Stoner/Desert Rock
Stickman Records
Review By Smudge Smith
What is a desert? The Sahara. Gobi. Both good examples but so is Antarctica. It’s defined as an area where few life forms can exist because of lack of water, a permanent frost or absence of soil. Why the geological lesson? Well, Slomosa hail from Bergen, Norway and they use their sparse surroundings as inspiration for their own particular brand of ‘desert rock’. Slomosa started a decade ago as a casual excuse to drink beer, smoke and play music with friends. Good reasons, eh?
Opener ‘Afghansk Rev’ has a slow moody start with some laconic guitar lines that just make you take a deep breath and relax before some power chords come crashing in and it’s not until near the end that a voice is heard in the background. ‘Rice’ takes over on some serious stoner boogie and singer Ben Berdous has one of those laid-back voices like the legendary Chris Goss from Masters Of Reality which is a wonderful counterpoint to the weight of the music. ‘Cabin Fever’ is another slow starter with some more beautifully picked lines which develop into a magical groove, where you close your eyes and let it take you away. Marie Moe’s throbbing bass line opens ‘Red Tundra’ and her charming voice is welcome as the heavy guitars come in and Berdous helps her out on the vocals. It’s spacy and psychy and takes you further than you’ve been before. We get a 40 second piano interlude on ‘Good Mourning’ then an alt-rock/pop rock hybrid with ‘Battling Guns’ before Moe’s bass comes back on ‘Monomann’ and they’re off on another stoner boogie romp. ‘MJ’ keeps the romp going on another fine groove then final cut ‘Dune’ looks to the east on another groove that just doesn’t quit.
Slomosa are not at the top at my when I go for desert/stoner rock, but they will be a whole lot closer on the strength of this release. I wouldn’t say the riffs are huge, but they are insistent and the guitar lines they play really add atmosphere and take you away whilst the rhythms just hold it all down. This really is worth checking out if you like stoner/desert rock. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.
Track List –
Afghansk Rev
Rice
Cabin Fever
Red Tundra
Good Mourning
Battling Guns
Monomann
MJ
Dune
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