Oops! This album was apparently out on Redfield Digital early December 2013, but due to assorted factors beyond my control becomes my first written review of 2014; such is the topsy turvy world of underground metal, a whole multiverse away from the slick multi-media releases of mainstream mogul supported manufactured pap pop acts! Simon, a Dutch sludge band are as far from that soulless, ball-less vapid scene as you could hope, and whilst I’d never encountered this band before, I hope I, and anyone who in any way trusts my reviews, will encounter many times in the future.
Apparently the second release of Rotterdam rockers Simon, ‘The Inner Traveller’ is an accomplished and heavy slice of stoner-doom, albeit at the more aggressive edge of the sound. ‘Pilgrim Roads’ opens the album with concrete heavy riffs accompanied by dirty screamed vocals very much reminiscent of Crowbar’s Kirk Windstein, occasionally interspersed with lighter harmonies, and when I say “lighter harmonies”, I mean the dark harmonised tones of early Soundgarden, not the autotuned whines of Simon Cowell’s latest cash cow. However, not every chord is a fist in the face bludgeoning, and a gentle melancholic instrumental break rounds off the track. Without a warning this number cuts into the more urgent riffing, and by urgent I mean a slightly less strong brand of weed inspired playing, of follow up track ‘Down The Valley’, which despite being longer at well over 8 minutes, manages the bizarre trick of sounding more urgent, but at the same time having the hypnotic musical repetition of Tool on a good day. I know that’s a hard combination to envisage, and as such, I encourage you to buy the album.
‘Atmosphere Condensed’ follows with desert rock echoing and gentle toned down vocal utterances hidden far back in the mix, the guitars dominating the sound of the track in a gentle meandering tone, before once again the darkly growled vocals fight briefly to the fore, the whole track merging into a dragged out closure. Before the epic title track fires in, there is a positively fleeting, by which I mean less then four minute instrumental break for ‘A Sleepwalker’s Memo’ before ‘The Inner Traveller’ blasts out of the speakers, an epic ten minute plus blast of undiluted metal that had me thinking so much of High on Fire at their rawest.
There is so much to appreciate in this album, and I have no doubt that if I got the chance to see them playing live and their sound is even half as good on stage as it is on CD, you’d find me front and centre with a fixed grin nodding away in stoned approval of their deep sonic delivery. A fine start to the year, and a good addition to any stoner’s album collection.
(7/10 Spenny)
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