Jamming & riffage
Like many (most?) stoner metal bands, Zonderhoof bring to mind a group of guys who get together in their garage and center lengthy, energetic jam sessions around slow, sludgy, Sabbathy riffs. They also choose not to restrict their jamming with vocals, though some cheering is heard in a couple parts of the recording. Their 4 song debut manages to capture this feeling perfectly; the recording is clean enough that you can hear everything clearly and conveys the passion imbued in Zonderhoof's lumbering riffs.
...and riff is what the band does. With the exception of the silence between songs, these four songs feature just one thing: the band driving their riffs into the listener's skull over and over again. Zonderhoof do this magnificently with the drums driving the relentless riffs onward while the guitars often complement them with simple but effective melodies. However, the lack of variety means that any 60 second section of this album can do a pretty good job of summarizing what to expect for the other 30 minutes. There is also not much in the way of songs on here; for example opener "Bilge Rat" unexpectedly stops without really going anywhere (it does have an awfully cool lead in the first half). The other songs cover more ground than this, but my focus tends to stray sometime during the last two songs, while more dynamic groups in a similar style, such as Zebulon Pike and Trephine, can keep my attention for as long as their albums play.
| Reviewer: Jeff Mcquiggan Added: January 1st 2008 |
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