From Richmond, Virginia comes doom/stoner act Windhand, and their sophomore release for Relapse Records is a fine addition to the genre, steeped in classic '70s psychedelia & doom/metal/ hard rock in the tradition of Black Sabbath, Saint Vitus, Pentagram, and Hawkwind. Led by the bewitching vocals of Dorthia Cottrel, the band have created some mountainous waves of crushing sounds here that are sure to strike a chord with any lover of heavy, psychedelic music.
The opening 1-2 punch of "Orchard" and "Woodbine" really plant the seed well for the rest of the album, as the massive guitar riffs from Asechiah Bogdan & Garrett Morris lay waste to the landscape, supported by huge, plodding rhythms from bassist Parker Chandler & drummer Ryan Wolfe. Cottrel has an intoxicating voice; she's not overly feminine sounding at times, but as far as casting a creepy, alluring spell on the listener, she does a fabulous job. Check out her distant, far away cries on the monstrous "Feral Bones", as she floats over mounds of massive, dirge-like riffs, or her ethereal crooning on the eerie folk number "Evergreen". For out and out doom pummeling, it doesn't get much better than the 15-minute "Cassock", a brutal romp of gigantic riffs and scorching, distorted guitar solos, and the haunting 30-minute closer "Boleskine" also hits the mark when it comes down to pulverizing doom/sludge, though this one is probably way longer than it needs to be.
Despite my opinion that a few of these songs are a tad on the unnecessarily long side, as a doom fan I really enjoyed Soma quite a bit. Cottrel's spacey vocals reminded me in spots of what you would hear on a vintage Hawkwind album, and there's no shortage of crushing riffs throughout the album. Good stuff for sure!!
Track Listing
1) Orchard
2) Woodbine
3) Feral Bones
4) Evergreen
5) Cassock
6) Boleskine
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