So imagine  Mastodon got heavier instead of more progressive, added some Crowbar heft to a stoner metal backbone and were suddenly from Australia and you’d get Sydney’s Sumeru and their raucous second album, Summon Destroyer.

After the intro, “Inanis Kultus” the band dive in to “The Temple”, and it’s a bit of a soft opening for the album as I’m not completely sold due to the song’s standard stoner chug, lack of dynamics and heft. But its last couple of minutes show promise and then it’s the next title track where Sumeru truly reveal who they are and it continues for the rest of the album’s 5 songs (interlude “Kali Ratri” not included). The title track adds some real sneer to the stoner stomp and with a really nice bluesy romp and late song heft variety that got my attention.

A little middle eastern vibe slithers into “Embrace the Cold” and it’s more beefed up Mastodon tone, “Durga! Durga!” has a huge groove in its latter stages, and “River of Lethe” is the album’s sternest track. Then nine + minute closer ‘A New Ritual” throws a bit of a curveball with a slow brooding start that leads you to believe a lengthy, moody ballad is coming….and it sort of does, just a heavy, crumbling,  brooding ballad that heavily imbues Crowbar. Pun fully intended.

I’m not a big stoner/sludge/doom metal guy but this and Black Royal‘s Lightbringer from earlier this year have been thoroughly enjoyable releases in the genre and I’ll definitely be looking for more from both in the future.

[Visit the band's website]

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