Thursday 30 June 2016

Slow Green Thing - II (Album Review)


Release date: June 11th 2016. Label: Fuzzmatazz Records. Format: DD/Vinyl

II – Tracklisting

1.Bucks & Fear 10:23
2.Monkeyshine 05:53
3.It Speaks The Journey 05:22
4.Hate Is My Love 06:47
5.Die Again 06:35
6.Green Steam (Digital Bonus Track) 06:02
7.I Wish 10:50

Band Members:

Sven (guitar, vocals)
Andreas (guitar)
Jörg (drums)
Conny (bass-guitar)

Review:

Slow Green Thing’s new album – II – was an unexpected surprise for me. As I hadn’t heard of these guys until friends of mine were saying how good their new album is. I decided to check them out for myself and I wasn’t prepared for what laid ahead of me. Slow Green Thing play a kind of grunge based Psychedelic Doom/Stoner Metal. Imagine Alice In Chains given a murkier and psychedelic makeover. The vocals have a definite Alice In Chains vibe.

The album runs for around an hour or so and contains moments of heavy progressive doom/stoner riffs. Opening track – Bucks & Fear – shows you what to expect with the band creating a wild oasis of different noises and moods throughout the epic ten minute run time. The song moves effortlessly from different genres with intricate riffs and vocals creating a heavy and sombre atmosphere at times. Fans of early AIC and Soundgarden will find much to enjoy here even if it’s merged with a heavier doom/stoner metal background.

Second track – Monkeyshine allows the band to expand on their grunge/doom hybrid sound with heavier guitars being added to the mix. The vocals are sung at a slow to mid pace that allows Slow Green Thing to shift the focus between the different moods held within the album. It’s one of the albums strongest and more adventurous tracks.

Third track – It Speaks The Journey – sees Slow Green Thing inject a bit of pace into the riffs as the band play a faster style of music. The vocals from Sven remain firmly in the grunge scene though with a slight psychedelic vibe appearing here and there.

Fourth track – Hate Is My Love – adds a bleak gloomy atmosphere as it allows Slow Green Thing to take a step back and concentrate on the doomier side of their music. The drumming is superb through out as Jorg brings extra weight compared to other tracks on the album. The guitars have a slight duelling quality to them as they veer from Doom, Stoner, Grunge and Psych Rock to create a heavy distorted style of grunge based sounds.

The album is full of extended guitar solos and some people may get bored with that part of the album though not me as I love albums built on riffs. II is full of long drawn out epic riffs. The vocals are what you expect for an album such as this. Expertly delivered from start to finish. The final three songs on the album Die Again, Green Steam and I Wish sees Slow Green Thing venture further into heavier doom/stoner theatrics with glimpses of sludge grooves finally starting to appear. Then again, after repeated listens of the album, the sludge grooves have been there all along. It’s buried under a ton of reverb, psych and grunge style madness.

II is an album that will appeal to fans of both the Grunge and Doom/Stoner Metal scenes. It’s the perfect marriage of classic 90s Grunge with modern day Doom/Sludge/Stoner Metal sounds. II is a thrilling and exciting album that leaves you wanting more. Excellent and Highly Recommended.

Words by Steve Howe