Tag: sludge metal

658. Boris

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(June 2025) Episode 658 is BORIS. There isn’t a single term that aptly describes the music of this Japanese trio, although “noise” might be the closest. It’s sludge/stoner metal, drone, noise rock, dream pop metal, or experimental, depending on their phase or the album. They can do long drone noise like their debut, Absolutego, or pick it up into thrash mode, like Akuma No Uta. They also go pop, like on New Album or Attention Please. Vocals are selectively employed, and I’m not a fan of the men’s vocal style used on non-thrash tracks, which I label “dream pop metal.” Their output is voluminous, with an abundance of collaborations, notably Merzbow, so there are plenty of options to choose from.

Favorite album: Pink

Favorite song: Blackout

Favorite album-length song: Absolutego

Compared to expectations: ↑

Recommendation: Best albums for heavy doom and thrash are Akuma No Uta, Pink and NO, as well as the Heavy Rocks trilogy. For drone/sludge try Absolutego, Amplifier Worship and Feedbacker.

631. Sourvein

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(February 2025) Episode 631 is SOURVEIN, a band out of the North Carolina sludge metal scene. By the time of their first full album they had evolved into a solid stoner/doom metal sound with low slow guitars and backgrounded screeching vocals. Key contributor to that approach was guitarist Liz Buckingham who later went on to join my favorite band in the doom genre: Electric Wizard. As I always say with sludge/stoner/doom metal, it’s not for everyone but I love it.

Favorite album: Black Fangs

Favorite song: Fangs

Compared to expectations: ↑

Recommendation: Try Will to Mangle or Black Fangs

611. Iron Monkey

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(November 2024) Episode 611 of the “opus project” is IRON MONKEY. This UK-based outfit recorded a couple of excellent sludge metal albums in the 90s and reunited for a third in 2017. This subgenre is not for everyone but it is for me. I think it’s funny that the music platforms attach an “E” warning for explicit lyrics when the words are (intentionally) indecipherable.

Favourite album: Iron Monkey

Favourite song: OmegaMangler

Compared to expectations: same ↑

Recommendation: An acquired taste. The first two albums are more raw, the third more refined.

534. Acid Bath

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(November 2023) Episode 534 is ACID BATH. Continuing my tour of sludge metal bands from the southern USA, we come to Acid Bath from Houma, Louisiana. They were active in the 1990s and didn’t record much before breaking up due to the death of a band member. But what they did is quite good, and it led to a kind of cult following. It’s an unusual (refreshing?) mix of styles for the genre, primarily the low, slow sludge/doom sound, but also speed metal screamers, acoustic heavy mellow, and grooves resembling hard grunge contemporaries Alice in Chains and Soundgarden.

Favorite album: When the Kite String Pops

Favorite song: Dr. Seuss Is Dead

Compared to expectations: ↑

Recommendation: If you’re not repelled by heavy metal, give them a listen; the variety makes it more accessible than similarly labeled bands.

528. Buzzov•en

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(October 2023) Episode 528 is BUZZOV•EN, one of the bands from the American South (they’re from North Carolina) that created the sludge metal genre in the 1990s. It combines super-low guitar riffs as in doom and stoner metal with punk-style vocals featuring vicious and violent lyrics (so I’m told, I can’t understand them), along with irreverent dialogue clips appended to the songs. Apparently their live shows were chaotic and violent. I like it but it’s not for everyone.

Favorite album: Sore

Favorite song: Mainline

Compared to expectations: ↑

Recommendation: Try them out if you like the loud low grind, although it can be uneven and the rage can make it unsettling.

505. Weedeater

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(June 2023) Episode 505 is WEEDEATER. While not widely known, this trio came out of the North Carolina sludgecore scene to put out five good stoner/sludge metal albums between 2001 and 2015, the middle three of which are excellent.

Favorite album: Sixteen Tons

Favorite song: Riff

Compared to expectations: ↑

Recommendation: Yes if you like the low loud heavy grind.

334. Eyehategod

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(June 2021) Episode 334 of the “opus project” is EYEHATEGOD.  Sludge metal band from New Orleans.  It’s raw and misanthropic early on, evolving to a somewhat slicker but no less misanthropic tone more recently.

Favorite album: Dopesick

Favorite song:  Dixie Whiskey

Compared to expectations: ↓