Reviews: Zeal & Ardor, Deep River Acolytes, Saul, Jahbulong (Paul H & Matt)

Zeal & Ardor: Wake Of A Nation (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]

With a cover that starkly depicts two, white, nightsticks to form a cross, Wake Of The Nation is the latest EP from Swiss band Zeal & Ardor, the title a play on The Birth Of A Nation a Racist pro-Ku Klux Klan film from 1915. A band who have always been incredibly powerful musically their amalgamation of extreme metal, soul/gospel spiritualism, blues and various other style has been lauded by critics and fans alike. Their newest EP is a stark political statement as Manuel Gagneux puts it "The EP is dedicated to Michael Brown, Eric Garner, George Floyd and the countless untold and nameless killed" the interpretation and ambiguity of their previous Satan-as-God records is gone, this is directly aimed at the events that have and are still inspiring the Black Lives Matter movement in the USA and around the world, Manuel couldn't let the horrific visages from the USA go unanswered. 

He put his new album on the back burner focusing his attention and rage on these 6 songs, designed to hold those who have participated and promoted the murder of innocents, to account. There is a raging torrent of anger, frustration and darkness behind these songs with the plaintive piano-led Vigil opening the EP channeling the frustration into an ominous soul ballad tinged with sadness before Tuskegee brings the black metal rage counterpointed by more melodic swathes. Musically it's typical Zeal & Ardor genre bending with Trust No One merging industrial thunder with gospel spiritual to great effect. This is an EP that needed to be heard, with all proceeds of the single I Can't Breathe donated to an unspecified charity, and the most important election in our history mere weeks away Wake Of The Nation needs to be played loudly as possible everywhere. 8/10

Deep River Acolytes: Alcehmia Aeterna (Argonauta Records) [Paul Hutchings]

Previously known as Deliverance, Deep River Acolytes is a Finnish heavy rock and metal outfit whose latest album is their third full length. Formed in 2011, the band’s dark blues soaked heavy rock and doom has prompted Argonauta Records to take a punt, no mean feat these days. Recorded at the Anvil Road Studios in 2019 by Ari Rajaniemi, mixed by Antti Lindholm at Boat Island Studios and mastered at Enormous Door by Jack Control in 2020, Alchemia Aeterna is 37 minutes of fuzzed up reverb which opens with the pulsing Sabbath fused At The Crossroads. It’s a solid opener, with some thick heaviness, driving groove and an underlying riff which is strangely reminiscent of 1980s era Samson song Vice Versa. It’s a decent foot stomping start to an album which disappointingly doesn’t improve as much as you might hope.

Sabbath riffs are the order of the day on Under Her Spell, a rather lumbering track that isn’t that exciting, especially with the ‘eerie’ mid-section but it does give way to a slightly more interesting conclusion. Caught Somewhere Out Of Time doesn’t impress either. It’s slow, doom-filled and to be honest, a tad boring. I’m quite partial to doom but this doesn’t do much for me at all. The River Deep is better, increased tempo and a mix of chunky riffs, thick Hammond organ and a devilish atmosphere making it one of the standout songs. 

  

In fact, the album improves slightly towards the tail. Veriurut is a smouldering, evil track, the eerie effects that haunt the mind echo from the depths as waves of gargantuan riffs and gravel-soaked vocals crash down. Alchemia Aeterna concluded with the weighty Cemetery Earth, a tale which weaves in and out for around ten minutes. The riffage is big, the music solid and it slowly builds to an epic and quite enormous crescendo. It’s an album that varies in parts considerably but overall, it really didn’t quite have the spark needed to make it that memorable. 6/10

Saul: Rise As Equals (Spinefarm Records) [Matt Bladen]

Saul fall under that genre tag of 'Alternative Metal' which basically means "we can do whatever we want musically so long as it's heavy and catchy". It means that This record is almost a jukebox of hard hitting, North American metal that is staples of American rock radio. You get some Breaking Benjamin electronically influenced technicality, some djent grooves, Shinedown emotion and FFDP heaviness (and some roars in the vocals). Hailing from Iowa Saul was formed by brothers Blake (lead vocals) and Zach Bedsaul (lead guitar) who joined with William McIlravy (bass) and Myles Clayborne (drums) to complete the band. 

Rise As Equals is their debut album and runs to a mammoth 14(!) Songs, now I'm all for creativity but there does need to be a little quality control as much of the record is very similar musically. It closes out with a cover of Pink Floyd's Welcome To The Machine which is made to be heavy and is if I'm honest sacrilege. The lyrics here are quite politically charged as you'd probably expect from this extremely modern band nodding towards Disturbed who's David Draiman co-wrote the song King Of Misery which is an obvious single. A mature, slick debut as you'd expect from any band who are aiming at the Billboard charts, still it's nothing that different from what's come before. 6/10

Jahbulong: Eclectic Poison Tones (Go Down Records) [Paul Hutchings]

Sometimes power metal doesn’t seem that bad an option. Dragons, wizards, ghouls, and goblins. You know where you are with that. Meanwhile, if you want something completely the other end of the spectrum, then I invite you to indulge in a journey of dark, atmospheric distortion. Welcome To Eclectic Poison Tones, the latest release by Italian doom stoners Jahbulong who, it must be said, follow their own path. This is really fuzzed up stuff, and with a 46-minute-long record and only four tracks, it’s evident from the off that this is one heavy slab of meandering, throbbing stoner, and doom. The reason I use the power metal analogy is because in contrast to the sometimes throwaway style of the lycra clad dragon slayers, Jahbulong’s cover concept is a collaboration with the visionary illustrator Nino Cammarata and celebrates the 420th anniversary of Giordano Bruno’s death, the controversial figure who radically changed the religious and philosophical world. Not a mythical scaled creature in sight!

It will be no surprise, however, to find four massively elongated tracks included on Eclectic Poison Tones, nestled amongst a combination of Seattle grunge and 1970s psychedelia, as well as the customary Sabbath riffs which certainly provide comfort. Drag yourself from the distorted cacophony of final track The Eremite Tired Out, all 15-plus lumbering minutes, past The Eclipse Of The Empress with its temporary pause for a drum solo mid-song, and back to the Sabbath crusted opening of The Influence Of The Fool, full of heavy distortion, tripping soundscapes and a urgent desire to skin up and stoner it on up. Meanwhile, The Tower Of The Broken Bones grinds its way like the marathon runner with jelly legs on that last one mile. It’s an album that is hard to listen to without some supporting substances, although you can at least visualise the effects this album this could have. For a three-piece, Jahbulong make hell of a noise, those thick riffs locked in with a rhythm section that is total in synch. Formed in Verona in 2015, Eclectic Poison Tones is one dark and swirling piece of work, a transforming voyage that may well suck you in for good. 7/10