“It wasn’t the New World that mattered… Columbus died almost without seeing it; and not really knowing what he had discovered. It’s life that matters, nothing but life — the process of discovering, the everlasting and perpetual process, not the discovery itself, at all.” ~ Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Idiot
Indeed, that is what this music business racket seems to be all about as well. The amount of new releases hurled at us on a daily basis is staggering. Which we have stated before and can state over and over. It shows itself every month within these Doom Charts and on every one of the blogs and websites of our individual participants. Be sure to visit those to get even more information about all those wonderful albums out there. There are seventeen new releases on the February edition of the Doom Chart and every one of those, the ones that fell off and the ones still on, deserve way more attention. So get crackin! Discover your new addiction! Go listen! Be amazed, be hypnotized, be awed!
Welcome to Doom Charts, representing some of the finest bloggers, journalists, radio and podcasters and album reviewers from the doom-stoner underground around the globe. Each month, our critics submit their picks for the best new doom-sludge metal and stoner-psychedelic rock albums. The results are compiled and tabulated into the chart below. This is a one-stop shop for the best new albums in the world…
25. Vinnum Sabbathi – Gravity Works
As the name implies, this is an album about nothing less than the cosmos, with trippy psychedelic doom that imagines the vast emptiness of space, floating into the airless void, and exploring the many unknown mysteries of the universe. It’s a fascinating collection of five heavy, distorted, doom-laden instrumentals that I find playing quite often since its January debut. With ‘Gravity’ Vinnum Sabbathi enlarges their profile as a band of reckon, to be considered alongside other heavy bands that have broken out of their local scenes to capture the imaginations of doomers and stoners around the world. ~ Billy Goate (Doomed & Stoned)
24. Elbrus – Elbrus
There can be absolutely no doubt whatsoever that this psyched out blues extravaganza is a mountain range onto itself. They expertly weave extracts of fuzz, garage, grunge and shoegaze moments into their six massive mounts. Earthy and folky, the will touch your heart and make it bloom! Even in the dead of winter… ~ Joop Konraad (Stoner HiVe)
23. Horisont – About Time
Okay. We always look forward to something new from Horisont and have been smitten with the sounds originating from this Swedish hard rock outfit since their first release. About Time brings the goodness once again. Sounding even more classic and highly dynamic we are served with leads both wooly, fuzzy and licks straight from the golden age. But with some eighty sounding influences here and there. Just give Without Warning with its synth use a spin. And with every track edited to radio friendly proportions this is an easy album. Easy to digest, easy on the ears and easy because it flows majestically! ~ Joop Konraad (Stoner HiVe)
22. All Them Witches – Sleeping Through the War
Stop what you’re doing right now and drop the needle on the new All Them Witches record. Be patient, don’t assume you’re getting a Lightning At the Door part 2, because you’re getting so much more. The cinematic blues infuse with evocative lyrics, intricate psychedelic riffs pulsate with passion and haze, and overall atmospheric bliss the band has been progressing on from the beginning invigorates with a wondrous valor. It may be a grower, but it’s also a shower. Don’t let anyone fool you about it. ~ Bucky Brown (The Ripple Effect)
21. Dead Witches – Ouija
‘Ouija’ by Dead Witches has everything you would hope for in a great doom album. The occult themes are prevalent in every song, as well as the bleak and dark side of life and death. As the album opens, you hear sounds of a storm. Rain drops heavily fall as thunder rumbles, leading way to the heavy bass played by Carl Geary. A church organ creeps in and creates a spooky feeling. Suddenly, it’s as if you’re heading toward a graveyard or some ominous place where spirits await. The guitar, played by the late Greg Elk, has an amazing tone that creates a harmonious sensation with the organ, as well as big chord power. Vocalist Virginia Monti’s bewitching vocals are intriguing throughout the album. The thundering drums display Mark’s versatility. Pairing great pals with seasoned musicians from already established, amazing acts, this band was already doomed to succeed right from the start. ~ Suzi Uzi (Doomed and Stoned)
20. Hymn – Perish
What’s the artistic impact of living in the land of the Vikings? “The environment will always be an inspiration, for sure,” say Markus and Ole of HYMN. “The mountains are vast and epic mountains and it’s really hard not to be affected by it.” The Oslo doom duo’s debut is an enthralling 50-minute journey of Sturm und Drang. I found myself listening to these six numbers over and over until I lost sense of beginning and end, like a long, stormy winter. ~ Billy Goate (Doomed and Stoned)
19. Bathsheba – Servus
I’ve been soaking in ‘Servus’, the debut LP by Belgium doomers Bathsheba, for several weeks now, thinking of what I could say about it. Every time I listen, I find myself unable to breathe. Seriously. Darkly beautiful singing and gloriously fuzzy doom textures haunt the record, which is alive with tingling atmosphere. Highlights include moments of blackened fury ala Svartidauði, pillared doom chords ala Enslaved, and those damning, vengeful vocals that recall the unstable madness of Burning Witch, but can morph just as easily into the rustic sublimity of Alunah and the stately beauty of The Wounded Kings. ~ Billy Goate (Doomed and Stoned)
18. Hark – Machinations
What we have here folks is a molten temple of aural sludge raging with blustery hard rock blues, and radiating with an essence of heavy progressive metal. Jimbob and Company have once again succeeded in capturing the perfect combination of hasty sludge metal meets satiating groove. For fans of early Baroness, Taint, and latter day Mastodon. ~ Bucky Brown (The Ripple Effect)
17. Strange Broue – Seance
And another occult sounding release is soaring high on the February Doom Chart. Calling us all out to a séance and levelling the strange with the satanic and the weird. This is psychedelic doom of old. And the highly ritualistic atmosphere that Strange Broue evokes adds to the hypnotic quality; which are only distorted by the evil sounds in the background. Do not turn off the lights! ~ Joop Konraad (Stoner HiVe)
16. Demonic Death Judge – Seaweed
Seaweed carries on the psychedelic odyssey with tracks such as Heavy Weed, Seaweed and Cavity. These early tracks grab you by the throat and pull you into Demonic Death Judge‘s volatile world. If you’re not interested in understanding the overall theme of the album then Demonic Death Judge will impress you with the loud and heavy riffs they have at their disposal. Each song on the album is a major highlight. ~ Steve Howe (Outlaws of The Sun)
15. I Am The Liquor – 7 Days of Smoke
I Am The Liquor recently self-released a new full-length album, “7 Days Of Smoke.” Hailing from Richmond, VA, their latest effort is a welcome return ticket on a Mid-Atlantic booze cruise. Terry Smith (vocals & guitar), Sean Plunkett (bass), and Cody Mausolf (drums) give us a sobering display of riff-hurling heavy fuzz rock, with some clean and (dare I say) sultry vocal tones exuding from Terry’s pipes. Sean and Cody are certainly no drunken slouches, driving and battering the low end to its limit for nearly the full 40 minutes. This is that sexy stuff I love to listen to. With seven stimulating songs and some sozzled skeletal cover art, I Am The Liquor’s “7 Days of Smoke” is a heavy hazy heated week-long cruise down a rampant raging coastline. You better pack a full goddamned cooler, Randy. These gents are thirsty. ~ Leanne Ridgeway (Doomed & Stoned)
14. Ordos – House of the Dead
Listening to Ordos for the first time recently brought to mind a more menacing low end version of the iconic desert swagger of Lowrider. Granite heavy rhythms throughout, and vocals spanning the spectrum from clean to ferocious, this is one hell of an album. An instant bandcamp purchase if ever there was one. ~ Clint Willis (Hand of Doom Radio)
13. Unearthly Trance – Stalking the Ghost
It’s been seven years—seven years!—since Unearthly Trance gave us a full-length. It seems they’ve built up a lot of pent up rage in the interim and have had plenty of time to plot this comeback. Not a song is wasted on the New Yorker’s 7th album, ‘Stalking The Ghost.’ Ryan, Darren, and Jay bring on the hurt in aptly titled track tracks like “Lion Strength,” “Dread State Arsenal,” and hell, every one of the eight sons o’ bitches. Damning brimstone vocals are underscored by emphatic beats, righteous riffs, and a slow spiraling tornado of doom, death, and drone for which Unearthly Trance is renowned. At any given point in the record, you’ll swear judgement has come and the earth could tear apart at any moment and swallow you whole.
Swirling in the Great Cauldron
Controlling, constricting, conforming
Sized up and broken down
Another corpse thrown into the pile…
~ Billy Goate (Doomed and Stoned)
12. The Ossuary – Post Mortem Blues
Italian Blues/Doom Rockers – The Ossuary debut album – Post Mortem Blues – is flowing with classic seventies Doom Metal swagger and traditional Heavy Metal sounds. The vocals are steeped between NWOBHM style delivery and the more familiar Doomier moments. The Ossuary adds moments of Psychedelic Rock that gives their music a raw edge….
….The Ossuary is a band well versed in both classic doom metal and traditional heavy metal riffs. Post Mortem Blues offers the perfect balance between the two different sounds but still showing a few hidden surprises along the way. ~ Steve Howe (Outlaws of The Sun)
11. The Good Kind of Mushroom – Matsutaken
Julian and Adam are The Good Kind Of Mushroom, a duo with an abiding love of heavy riff based music but one who also have a penchant for the trippy, heady lysergic grooves of the late 60’s. The duo combine these two polar opposites stretching the resulting mish mash of styles across eleven songs that will turn you on, tune you in but will never have you dropping out… ~ Frazer Jones (Desert Psychlist)
10. Toke – Orange
Imagine the southern-style stoner rock riffing of Down couple with raspy, Bongzilla-style vocals and you’re getting the picture. All that plus unforgettable melodies, something often missing from the more psychedelic style of rock and the harsher edge of sludge. … If this sounds like your thing, then ‘Orange’ (2017) is just your fix…. Keep your eyes on Toke, for if they keep up this level of ferocity and grit, they’ll be no stopping them. Some label better snatch them up and in a hurry. ~ Billy Goate (Doomed & Stoned)
09. Goya – Harvester of Bongloads
Goya has smashed open the doors and bashed in the windows to shine a bright green beautiful light of miserable disgusted angst on all your fears. This is the sound of modern nightmares come alive, and it’s the most exquisite release I’ve heard from Goya to date. ~ Leanne Ridgeway (Doomed & Stoned)
08. Super Snake – Leap of Love
How the hell do Super Snake exist? Their debut album Leap Of Love is a mixture of sounds that shouldn’t really work. Sleaze, Doom, Stoner, Psych and Hard Rock all covered with a dark twisted pop sensibility. Imagine if Black Sabbath went down the Noise Rock route but took a left turn with flashes of Torche-esque pop sludgy riffs. This is a dirty groove laiden riff fest with great tracks such as Leap Of Love, Lie4U, Sister Margaret and Take My Breath all contain heavy epic moments that could rank as some of the weirdest and wonderful sounds you’ll hear this year Leap Of Love is my fave album so far this year. A sleaze-stoner-doom-pop extravaganza. ~ Steve Howe (Outlaws of the Sun)
07. Buried Feather – Mind of the Swarm
I’m thrilled to see this on the charts. Pop psych is a genre I like when I’m in the mood, usually half asleep and often high on life. But I wouldn’t normally think of voting on it for Doom Charts. Until now. Buried Feather take the lysergic pop sounds and throws in some Sabbath worship. Think Beatles Sgt. Peppers meets Sabbath Vol IV. Ahhh, just right. ~ Papa Paul (Doomed & Stoned)
06. Forming the Void – Relic
Forming The Void have taken things to the next level with their new album “Relic” filling every nook and cranny of its eight songs with a dark, and at times mouth dropping. array of deliciously dank lysergic groove all furnished in swathes of slow, low distorted guitar riffage, brutal thrumming bass and earthshaking percussion. Over this humungous tsunami of raw progressive tinted stoner metal are floated powerful cryptic and mystical lyrics sang with strength and passion, slightly monotone but clean and delivered with a power to match the tumultuous heavy grooves surrounding them. All this and an absolutely barnstorming version of Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir”, what more could a discerning stoner doom fan possibly ask for… ~ Frazer Jones (Desert Psychlist)
05. Mothership – High Strangeness
Mothership‘s High Strangeness official release on March 17th may launch this Dallas, Texas trio from their Earth-hovering orbit right to the outer limits. Judge Smith and the Juett brothers’ third full-length album presents a seasoned sound, solid songwriting and a noticeable confidence in Kyle’s vocals that may just change the course of the Ship’s trip. ~ Leanne Ridgeway (Doomed & Stoned)
04. Dopelord – Children of the Haze
Warsaw Poland is where this bearded foursome hail from, bringing forth a 6-track masterpiece of doom/stoner metal with this, their third official release. Citing “old movies, 70’s music and magical herbs’ as their main influences, it makes sense that they ‘tune low and play slow’ as they follow their strict regimen of ‘smoking, rehearsing and touring.” If that is what it takes to get to this point, roll on gentlemen!! ~Matthew Thomas (Taste Nation)
03. Stone Troll – Recoil
Stone Troll seemingly appeared from nowhere and judging by the scant information on their social media pages, may well have gone back there, as well. If this is the case, and the band has slipped into annuls of “underground” music history, then at least they left us with this their first (and maybe last) full-length album. Recoil is not your archetypical stoner album. Yes, there’s plenty of fuzz-drenched riffage and driving rhythm to be had here, but there is a fragility to these songs that is both refreshing and endearing. Bassist and lead vocalist Melanie Gent’s vocals do not so much push through the bluesy stoner grooves being laid down, as they do float over them, giving the songs that make up the record an airy and light feel that both rocks and chills in equal measure. ~ Frazer Jones (Desert Psychlist)
02. Kingnomad – Mapping the Inner Void
An occult breeze wisps through the doom rock featured on the new album Mapping The Inner Void by Swedish quartet Kingnomad. They take their cues from Sabbath and Blue Öyster Cult, which ofcourse makes you think of their fellow countrymen Ghost for a moment. Also thanks to the clean vocals and their poppy inspirations here and there. But that’s where the comparisons stop, cause these guys move definitely more towards the fuzz and the classic psych approach for the rest of their damn fine album. ~ Joop Konraad (Stoner HiVe)
01. Spaceslug – Time Travel Dilemma
Spaceslug‘s new album – Time Travel Dilemma – is a worthy follow-up to last year’s debut album. This time Spaceslug have become heavier and spaced out as result. Parts Monster Magnet and Sleep style sonic vibrations allow the band to create their own style of spaced out sounds. Expect to hear impressive guitar solos towards the end of the song with ambient noises giving the album a more epic feel compared to their debut album. The vocals from Bartosz – drift in and out at different times as Spaceslug let their music be in full command. Time Travel Dilemma is superbly produced throughout. Spaceslug deserve credit for creating such a vast universe on this great album. Time Travel Dilemma is a magnificent album. What more can be said, apart from you need this album. ~ Steve Howe (Outlaws of the Sun)
Special thanks to the ongoing contributors to the monthly Doom Charts. You folks help give voice to the underground:
A.S. Van Dorston (Fast n’ Bulbous); Billy Goate (Doomed & Stoned); Bill Goodman (The Evil Engineer); Bucky Brown (The Ripple Effect); Clint (Hand of Doom Radio); ‘Doktor420’ (Stoner HiVe); Doombeard (DoomBeardZine); Dragon (Metal Nexus); Gram Pola, Son of Sam (Dirty Denim); Pat Harrington (Electric Beard Of Doom); Frazer Jones (Desert Psychlist); Leanne Ridgeway (Doomed & Stoned; Lucas Klaukein – ‘LK Ultra’ (Stoner HiVe, You May Be Dead & Dreaming); Joop Konraad (Stoner HiVe); Lyk (Phantasmagoria); Mari Knox Knox (Doomed & Stoned); Martin Petrov (Rawk’n’Roll – the ‘pass-me-that-bottle’ webzine); Matthew Thomas (Taste Nation); Matheaus Jacques (October Doom); Melissa (Doomed & Stoned); MeteorJadd (The Ripple Effect); Papa Paul (Doomed & Stoned); Rod Reinhardt (Captain Beyond Zen); Skip (The Burning Beard); Steve Howe (Outlaws of the Sun); Steve Miller (Vertical Chamber Apparatus); Steve Woodier (Shrieks From Below); Tony Maim (Black Insect Laughter, Stoner HiVe); Tanguy Dupré – “Mr Fuzz” (More Fuzz).
This February 2017 edition of The Doom Chart was tallied by Bucky Brown and edited by Joop Konraad & Bucky Brown.
Doom Charts 
Love this. I want to live in the cover of the Mothership album!
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Reminds me, we need to bring “Gumby” back!! I agree. Killer cover and and even more killer album.
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Holy Shite…….there is so much great stuff this month…my poor bank account.
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Love this list as always. I have created a Spotify playlist of it (because I have nothing better to do, and it wasn’t already on there). Here is the link if anyone’s interested: https://open.spotify.com/user/1169678119/playlist/7DHPFnP5QkMEJEfGZ3p4rH
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Awesome man! Thanks for listening!!
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Spaceslug! Hoping REZN – Let It Burn makes it on this list in March
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