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Released on October 20, 2015 via Art As Catharsis Records and FALSExIDOL Records
Space Bong may be simply a name thought up by a random doom band name generator (and god knows, we have enough of these!), but there is a certain charm about it when faced the monstrously good music they produce. Infusing their heavy slabs of riff with the desolate, barren land that surrounds their home town of Adelaide, they create a spacious sound which for lack of a better term, is simply doom.
Over eight years and three previous releases, time has done nothing to dampen their fervour and new album, Deadwood To Worms, carries on that tradition of delivering some of the most bone crushing music on the planet. At five songs long, it certainly doesn’t skimp on length and each track pulls in at a casual ten minutes or so of prime service doom. There’s variety here too with each track sounding different from the last giving this album an interesting feel.
Opening track ‘Slow Spring’ owes a lot to Anathema circa Silent Enigma and it is really disconcerting to realise that at its heart doom hasn’t really travelled that far as a genre. There’s no point changing a classic sound though and where the album gets more sludgier as it progresses with the title track owing more to Thou, it sort of loses some of its initial excitement.
That’s a very minor quibble though and in the main we have an album which is truly a wonder to behold. It’s the musicianship that really shines and riff after riff builds to a suitably atmospheric climax. The vocals aren’t the best and after a strange snarled squeal right at the beginning settle into generic growled torpor. It is what it is though and once you get over this you can let the music take you away.
Space Bong know when to change tack too and the positively bouncing ‘High Priests And Petty Thieves’ errs on the side of stoner with its whiskey soaked riff. It’s a welcome change from the depressive sounds that preceded it although it begs the question whether a whole album of this sort of thing would work.
Nothing will quite prepare you for the cover of the Betty Davis classic ‘If I’m In Luck I Might Get Picked Up’ although any of that song’s usual soulfulness is crushed away in a storm of growls. It’s not very good if we’re being honest and a blemish on an otherwise great release. Every band deserves to have fun though and for one as intense as Space Bong can be then they truly do deserve this moment of craziness.
Space Bong make no claims to be anything other than who they are and you have to respect them for that. They are capable of making some absolutely mind-blowing music although they may need to temper in some of the quality control to really make a classic. Deadwood To Worms nearly makes it and for at least two thirds of the album is a glorious reminder of how great doom music can be. Jump in for the ride, you won’t be disappointed.
