Reviews: Warpstormer By Matt Bladen

Warpstormer – Warpstormer (London Doom Collective)

Finally! An album from London based riff monsters and never ceasing merch machine, Warpstormer, after triumphant live shows including Bloodstock, Desertfest and a slot opening for Orange Fucking Goblin at their album release show, there’s finally a living breathing record out there for you to lose your shit too at home. 

Formed as a project during the pandemic, any fans of a particular table top game will recognise where a lot of their influence comes from and until they get sued, they’ll stick with it, using their early shows as a way to flaunt their sick merch, but they are a band, they do write and perform excellent stoner/thrash inspired by High On Fire, The Sword, The Obsessed and of course Orange Goblin, they shift between various riffscapes to create their own sci-fi inspired set of songs.

Initially vocalist Richard J Morgan, drummer Matt Foley and Green Lung guitarist Scott Black, the current line up features Adam Davies on guitar, Simon Doggett on bass/vocals and James Loh behind the kit, all have played in countless other bands so bring experience and a diverse musical influence to this debut record which heightens their sound several degrees since their Here Come Hell EP. 

While the word stoner or doom will be thrown about a lot with this band they can be quite hard to classify, they call it ‘speed doom’ the chunky, groove driven riffs of doom/stoner metal, enhanced by some pedals/effects for psychedelic tones and raw fuzz, played often in conjunction with the volatile punk/speed metal basslines that bring bounce and pace. Capping it off with drumming that can be studious, atmospheric and ‘big’ or blitz like a mounted Heavy Stubber (Google it).

With a maelstrom, or should that be Warpstorm of riffs coming with a sonic intensity, the vocals tell of the human condition through fantasy and sci-fi themes, Morgan as captain of this spaceship has the gruffness of OG’s Ben Ward but the commanding presence of Freddie Mercury (anyone who has seen the band live can attest to this). 

Perfect music for mirrored aviators, the debut is 7 (well 6 and an intro) tracks that will grab you firmly by the shoulders and drag you through Warpstomer’s Stargate into forgotten worlds and futuristic hellscapes. Produced by Wayne Adams (Green Lung) it’s got a severe weight to it, the Matt Pike influence on Oracle strong and shirtless (of course) as this speedy opener shifts into the dooming of Cursed, Cold, the vocals shared by Morgan and Doggett as those sludge twinges of Baroness/Mastodon creep in, continuing into the psychedelic groove of Beyonder.

It’s with Beyonder that they flex their prog muscle, the transition from the first two tracks into this one, almost feels natural, re-establishing Warpstormer to anyone who has seen them before then taking them away into the further reaches of their musical galaxy. Climaxing with a solo and chorus repeat, we’re now deep in the world of Warpstormer, A Liar’s Crown bringing more familiarity to what you’d want from a ‘stoner/doom’ band. 

It’s the little things that you pick up on repeated listens, a use of a phaser peddle for what I think is a bass solo on A Liar’s Crown, the way a fuzzy repeating riff can transition into a fret melting solo or a drumbeat can a switch with a little technical fill, from full on battery into a broad doom groove. The latter on Fester where the drumming is in opposition to the chuggy simple riff, there’s no such thing as simple on the last track of the record though. The Conan-like doom of The Edge Of Time is the last song here and it’s a monster that shifts from a slow head bang to a raging riff-fest, classic metal solo section and then doubles down on the distorted heaviness until the close.

Warpstormer’s debut is a statement, a knowing nod to what has come before, a dalliance with their influences but sees them defining their own course through the riff universe. This is just the beginning imagine where they go from here? 10/10