I’m not usually one for stoner doom sludge rock or whatever, as A) I don’t partake of illegal drugs, and B) I’m usually too highly strung and easily distracted to let myself fall into a half sleep, red eyed stupor for any length of time. However with their self released debut (Tualatin Records is the band’s label, and the band was formerly known as Tualatin), Let The Night Roar, led by former Malevolent Creation guitarist Jeff Juszkiewicz add spark of energy and death ‘n’ roll to the typically lethargic and hazy stoner doom sludge sound.

First off, the guitar sound on Let The Night Roar, is just awesome; it rumbles and buzzes with a menacing heft rather than a playful hazy fuzz and the rhythm section is just sturdy as fuck. The material itself while rooted in stoner rock/doom/sludge just seems to have a more dynamic and intense feel akin to say The Georgian Skull mixed with Lair of the Minotaur. Rather than Pot fueled indolence, Let The Night Roar rumble with a dearth of heavy textures and a more urgent delivery than many of their bong addled peers.

Juszkiewicz has a gruff shout delivery plying various mantras of religion, war, suicide and such rather than the usual couch ridden themes of the genre. All eight tracks come in under 5 minutes so there’s no musical munchies or dallying and sidetracking, just a gruff, riff driven album that has a steady, purposeful gait and delivery. Tracks like “All Cost”, “Holy War”, “Blood for Blood”, “Kill Yourself”, “Almighty” and the more dirgy ending track “Let The Night Roar” make for a robust, enjoyable album that should hold appeal to more than just stoner fans.

[Visit the band's website]

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