Black Wail, Chromium Homes, Rhyme & Reason Records
FILE UNDER: Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Mountain, Triumvirate, Clutch, and Megadeth.
THE SKINNY: Jersey City, New Jersey is the hometown for this motley crew of retro rock dilettantes. Black Wail manage to channel the best parts of 70’s arena and stoner prog rock but do so without sounding like a mere nostalgia act trying to recycle riffs and trips. The results are authentic, psychedelic, thick, fuzzy “head music” that burrows into your ears like a thirsty tick.
THE DISC CONNECTS: Chromium Homes on Rhyme & Reason Records, streets December 15th. Chromium Homes belongs in any collection that prizes classic rock, especially of the 70’s variety.
SELECT CUTS: “Thee Ghost” features an Alice In Chains melodic metal sheen, guitarist/vocalist Michael Tarlazzi’s Alice Cooper on Budweiser vocal rasp, and dual lead guitar harmonizing. The title track sounds like an outtake from Deep Purple’s Machine Head blended with Dickie Betts’, and Greg Allman’s dual lead guitar goodness. “Radioactive Mutation” sports Dave Mustaine-like growling vocals, mathematical prog-rock time shifts and even a surf rock breakdown with whispy synth flourishes. “The Dead Man’s Hand” is six minutes plus of fuzzed out, metal bliss, savage death metal vocals, and Sabbath jazzy grooves ala “Fairies Wear Boots.”
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE: If your ears still like fuzzy, organic, distorted, bashing goodness, Chromium Homes belongs in your collection. Instead of filling this album with filler or throw away tracks, they deliver six epic tracks that grab your ears from start-to-finish and never let go.
TRACKS:
They
Thee Ghost
Chromium Homes
The Dead Man’s Hand
Radioactive Mutation
Norwegian Wood
BLACK WAIL ON TOUR:
November 30 Brooklyn, NY Brooklyn Bazaar
January 19 Jersey City, NJ White Eagle Hall
FINAL THOUGHTS: Black Wail would make a fantastic opening act for any number of touring acts–Alice Cooper, Clutch, Mastodon, The Sword, Castle, Deep Purple and Rob Zombie. Their music pleases young and old alike. —DOUG TULL
