Ok , so it's more of a 'demo' review than an album review , but fuck it, I'm lazy , and it's easier to keep stuff together that's been tagged(thanks Blogger!).William English came to our attention in and around a week ago, and we're glad they did,as the two tracks contained here, recorded live in one day , show great promise.William English play hardcore tinged sludge metal with a refreshing sense of grime and nastiness,not to mention a definite crust influence ,that puts one in mind of Bacchus or even early Kylesa.The band are evidently tight as a unit, and the production here, though clearly demo quality, is actually of a very high standard, with a nice sharp mix that's not overly bass heavy .Of the two tracks featured here, 'Cure For The Common Cold' and 'At Loggers Head', it is the latter which comes out on top, it's menacing doom intro coalesing into a frenetic hardcore attack before lapsing back into stomping stoner riffing and some nice , narked vocals that add an extra layer of filth.The one thing that lets it down is a slight lack of atmosphere, but to be fair, it is only a day's worth of recording, and the results speak for themselves.
It's hardly the most original sound in the world, but one feels that given more time, and a bit longer gigging and songwriting, William English could become a major force to be reckoned with in underground circles.The band also hint at being an awesome live unit, and with bands like these guys SIGIRIYA and BAN faves Druganaut tearing it up across the Irish Sea, one can clearly see that the UK is fast becoming a hotbed of underground metal talent.
Weed Priest hail from Galway, Ireland, and play the sort of acrid, red eyed lo-fi doom rock that doesn't so much come and kick your ass as lumber into view, grumpily glare from behind a massive joint/SG and then proceed to melt your cerebral cortex, as well as set the auld bowels quaky with a vicious low end bass rumble that Satan himself would wince at.
First track on the demo 'Final Spell', is a prime example, , subterranean bass fuzz, skeletal drumming and eerie, half grunted, half groaned vocals that puts one in mind of Om's more miserable moments, and then segues into a passage of delicate guitar , complimented by some excellent use of flange effects,as the song wanders off into the shadows in a pleasingly monolithic fashion.Second track 'Thy Kingdom Come' is harder to pin down, a far more sandblasted, desert style approach to it's slabs of molten sludge, with singer Adam's tormented lamentations truly the sound of a man with some seriously fucking harsh demons to exorcise.The collection is rounded out by the tantalising menace of 'Sky Daddy' , a slice of blackened doom so potent in it's smoky menace that it made my eyes water.Throughout, the band maintain an atmosphere of occult misery and menace, and it's safe to say that while you might be over reaching in calling it harrowing, it's certainly one of the harsher doom releases I've heard this year, matching bands like Queen Elephantine in it's druggy , downbeat fug.
Overall , this is an extremely promising collection of songs from a band clearly versed in their craft, and one that should be investigated by those that like their doom that bit more raw.The only thing letting this down is the slightly lacklustre and at times impenetrable production, which of course is understandable, this being a demo, but perhaps a bit more attention could be paid to mastering when it comes time for a proper EP.Still though, this is unsettling, evil stuff, and well worth checking out.
Rating 7/10
For fans of :Electric Wizard, Queen Elephantine, Mongolia
Listen here: http://www.reverbnation.com/weedpriest
Stephen O ' Connor ,bornagainnihilist@gmail.com
