Lares - Towards Nothingness

By Ulla Roschat. Towards Nothingness is the sophomore album of the four piece German Berlin based band Lares. The band founded in 2015 and this album follows up their first EP Mask of Discomfort from 2017. Towards Nothingness is 8 songs and about 36 minutes of Blackened Psychedelic Sludge/Doom, and it's also an apocalyptic space trip.

By Ulla Roschat.

Artwork by Mariusz Lewandowski.

Towards Nothingness is the sophomore album of the four piece German Berlin based band Lares. The band founded in 2015 and this album follows up their first EP Mask of Discomfort from 2017. Towards Nothingness is 8 songs and about 36 minutes of Blackened Psychedelic Sludge/Doom, and it's also an apocalyptic space trip.

The album starts with the track "It Burns" and yes it burns like the rocket that shoots you into space and into unknown realms, fueled by driving, hypnotic rhythms. A distorted, psychic buzz that keeps you trippin, and soaring harsh vocals with blackened ferocity. There are also a few moments on the album that create a sense of contemplative floating, like in the second track "Theiaphobic Ansia", but they never feel like a soothing weightlessness or moments of serenity. With a sound damp and blurred with distortion and electronic effects they rather create an atmosphere of depressive bleakness and disorientation.

And these first two tracks are a perfect introduction to the album. They showcase the album's basic and omnipresent atmospheres.

Yet each song has its own moods and defining elements that make them memorable. There's the urgency of the ferocious vocals in "Cursed With Embodiment", the somber, gloomy doom riffs and huge build up of "SN1987A Space Alteration Machine", the loud-quiet dynamics and glorious propelling drumming in "Grey Haze" that keep spiraling deeper and deeper into the unknown. The dark and brooding ambience of "Oumuamua", the gooey, bluesy riffs and the spacious sound of "Catacomb Eyes", and, eventually, the droney, almost formless waves of noise of "Towards Nothingness", that let you know you've reached your destination.

This variety of nuances weaves a thick, expanding texture into the entire album and adds to its dramatic structure with waves of tension building the all encompassing structure. The highest peak of these waves is no doubt "SN1987A Space Alteration Machine". This is the longest track of the album (9:21) and Lares don't waste one second of it. Here they set space truly ablaze like a supernova with a sweeping, carefully layered build up creating a sublime, intense and monolithic atmosphere.

It's Lares' ability to combine the fierceness of Black Metal, the abrasive filth of Sludge, the entrancing grip of Psychedelia, the gloomy heaviness of Doom and the thrilling dynamics of Post Metal in an exciting way, that makes Towards Nothingness an organic, cohesive unity and an extremely rewarding listening experience. And to make the sense of completeness even "completer", once again, Mariusz Lewandowski perfectly captures the soul of the music with his cover artwork (like so many times before for Abigail Williams, Astral Altar, Bell Witch, Elder Druid, Eremit, Jupiterian... just to name a few). So I am hoping for a vinyl edition of Towards Nothingness, not only, but also, because of this great artwork.

Domkraft - Flood

By Matt Hinch. When I saw Domkraft's name pop up in my email I took notice. I couldn't immediately remember what their previous album (The End of Electricity) sounded like but I knew I was excited. This was more than an “oh yeah, I remember that band” moment.

By Matt Hinch.


When I saw Domkraft's name pop up in my email I took notice. I couldn't immediately remember what their previous album (The End of Electricity) sounded like but I knew I was excited. This was more than an “oh yeah, I remember that band” moment. As expected, digging into their new album, Flood was no disappointment. Note also that this is the first release on a new label called Blues Funeral Recordings. Gotta keep an eye on that. I mean, it's run by Jadd Shickler of Meteor City/Magnetic Eye fame so I'm not worried about quality.

Domkraft deal in the psych/stoner/doom/sludge realm with emphasis on the psych doom. Obviously they prefer to keep the song lengths long, giving the hypnotic, repetitive riffs time to become superglued inside your head. We're not talking mind-numbing repetition though. In fact, the word “prog” has been thrown around in reference to Domkraft. They're no King Crimson but there is a complexity beyond the pulsing, head-nodding doom riffs that swirl and snake around you, enveloped in a fog of red-eyed delight. (They're probably fans of King Crimson though.)

Those bone-rubberizing riffs form a sturdy backbone. They're heavy and dark and a little mean but not gothic or depressing. Part of that may also be from the vocals. From the gut, and more bellow than anything, they berate the listener from the middle distance making Flood sound epic and open while the rest of the sound feels right on top of you.

I know they're not alone in this but Domkraft have a way of keeping things simple enough to remain grounded but it's laced with enough of the good stuff to at least evolve the mind into a state of higher being. They'll mix a measured pace and consistent volume with sneakily powerful builds, affecting psych, and percussive energy.

This unheralded Swe-doom band can compete with the likes of say, Conan and even Sleep. Flood should take you to the same places or even a little further on a somewhat different path given they deal with porous borders. (Not a political statement.) Domkraft set themselves apart with a more colourful atmosphere (and album cover). Even though they don't totally weird out the pervading feeling of tonal bliss and psychedelic aptitude maintains a consistent buzz for the whole 40+ minutes.

By the time you get to album closer, “Dead Eyes, Red Skies” you can even pick out the more overt blues touches. Just one more twist in the plot. Throughout, this many tentacled beast continually feeds on the kind of riffs you want to let soak in. Just open all your pores and feel it penetrate, working the psych magic from within. Domkraft may be doombringing riff miners but they have a depth outside of that. But who in their right mind is going to tell them to stop digging? There's always a demand for gold!

Domkraft - The End of Electricity

By Matt Hinch. In this particular case “Domkraft” is taken as more or less a play on words with “dom” meaning judgement in Swedish and “kraft” meaning power. Judgement and power. Sounds cool enough. The literal translation is “jack-screw”. Judgement and power is a much better angle for the Stockholm based doom crew than a device for jacking up a car.

By Matt Hinch.


In this particular case “Domkraft” is taken as more or less a play on words with “dom” meaning judgement in Swedish and “kraft” meaning power. Judgement and power. Sounds cool enough. The literal translation is “jack-screw”. Judgement and power is a much better angle for the Stockholm based doom crew than a device for jacking up a car. However, the circular motion of the screw in order to raise something to a new height also works. Domkraft utilize a hypnotic repetition in order to elevate the listener to a higher state than they were previously.

That’s pretty much what the band does on The End of Electricity. They take a riff and wrap it around and around, adding psychedelic touches and crashing percussion, not unlike OM or Sleep (Hawkwind, Monster Magnet and Spacemen 3 also fit into the equation) but in a more concise manner. The results are seven songs over 40 minutes that easily lift the listener high above earthly realms.

Monolithic and apocalyptic doom is the preferred tool for cracking the consciousness here. Domkraft seamlessly blend badass doom, bent on annihilation through repetition, with a trippy side to destroy the mind from inside and out. Deep tone takes the big, gut-wrenching riffs assaulted by crashing cymbals and makes you feel helpless as the mesmerizing loops take hold.

To continue the metaphor, often times the band will hone in on a riff like a drill boring through stone until it explodes out the other side unleashing a torrent of sound that spreads like a plague. You can feel that unstoppable determination resonating with every downtuned note.

Domkraft prefer to let me music take center stage as the vocals aren’t very dominant, either in frequency of use or mix position as they prefer to sit back and yell/lament from the middle distance. Right where they should be.

Domkraft combine their alchemical elements in such a way as to guarantee that the sounds meeting the listener’s ears are as precious as gold for those who enjoy being broken through power over emotion. Huge riffs, tone so gnarly it sounds like the empty stomach of a very large beast, and crushing percussion pummel ahead of the smartly commanding vocals creating an irresistible doom feast.

The end of electricity is a scary thought. But The End of Electricity is scary good.

Kylesa - Ultraviolet

By Natalie Zina Walschots. Ultraviolet light, despite being something that we know exists, even having an impact upon our physical bodies, is part of the spectrum of light we can't see unaided.

By Natalie Zina Walschots. Originally published here by Exclaim.

Artwork by Shaun Beaudry

Ultraviolet light, despite being something that we know exists, even having an impact upon our physical bodies, is part of the spectrum of light we can't see unaided. This idea — that of a form of light that is present but not always apparent — is at the core of Ultraviolet, the sixth studio album from respected sludge experimenters Kylesa. Based in Savannah, GA, Kylesa have drawn from influences as diverse as doom and psychedelia to sculpt their sound, which is driven by powerful, aggressive drumming (they've been known to record and perform live with two percussionists playing simultaneously) and a smoky, syrup-thick guitar tone.

Photos by Webzine Chuul.

What sets Ultraviolet apart is the emotional authenticity and vulnerability of the record. While the music has become denser and chillier, with vocalist/guitarist Phillip Cope also commanding the recording and production, introducing darker keys and other electronic elements into the mix, the subject matter has ventured inwards, becoming more difficult and personal. Laura Pleasants is now the primary vocalist, taking on a much larger singing role on this record, and her warm, plaintive vocals serve as an entry point in the densely knit and sometimes alienating musical landscape. Her voice drips loss and yearning in "Long Gone" and drawls almost playful in "Quicksand" as she describes her mouth filling with blood. Rich and vibrant musically while raw and emotive lyrically, Ultraviolet is Kylesa's highest achievement to date.

Ungoliant - No More the World of Man

Art by Skinner from Ungoliant.

Ungoliant has released their new album No More the World of Man. Heavy doom/sludge with massive walls of guitars and some psychedelic playing. It doesn't sound like all the other bands in those genres, but does sound more or less exactly like the album cover.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]