evil One” sounds as the title implies (great solo too), “Heaven To Hell”is menacing and weighty in equal measure.
The album highlight for me is “Now Howls The Beast”, replete with werewolf atmospherics and a riff that Victor Griffin himself would be very proud of! It's impressive that, only a year and a bit after their debut, Beastmakerhave taken their sound and improved upon it with sharper song writing and an impressive grasp of what makes music of the trad doom genre tick.
On a general level, there is nothing to pin-point as a misstep on this album; it's uniformly heavy, sharply written and really quite catchy in places. No twenty minute drone work outs here: this is doom rock in the vein of all acts mentioned above. To make a lazy comparison, this is perhaps an American equivalent (by dint of geography, but not in total sound) of Uncle Acid and The Deadbeats. The two bands plough a similar furrow and will appeal to a similar set of fans, I suspect.
Whether it be the plodding drama of “Nature of The Damned” or the swing of “Psychic Visions”, the power trio work as a tight unit and keep things stripped down and raw- exactly as it should be. With the title track promising nine eternities in doom and the riffs making good on that promise, the album goes into the closing straight very strongly. Taking a nod from Sabbath by not going overboard on album length has allowed the band to turn in a very strong set of focused songs- all nicely uniform in terms of sound and content.
The short, sharp and sinister “Sick Sick Demon” is a very strong finish to a very strong album. If you have any interest in Sabbath and/or Pentagram, then this album will be for you. It's gritty, great and even gruesome in parts. Their satanic majesties have returned.
FresnoCalifornia’s Beastmakerdelivered one of the standout stoner/doom albums of 2016 with their debut “Lusus Naturae”. Their second album is out soon, to be followed by an extensive tour. Steve Wilson spoke to their founding member, singer/guitarist Trevor Church about his musical influences and plans for the band’s future.
SL:You’ve just recorded a new album. What can fans expect when it’s released?
Horror and Doom. There is some Hitchcock inspiration and we’ve got some guest musicians on this album namely Johanna from Lucifer and Nate from Salem’s Pot. We wanted to continue where we left off on our debut writing dark riffs and lyrics of terror. I put some time into writing my guitars solos on this one. Our debut it was just improv solos. So, there are some subtle changes. Most importantly it’s heavy and filled with horror!
SL:Your debut album was released last year (“Lusus Naturae” - out on Rise Above Records). I’ve been lucky enough to hear an early version of the new one. It sounds a little more polished than its predecessor. Have you gone with the same studio, or do you like to try somewhere new each time you record?
We have built a studio at my house and that is where we do everything. Andy does all the mixing and mastering. I write all the music and engineer the record. We have an incredible dynamic together. We both pride ourselves in going through the learning curves and coming out on top. Coming from a place like Fresno there really aren’t any places I’d take Beastmaker to record an album. It’s costly to travel to record an album and we have no time limit. We can work as long as we feel we need too, getting the best result we can.
SL: “Lusus Naturae” and the accompanying 7” vinyl (“You Must Sin”) have artwork by Branca Studio. They have also designed merch for the band. How did you get together with them?
Branca Studio contacted me a little after the release of our demo. It really has been an amazing partnership. Sometimes in life things just click. It was fate that we crossed paths. I think he is the best graphic artist in the business. I don’t even have to give him direction. He just knows what’s up! You can’t buy that kind of friendship man.
SL:You recently toured the UKand Europe in support of the first record. How did you find it? Was there anything you’d do differently on the next tour?
Well, I would prefer to not break down multiple times in a rental next time around. We absolutely love touring the UKand Europe. The fans are amazing over there and it just makes it so worth the energy it takes to get on a plane. Hopefully this next time we have a driver. John and I drove and it was pretty interesting. Really it was an adventure. I got off the plane and next thing you know I’m driving on the other side of the friggin road going through roundabouts. We love that kind of thing though.
SL: Beastmaker are strongly influenced by horror movies, particularly those of Italian director Mario Bava (check out ‘Mask of Satan’ from the debut album). What are your favourites? Are there any obscure ones that have inspired Beastmaker songs that we should search out?
I don’t know about obscure but the biggest influence when it comes to songwriting is “Tombs of the BlindDead”. That is the epitome of what I’m trying to create musically. I like a lot of different movies from the 50’s to the 90’s. I like to create my own stories though as well.
SL:Moving on to musical influences now - what did you listen to growing up? What goes into the Beastmakersound beyond the obvious Black Sabbath influence?
I can’t speak for my band mates on this but for me it all began with skateboarding. My cousin Michael was 5 years older and listening to punk/metal. I was like 6 years old when I started listening to bands like The Misfits, Metallica, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Motley Crue, Dead Kennedys, The Exploited, Sex Pistols, etc…Witchfinder General, and Danzig are really big influences for me musically. I feel connected to what they do and I try to recreate it with my own twist.
SL:For those that don’t know, you come from a musical family. Your dad, Bill Church, played bass in legendary ‘70’s rock band Montrose alongside Sammy Hagar, who would later replace David Lee Roth in Van Halen. Not too shabby! While this must have influenced you growing up, would you say that it has helped you as a musician (in terms of how to start a band and keep it going), or did it not make much difference?
My Dad is an amazing musician, so not to be inspired by him wouldn't make much sense. I had musical instruments all over the house my whole life. Originally my folks wanted me to be a drummer. I have many drummers in my family actually. My Mom’s cousin is Denny Carmassi also of Montrose and Heartto name a few. But, I didn’t like drums much and that’s when guitars started coming around.
Once again my Cousin Michael played guitar and taught me quite a bit. I can’t remember a time in my life where playing music didn’t exist. My cousin’s Brandon and Daniel were also musicians and we learned from each other. I actually really avoided my Dad’s music in my teenage years. I was really embarrassed of “I Can’t Drive 55”.
I was listening to a lot of different music in those days, mainly punk rock and Sammy Hagar to me was a mainstream thing. I always loved the Montrose record though. “Rock Candy” was the first song my Dad taught me to play on guitar. We went camping and I remember saying “hey shows me rock candy” and boom, ‘You Must Sin’ was created. Maybe some people will hear the influence.
SL: Last question! Thanks for taking the time to do this interview. What are your plans for Beastmaker in the coming year?
We’ve got our new album coming out in spring. The rest will unfold. We will be hitting the road for sure. With some new things for our live show.
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