“Take me down to the Festival City
Where the grass is green and the girls are pretty
(Take me home) oh, won’t you, please, take me home?
Take me down to the Doom Charts City
Where the grass is green and the girls are pretty
(Take me home) oh, won’t you, please, take me home?”

~ misheard… Guns ‘n Roses

With festival season upon us once again, the time has come to witness so many of the bands we love come alive on stage! Of course, throughout the year there are concerts, shows in crowded bars, smoky backrooms, dubious drinking holes and dilapidated buildings. But festivals possess a magic all their own, especially the ones that stretch across two or three unforgettable days. For a brief moment, you wander through a better version of the world… A place where strangers smile at one another, where people dance without hesitation, and where freedom seems to hum in the air itself. Music becomes the common language, the heartbeat behind every shared moment and every surge of all that wonderful energy. Next up for me personally, Sonic Whip Festival. Today actually. Where will you go to chase that feeling, to stand before your favorite bands and lose yourself in the sound? Below, are 25 favorite bands chosen by our contributors, the ones they hope to experience live themselves… So, tap into the energy, and feel it for yourself…

The following are words of adoration from Doom Charts Contributors, devotions to albums they could not stop spinning. Each month, our writers gather to celebrate the finest in doom, sludge, metal, stoner, progressive, psychedelic, and other heavy realms. Their selections are woven into the Doom Charts, published on the first Friday of every month. But some affections run too deep for the regular edition. Some albums fall just outside the chart, or inspire so many write-ups, and only one was chosen. Here, those excesses of love remain… Unfiltered, unbound, and still echoing… A few last words which hopefully will inspire you to listen to those albums…

A DREAM OF POE – KATABASIS: A MARRIAGE AMONG ASHES
Gothic/Doom Metal
Portugal
Meuse Music Records

“Katabasis,” is an album that can be as elegant as it can be harsh.  Its gentle weaves can turn into corridors of macabre horror at a moment’s notice.  The instruments play with an uncommon fury, symphonic and ethereal doom that envelopes as it smothers.  Those same instruments can also be as of a leaf on the end, a cold Autumn breeze that brushes its musical strokes with striking detail and clarity.
~ Justin Wittenmeier (DoomedForMetal)

ADMIRAL SIR CLOUDESLEY SHOVELL – THE TROUBLE WITH THE SHOVELL
Heavy Psych, Classic Rock, Stoner
Hastings, UK
Rise Above Records

Yes baby, The Shovell is back!!!, doing what they do best: producing a raunchy, frantic fireball of sound that takes its influences from heavy psych, classic rock and a bit of stoner. ‘Trouble with the Shovell‘ is not as overwhelming as their first two albums (a case of getting used to what they do?), but it’s hanging in the slipstream and therefore alone ADMIRAL SIR CLOUDESLEY SHOVELL confirm their status as one of the best bands in the heavy psych scene and makes you quickly forget this is their first new LP in almost seven years. Like they’ve never been away in the first place.
~ Ronny Dijksterhuis (Stoner HiVe)

AKEM MANAH – THRENODIES
Doom/Death/Gothic Metal
Ghent, East Flanders, Belgium
Black Lion Records

There is a horror vibe permeating the atmosphere across its 10 song, 61-minute runtime. It is quite engrossing and makes me question why other bands, doom or otherwise, don’t incorporate this feeling of sickening despair more often.  So many people describe doom as depressing and cavernous (I’m guilty of this as well, don’t worry) but “Threnodies,” is something else, something more than “sad boi despair.”
~ Justin Wittenmeier (DoomedForMetal)

A VERY OLD GHOST BEHIND THE FARM – CANES GOTHI !
Sludge Metal, Stoner, Doom Metal, Prog Metal
Toulouse, France
Peccata Mundi Records

Twelve years have passed since A VERY OLD GHOST BEHIND THE FARM‘s previous album. They’re back with Canes Gothi!, drawing on a very broad spectrum of dark metal: stoner, doom, sludge, and black metal. The rhythm section is crushing, the riffs are heavy as Hell, and the vocals are incredibly varied, ranging from growled and screamed to harsh and clean. The result is a powerful and occult album that still manages to leave room for melody. What an excellent idea to revive this ‘sweet’ project!
~ Thierry “Pumpkin-Ghost“ François (Metal Intégral)

BENEATH THE SKIN – BENEATH THE SKIN
Doom, Sludge
Kansas City, MO, USA
Self-released

I love it when the first riff of the first song grabs you and then just keeps rolling all the way to the end. The self titled album from Kansas City’s BENEATH THE SKIN does just that. Coming at you with a nice mix of doom and sludge, the classic rock, heavy blues and southern metal roots are also noticeable throughout. 8 tracks with catchy heavy grooves including a cool cover of Sunshine of Your Love keep your heading nodding throughout. It was also refreshing to hear an album accompanied by honest personal lyrics which actually say something. With all the anxiety, frustration, and turmoil some of us may experience, the new album from BENEATH THE SKIN is good therapy.
~ Hugh Jones (The OG Metal Prophet, The Prophet’s Heavy Underground)

BLACK LUNG – FOREVER BEYOND
Alternative, Post Punk, Stoner, Psych, Doom
Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Magnetic Eye Records

The American outfit BLACK LUNG released their self-titled debut EP back in 2014 and followed that one up with two albums that matched that first release in quality before blowing all of that out of the water with the brilliant 2022 album Dark Waves. And since the beginning of March there’s a new addition called Forever Beyond, an album that proves to be even more beautiful than all that came before. The psychedelic rock continues to drift ever closer to the sound of All Them Witches, but where that band leans into an increasingly oppressive atmosphere, BLACK LUNG instead expands outwards… Crafting something wide, grandiose, and filled with sweeping gestures. Even when the themes touch on fascism, blind nationalism, and the suffocating machinery of capitalist oligarchy, the music remains strangely alluring: seductive, provocative, and at times even dreamlike. At moments, the band veers into blues-inflected passages, or even allows hints of metal to surface, but always the result is the same, an invitation to lose yourself, to smile quietly, and to drift into reverie. Added to this is the remarkable voice of vocalist Dave Cavalier, which arrives precisely when needed to deepen the emotional resonance of each passage. The result is an album that stands as one of the finest you are likely to hear this year. Thematically, it may speak to the current condition of human society, and in doing so perhaps achieves a kind of  timelessness. In any case, it all feels as though Forever Beyond has been made for eternity…
~ Joop Konraad (Stoner HiVe)

BLACK WEEDOW – BLACK WEEDOW
Stoner Doom, Psychedelic Doom, Heavy Rock
Poland
Interstellar Smoke Records

BLACK WEEDOW arrive with a debut that feels both classic and fresh, blending thick stoner doom riffs with psychedelic atmosphere and a strong sense of groove. The band balances crushing weight with dynamic songwriting, letting spacious passages and melodic flourishes breathe between the heavier blows. Rather than relying solely on fuzz and force, they build songs with patience and character, giving the album a distinct identity beyond genre worship. A confident and memorable first statement from a band with serious potential.
~ Marek (Dezarbuzator)

BRONCO FORTE – LIGHTNING SCARS
Alternative Rock, Grunge, Stoner
Los Angeles, California, USA
Next Message Music / Lullabies To Hypnotize

There is a lot to love on the debut full length record from BRONCO FORTE – excellent playing and songwriting, killer riffs, the right balance of dark and heavy to let their melodic side shine though, and amazing lead and harmonized vocals that pair perfectly with the excellent production. You can tell the band comes from all sorts of angles influence-wise, and they manage to tap all of the best parts in creating the ten tracks on Lightning Scars.
~ Rich Piva (Musipedia of Metal, FuzzDoomRip, Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour)

CASTLE ATOM – II
Alternative Rock, Indie Rock
Elkton, Maryland
Self-released

II is undoubtedly CASTLE ATOM‘s most varied release to date. It’s a stirring rollercoaster ride that moves through a revamped version of the band’s trademark indie and garage tones, an increasingly intense rendition of noise rock, notes of punk, and a comprehensive showcase of sludge that will leave you feeling both spent and fulfilled by the album’s end (and in that way, it’s very therapeutic). CASTLE ATOM definitely made some noticeably heavier additions to their repertoire, both vocally and instrumentally. However, the band still manages to incorporate plenty of their “classic” indie sound into this release and delivers each track with powerful, authentic emotion.
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

THE COSMIC DEAD – BEYOND THE BEYOND
Psychedelic Rock, Krautrock
Glasgow, Scotland 
Heavy Psych Sounds

If you’ve never heard THE COSMIC DEAD before, a first spin might lead you to believe you’re listening to a modern krautrock sensation straight out of Düsseldorf. Believe it or not, this spaced-out quartet hails from Glasgow and, with the addition of their latest release Beyond the Beyond, is ten albums deep into their career. This album has a more terrestrial feel, possessing noticeably more warmth than previous releases and kissed by a Middle Eastern influence. You’ll be drawn in by the emotive wail of the guitar, adding a sense of humanness and vulnerability to the sound. Rich bass constantly delivers hypnotic grooves, the backbone of THE COSMIC DEAD‘s trance-inducing structures. One of my favorite things about the album is the adaptive percussion, which is truly what gives Beyond the Beyond its earthiness. It’s reminiscent of the contrasts found in the natural world, emulating everything from a delicate splash to rolling thunder. And, as usual, THE COSMIC DEAD makes very organic use of building, leading to cathartic bursts of intensity. Did I mention there’s plenty of wah?
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

GNOD – CHRONICLES OF GNOWT (VOL 1)
Alternative, Psychedelic Rock, (Heavy) Psych
Salford, UK
Rocket Recordings

GNOD, those chameleons from Salford that don’t give a fuck about expectations and do whatever they want with ‘total’ and ‘freedom’ being the key words when it comes down to making music, almost casually present their new album ‘Chronicles of Gnowt (Vol 1)‘. Like one would expect, it’s completely different from what they’ve done before and starts with a beautiful, short instrumental in which acoustic guitar is the focal point. There’s another five and a half minute interlude midway through that follows the same pattern, but this is mainly sixties-based psychedelic rock with acid-tinged kraut soundscapes and a production that seems to come straight from said period, but feels contemporary at the same time. With its natural flow, ‘Chronicles of Gnowt (Vol 1)‘ seems like a story unfolding before your eyes. A fantastic album that’ll make you eager to hear volumes 2 and 3, as this is the first instalment of a trilogy.
~ Ronny Dijksterhuis (Stoner HiVe)

LUNGBURNER – DOGMA
Sludge, Doom
Atlanta, GA, USA
Terminus Hate City Records

If for some reason LUNGBURNER hasn’t grabbed your attention yet, their latest outing Dogma will surely raise your eyebrows. Not only is the album heavy, but it also carries a progressive edge that I find intriguing. Rather than a constant barrage, the songs branch out into melodic passages that shift tempo and direction. There’s texture and character throughout, fused with ripping vocal cords and a stampede of drums. This is a refreshing listen, with LUNGBURNER at the top of their game and one that’s not to be missed. 
~ Jon McGough (Stoner Rock Army, Stoner HiVe, Outlaws Of The Sun)

MYAR – BLEAK MOUNTAINS
Heavy rock, Doom metal, Psych stoner
Lille, France
Self-released

Bleak Mountains is a fat piece of heavy rock blending doom metal and psych stoner with some kind of sabbath-esque vibe. It’s not about an aesthetic revolution in rock, but about immediate and huge pleasure. The live recording grabs you by the gut, as if MYAR was playing right in front of your sofa. Wow! a debut album? This is sounding seriously promising. Let the party begin!
~ Thierry “Pumpkin-Myar“ François (Metal Intégral)

THE NEPTUNE POWER FEDERATION – MONDO TOMORROW
Classic Rock, Stoner Rock, Heavy Psych
Sydney, Australia
Speek Evil Records / Cruz Del Sur Music

Is it possible to know what to expect from a band going in but still have it sound different, surprising, and exciting every time? Records by the Australian band THE NEPTUNE POWER FEDERATION are going to sound like NPF albums – big, bombastic, energetic, arena-worthy rock and roll. Even with that, the band always goes just enough in another direction to make things interesting. From Heart, to Meatloaf, to doomy stuff, to power pop, to hair band leaning, to heavy metal, to proto, to glam, to just downright awesome, THE NEPTUNE POWER FEDERATION rules no matter what they do. This hypothesis is confirmed with their latest record, Mondo Tomorrow, which has a little bit of everything above (including power pop, arena rock, 80s, psych, sleeze, etc.), and a lot of the awesome that makes THE NEPTUNE POWER FEDERATION one of the best doing it today. 
~ Rich Piva (Musipedia of Metal, FuzzDoomRip, Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour)

1. Take a dose of rock and roll add some sleazy rock on top and then add a smidgen of heavy psych.
2. Procure a vocalist that is like a double dose of Freddie Mercury. A great vocal range and a stage performer.
3. Gather bad ass veteran musicians from Sydney that are forged from the stones that Australian Rock stands upon.
4.Drop a dose of lyrical humor and a beat that moves your boogie.
Mix all together and you have a sound that electrifies the spirit to be raucous and rowdy. Best shared with others.
~ Turbo (Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour)

THE NEUROPHONIC TEMPLE -TRANSGRESSIVE SONIC STIMULI
Noise Rock, Psychedelic Rock
Osnabrück, Germany
Self-released

Pressing “play” on THE NEUROPHONIC TEMPLE‘s new album Transgressive Sonic Stimuli feels a lot like diving into a lava lamp with reckless abandon. You’ll be moved about by fluid, warm grooves via mesmeric bass lines, captivated by flashing lights of adaptive percussion, and transfixed by a kaleidoscope of resplendent guitar tones as you move between a state of acute alertness and contended trance. To be a bit more specific, the five tracks of Transgressive Sonic Stimuli vacillate between loud, tumultuous grooves, sensual, soulful sounds, a more acidic, untamed style of psychedelic rock, trippy, jazz-inspired atmospheres, and vast, meditative soundscapes. However, no matter which direction a NEUROPHONIC TEMPLE song takes you, it’s sure to be filled with some of the most colorful, immersive tones you’ve heard in the underground scene. This is a band whose sound possesses an organic, improvisational quality as well as discernible sharpness and acuity. Taken together, these seemingly contrasting qualities result in an intense sonic journey whose destination is everywhere and nowhere all at once.
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

OCCULT HAND ORDER – MEANINGLESS MONUMENTS
Doom Metal, Heavy Psych, Post Metal 
Lyon, France
Totem Cat Records

It had been a while since an album had gripped me in such a heartbreaking way. I’m a huge fan of psychedelic music, but not so much of post-metal, doom, and black metal, but with albums like this, I’m completely won over. Narrative, dramatic, and meditative music, yet heavy and lysergic, with moments reminiscent of bands like Russian Circles, Elder, or Amenra. A marvelous compositional exercise that manages to convey depressive, introspective, and painful moods to the listener. Its tormented nature makes it ideal for immersive listening, allowing you to savor all the nuances and sensations the album transmits. A very dark album, unfolding at a slow pace, combining the leaden and the light amidst mournful atmospheres and ethereal voices from other worlds. A perfectly executed, flawless balance.
~ Roberto Lucas (Denpa Fuzz)

ORBITAL DUST – MANTRAS
Psychedelic Rock, Stoner, Doom
Poitiers, France
Self-released

Every month that I spend digging through heavy rock new releases for the Capsule Stoner and the Doom Charts proves to me once again the incredible creativity and constant dynamism of this underground scene. I always discover at least one new talent, and they don’t necessarily hail from the other side of the world. This month, it’s Poitiers-based band ORBITAL DUST who completely blew me away with their debut LP, MANTRAS, a nod to the band’s original name when they formed in 2014. Mantras is structured around four long psychedelic stoner tracks that explore all heavy psych nuances with great inspiration, and they literally transported me to another dimension for the full 55 minutes of the album. It’s a true joy to be swept away by it and dive back in!
~ Jay Baner (La Capsule Stoner)

PURPLE SKIES – A MILLION YEARS
Doom, Fuzz, Proto-Metal, Progressive
Vestland, Norway
Apollon Records

Specializing in an emotive brand of proto doom à la Witchcraft, PURPLE SKIES delivers a memorable first impression with their debut full-length album A Million Years. The sound emanating from these Norwegian heavy rockers is awash with expressive melancholia for the most part, utilizing emotional swells and poignant lyricism. However, there’s also a kind of openness that’s ever-present through the more delicate influence of psychedelic and prog rock, as well as beautiful intricacies in the band’s musicianship that give their sound a very vintage feel. Equally soothing and gripping, A Million Years pulls the listener in and transports them to another realm.
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

PURPLE SKIES bandcamp bio calls the band “Proto doom from the Norwegian Wild West.” Yes, I can get behind this description, as proto and doom rule the day on A Million Years, the debut album from the band from Bergen, Norway. The nine tracks on A Million Years harken back to the late 60s/early 70s from a proto, psych, and even a bit of prog point of view. The guys seem to love Sabbath too, so there is something for everyone who digs cool as hell old school heavy ass, mid-tempo rock.
~ Rich Piva (Musipedia of Metal, FuzzDoomRip, Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour)

As a huge fan of Witchcraft, I obviously couldn’t remain unmoved by the slowly maturing doom produced by the Norwegian band PURPLE SKIES on their debut LP, A MILLION YEARS. Formed in 2017, it took the band almost 10 years to find their footing and deliver this perfect album in every way for any Nordic proto-doom fan. From meticulously crafted moods to chiaroscuro melodies, from always accurate riffs to always harmonious rhythms, it’s ultimately the soft and calm vocals, whose timbre and phrasing sometimes recall those of Magnus Pelander, that add the finishing touch to these musical paintings, imbued with some atmospheres from cold landscape, yet they completely warmed my heart.
~ Jay Baner (La Capsule Stoner)

A hybrid of Witchcraft and Kryptograf, PURPLE SKIES takes these familiar sounds and mixes in their own concoctions, creating a potent debut album. The proto-metal and doom shine through in the guitar riffs while the vocal delivery, phrasing, and melodies hit the sweet spot on A Million Years. The songwriting is solid, showing a clear sense of direction and an ability to blend influences with their own identity. PURPLE SKIES is clearly a band to watch, as this is only the beginning. 
~ Jon McGough (Stoner Rock Army, Stoner HiVe, Outlaws Of The Sun)

SEUM – PARKING LIFE
Metal, Sludge, Stoner, Doom 
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Black Throne Productions / Falling Apart Records

On Parking Life, Canadian “doom’n bass” trio SEUM delivers one of the most cathartic albums you’ll hear this year. With a bare bones but insanely effective setup of gnarly bass, frenetic drums, and feral vocals, SEUM perfectly captures the turmoil of middle life through a turbulent blend of sludge, stoner metal, and good old fashioned punk rock spirit. In fact, listening to Parking Life feels like being in a pinball machine, bounced madly between utter chaos and hazy interludes that beg the questions “Where am I? How did I get here? How much time do I have left?” Kinda reminds you of adulthood, doesn’t it? The sound of Parking Life is dirty, sweaty, intense, and above all, fed up, but it’s actually the first SEUM release to showcase a softer side of the band via pockets of clean vocals. Not only is the subject matter so intensely relatable (particularly for those of us in our to-park-or-not-to-park era), but Parking Life is executed in such an unfettered, authentic way that one is compelled to listen up and ultimately give those shelved dreams a second thought.
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

Piotr is a crazy bass player. Fred is a crazy drummer. Gaspard is a crazy singer. Together, they’re SEUM and play brutal sludge and filthy stoner/doom metal. Upon reaching their forties, people have often experienced some painful or dramatic events, and also have the responsibility of a family, so they opt for less risk and more peace—that is Parking Life. SEUM‘s sound is still badass and hard-hitting (No parking rock here!) even if the new album marks an evolution, introducing some clean vocals and more melody into their songs. This new balance found by the crazy trio is perfect!
~ Thierry “Parking-T“ François (Metal Intégral)

STEPMOTHER – ABSURDUS MANIFESTUS
Fuzz, Garage Rock, Proto-Punk
Melbourne, Australia
Tee Pee Records

I am very happy STEPMOTHER has a new record and I am extra happy (not surprised) that Absurdus Manifestus rips it up. If you are into pure garage punk energy (MC5!, Blue Cheer!), with underlying pop sensibilities (Cheap Trick!), and fuzzy ripping guitar work (and maybe even a little bit of AC/DC) then Absurdus Manifestus is for you. If not, go home and do your homework, square. 
~ Rich Piva (Musipedia of Metal, FuzzDoomRip, Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour)

Absurdus Manifestus the sound of getting in a muscle car starting it up, putting it into gear and pushing the pedal to the floor and not letting up until you find a cruising speed of Mach 5 and a wide open road. STEPMOTHER is power trio pumping out pure raw punk gritty rock and roll.
~ Turbo (Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour)

STUMP GRINDER – FOREST METAL
Hardcore, Sludge, Stoner
Santa Cruz, CA, USA
Self-released

STUMP GRINDER‘s new EP sounds like a deformed child that crawled from the womb of a guillotine after she made love to a room full off chainsaws and battle riffles. Four aggressive, furious bouts of scream-infused hardcore, sludge and stoner that’s more gritty than a piece of sandpaper adorned with razorsblades, before ending with an eerie instrumental that seems the perfect accompaniment for a funeral service in a horror movie. In other words: the perfect pass time for that 17 minute hole one of the possible fathers just shot in your agenda.
~ Ronny Dijksterhuis (Stoner HiVe)

TOAD TWISTER – ASYLUM PROFANATION
Sludge, Doom, Stoner Metal
Poland
Self-released

Asylum Profanation is a filthy, riff-soaked slab of sludge and doom that hits with raw force from the very first note. TOAD TWISTER thrive on ugly, crushing heaviness, but beneath the grime lies sharp songwriting and a strong sense of groove that keeps the album moving with purpose. The band shifts between suffocating weight, punk-fueled bursts of aggression and darker atmospheric passages, creating a record that feels punishing yet surprisingly dynamic. Mean, loud and unapologetically heavy.
~ Marek (Dezarbuzator)

TRUCKFIGHTERS – MASTERFLOW
Stoner Rock, Fuzz Rock 
Örebro, Sweden
Fuzzorama Records

After a ten-year studio hiatus, renowned Swedish stoner rock duo TRUCKFIGHTERS is back with their new album Masterflow. Here, the band picks up the fuzzy groove as if absolutely no time has passed, bringing their trademark buzzing energy, massive riffs filled to overflowing with fuzz, and soaring melody. Best of all, Masterflow is a comprehensive collage of the sound TRUCKFIGHTERS developed throughout the years, delivering equal amounts of the classic stoner sound the band displayed on Gravity X and the atmospheric, emotive tones they explored on V. Even though they didn’t need to, TRUCKFIGHTERS has cemented their status as underground legends with this album, delivering nine immersive tracks that prove time has had no ill effect whatsoever on the passion and energy the duo holds for their craft. However, I think the statement on the album cover speaks volumes as to where the band is at in their career: finding a “balance between discipline and freedom”.
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

I played a song off the TRUCKFIGHTERS album for a friend of mine. She asked me how did the song make me feel. I told her,  it made me feel serene. That answer was met with confusion, but it is true. TRUCKFIGHTERS music has always found a calming place inside of me as if my soul found what it has been looking for all this time. With Ozo’s vocals, bass and Dango’s guitar tone they produce a perfect sound ranging from laid back guitar to a full on headrush of chaotic sound. It all hits me just right. However, what I actually said at first was it has so much Fuzz. So heavily laden with the fuzz. The Royal Fuzz if you must. When it comes to aural ecstasy the fuzz is right up there with bacon sizzling, intamacy and hearing “hears that money I owe you”.  The TRUCKFIGHTERS are known for bringing the fuzz  and coming back after having a decade off between albums their brand of fuzz has sorely been missed. Now though we get a complete album of new material with a honed sound capturing the younger years of the band with aged refinement. 
~ Turbo (Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour)

Has it really been ten years? Of course, in that time the band have been bringing our favorite songs to stages all over, but it’s still great to have a new album, especially one of this magnitude. TRUCKFIGHTERS not only remind us why we fell in love in the first place but also push things further with their fuzz-drenched guitars, relentless energy, and real emotional depth. The band are firing on all cylinders here with Masterflow, and it sits on par with some of their greatest past work. What a glorious return! 
~ Jon McGough (Stoner Rock Army, Stoner HiVe, Outlaws Of The Sun)

WASTELAND HAZE – TALES FROM THE WASTELAND CHAPTER I: LONESTAR
Doom, Post Metal
Düsseldorf, Germany
Clostridium Records

The latest sonic narrative from instrumental metal trio WASTELAND HAZE, Tales From The Wasteland Chapter I: Lonestar, is the band’s most cinematic release to date.While this particular tale is an Italian-Western revenge story, it’s set in a futuristic wasteland where interpersonal conflicts are complicated by the struggle for survival. A few sound clips dotted throughout the album do aid listener comprehension to some degree, but as always, WASTELAND HAZE does an outstanding job of transmitting these details via music alone. True to form, the band utilizes a complex but seamless blend of stoner metal, doom, and post rock/metal, but Lonestar is arguably the trio’s grittiest release ever. These rougher textures sonically depict scenes of parched landscapes, barren wastelands, pockets of ruin, and lost civilizations. Conversely, interludes of light and airy, vast atmospheres via a focus on post metal communicate not only intense emotions that the story’s conflict brings about for the main character, but it also smacks strongly of longing: memories and increasingly faint reminders of what once was, and the harsh reality that this ravaged world is the “new normal”.
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

WITCH RIPPER – THROUGH THE HOURGLASS
Progressive Metal, Sludge, Metal
Seattle, Washington, USA
Magnetic Eye Records

Telling a cohesive story across an album is hard. Doing it over two records is even harder. But when you are storytellers like the guys in WITCH RIPPER, you make it look (and sound) easy. Their last record, The Flight After The Fall and now their latest, Through The Hourglass, are both stand alone amazing proggy metal records that hang with all of the big names out there who you may hear WITCH RIPPER compared to. Putting these two records together creates something that is so epic, so unique, and so perfectly executed that only a small handful of bands could pull it off. WITCH RIPPER is one of the bands that can, as they move into the upper echelon of heavy music out there today.
~ Rich Piva (Musipedia of Metal, FuzzDoomRip, Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour)

Special thanks to the ongoing contributors to the monthly Doom Chart.  You folks help give voice to the heavy underground:

Adam Walsh (Earmunchies); Andy Kovalcik (Bandcamp-NYP-Hard&Heavy); Ben Bellum (The Greatest Thing You’ve Never Heard); Bob “Mr. Weird Beard” Baker (More Fuzz Podcast); Bobby Rayfield (Monuments In Ruin, Inherent Records, Mystery Pick);  Bucky Brown (The Ripple Effect); Chris Tighe (The Mighty Decibel); Damien Regnauld (Stoner Freaks Anthology); Edouard Dubuisson (Les chroniques d’Eddy, MetalUniverse); Günther “Doktor420” (Stoner HiVe); Hugh Jones (The OG Metal Prophet, The Prophet’s Heavy Underground); Ioannis Valiakos (Desert Vulture); Jay Baner (La Capsule Stoner); JC Cansdale-Cook (The MotorFuzzin’ Ibex); John Gist, (Vegas Rock Revolution / The Doomed & Stoned Show); Jon McGough (Stoner Rock Army, Stoner HiVe, Outlaws Of The Sun); Jonny Pirie (Hour of the Riff); Joop Konraad (Stoner HiVe); Jukka ‘Shrike’ Kolehmainen (Shrike’s Listens); Justin Wittenmeier (DoomedForMetal); Kyle SB (Good Boy PR, Stoner HiVe); Marc-Eric Gagnon (Stonefly Effects); Marek (Dezarbuzator); Matthew Thomas (Taste Nation); Michael D’Amato (Playgroundz Rocks, D’Amato Production); Mitch Kline (DoomyRiffs.com); Remi VL (Remi Post Too Many Links); Rich Piva (Musipedia of Metal, FuzzDoomRip, Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour); Rob Hammer (Rob Hammer, Doom/Stoner/Sludge/Psychedelic); Roberto Fuentes (Red House Store); Roberto Lucas (Denpa Fuzz); Rod Reinhardt (Captain Beyond Zen); Ronny Dijksterhuis (Stoner HiVe); Ryan Foster (Slightly Fuzzed); Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground); Stevie Reek aka Steve De Rique (Howls from The Hollows, Doomed & Stoned, Stoner HiVe); Svempa ‘Doomsday Jesus’ Alveving (Cries From The Underworld); Thierry “Pumpkin-T“ François (Metal Intégral); Tom Hanno (Tom’s Reviews, The Third Eye); Tom Schmahl (Rock Circuz) & Turbo (Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour)

Feel free to send in your albums to stonerdoomcharts@gmail.com where they’ll be delegated to all the Contributors to determine their thoughts and gather the votes at the end of the month. Leave us comments below and let us know what you think about the Charts and your favorite albums.