Review: Wake Brewing Recommends

“... And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss gazes also into you.” This heads up from Nietzsche feels especially prescient right now. In times defined by confrontation with darkness, one inevitably encounters darkness inside themselves. Primitive Man’s new album for @relapserecords, aptly titled “Immersion,” is a cannonball jump headlong into that darkness, a baleful embrace of the yawning void Negativity. Exactly what you’d expect from a self-described “nihilistic trio.” But do not mistake this record for a wallow. It is a cathartic assault against the weakest parts of the self and the virulent proliferation of such across an entire species, now 7.5 billion thick and climbing. Be wary where and when you play this record, it transforms speakers into portals to the netherworld. Denver-based @primitivemandoom have perfected their sonic structure over the years, combining elements of doom, sludge, death, and harsh noise into a kind of molten lead mechagodzilla fueled by abandoned dreams. But “Immersion” feels less like a monster attack and more like a fall down a mineshaft, thanks to skillful application of reverb across the recording. It’s simultaneously cavernous and claustrophobic. Joe Linden’s stereo-panned drums define both the walls of the shaft and the speed of descent, while Ethan Lee McCarthy’s guitar and Jonathan Campos’ bass embody nothing short of the void itself. There in the cold darkness, McCarthy’s ripped larynx howls swirl, moribund and misanthropic. Boil them down to their essence and they reflect an infamous quote from a cautionary classic, “if you want a vision of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever.” With this record, born of Orwellian anxiety and existential dread, Primitive Man defines the enemy. They say knowing is half the battle. Now it’s time to take up arms. 

Check this record out, and buy some merch to keep the band afloat in these trying times. Vinyl available at @ragged_records_and_music, or your local discerning record shop. Review by our own @modelyear1983 and @andythedag

#wakebrewingrecommends #dealerschoice #primitiveman #relapserecords #doommetal #deathsludge #beerandmetal #beeranddoom #wakebrewing #brothersparris

Lowrider - Refractions

Reviewed by Adam Hurlburt

Lowrider’s “Refractions” is 41 minutes of pedal to the metal heavy desert rock ala Kyuss, Truckfighters, and, well, Lowrider. The Swedish quartet were expert-level dealers of the genre in the mid-1990s and early 2000s. This is their first release off a nearly 20-year hiatus. And it delivers the goods. Stockholm’s a helluva long way from the Palm Desert, but @lowridergram absolutely nail the bottom-heavy blues for the red sun. Always have. Does “Refractions” break new ground in desert rock? Not really. But if you put it on while driving you’ll find out exactly how fast your car can go. This record is a hyperdimensional Trans Am burnout, sister. And to paraphrase the late, great Lux Interior, if you can’t dig that you can’t dig nothing. Lowrider have bestowed on us an essential, genre-defying album with killer grooves and nary a misplaced riff. You get exactly what you want exactly when you want it. Put this on, and if you don’t say “goddamn” to yourself at least once I don’t think we can be friends. The massive intro riff on “Ol’ Mule Pepe” is so good, for example, that it made me laugh out loud. “Refractions” is a hippie speedball escape pod the hell outta 2020. What more could you ask for? Snag you a copy of by way of Blues Funeral Records.

Review by our own @modelyear1983. #wakebrewingrecommends #dealerschoice #desertrock #stonerrock #fuzz #beerandmetal #wakebrewingcvlt #wakebrewing #brothersparris