If you scoot to the bottom here you’ll notice I am not your regular master of all things stoner and 70s Spenny, but probably to shut me up raving at him he stepped aside for this one. You see I just had to review it when I heard it. It is one of those albums.

I’ve been aware of Bath’s Sergeant Thunderhoof for a while (can’t forget a great name like that really can you?) but only really sat down and listened to their previous albums when my friend Steve Howe over at Outlaws Of The Sun pointed me at their fantastic cover of Kate Bush’s ‘Cloudbusting’ with its great video and neat quotes ( “Facism is the flailing of sexual cripples” being one I particularly loved…). Those previous works are indeed prime slabs of psychedelic tinged heavy stoner but this? This?

Oh they’ve hit it out of the park.

‘You’ve Stolen The Words’ opens with a classic sounding punching down riff fuzzed out perfectly. And then the voice. To say Dan Flitcroft has a fine set of pipes is just so underplaying the quality; he holds clear, rising notes and melody beautifully, can drop into a gravel tone worthy of any hard drinkin’ ‘n’ smokin’ rocker and wrings every drop of emotion from the lyrics. The guitar of Mark Sayer pummels one moment and then weaves and wanders around the melody as Jim Camp’s grounding bass and Darren Ashman’s impeccable drums take up the slack and just let everything ride. “If you are so smart then just then why do you stay…” sinks in like a knife.

‘Devil’s Daughter’ may sound too obvious but it cranks up the psychedelic with a glorious hook line rising to the sun for the voice to ride on. Uptempo, a fantastic time change without losing one speck of momentum it sounds like Orchid did at their finest, just joyous and with a huge bass sound. Beer in hand, sun on my face I just dance down the road.

And the ‘Absolute Blue’ delivers a gut punch. Slower, a rumbling thread of wistful melancholy in melody and vocals; it just raises the hairs and sends the chills rippling. “And I was sitting on my father’s shoulders, raising my head just to get a glimpse. Nothing else existing in that perfect moment….” It just hits me, my own memories rushing in unlocked by the bittersweet tune and the almost desperate voice.

I want a respite. A moment. Instead, the Sergeant gives us ‘Foreigner’. It is so difficult to describe the effect combination of riff and voice has from the moment it starts. Its urgent in a perfect way, Khemmis at their best for a touchstone but really all the Sergeant. “And now I understand why you keep shining on…. ” Less than ninety seconds in and I am almost choked on my emotional response. How can something seem both so sad and so celebratory at the same moment? It is just heart-breaking as Flitcroft’s voice cracks with emotion and the guitar takes us deeper and darker into almost doom territory.

“Woman Call” at least is a alight break. An intro that reminds me of Sturgill Simpson’s Sound And Fury album; slow lazy laid back blues rock that then kicks up a gear, strips some cogs and just wails like a good ‘un. The riff is dirty and gritty, digging deep as everyone loses their shit. Just an outright rocker. ‘The King Beyond The Gates’ is almost sedate by comparison, a nice easy going kind of vibe with a great lead break to build around it and some exemplary bass-work once more.

‘Show Don’t Tell’ by comparison is just right of the blue. The riotous main part, all gravel throated and driving metal riff, is parts very old Motley Crue (no really – head shaking, low slung guitar balls out rocking) and part NWOBHM refrain that slides into a dreamy midsection. Frankly not just surprising but a truly a great hit of metal. Well knock me down…..

This remarkable album is closed out by the two part ‘Avon & Avalon’ spanning some eighteen odd minutes. Part 1 begins slow and doom laden, haunting vocals that While Heaven Wept might have approached way back. It’s just huge. Achingly beautiful, some great tempo shifting drumming, the bass once more holding down the sound as the guitar break takes flight. And yes those vocals. Part 2 almost has a desert rock feel to the easy guitar intro before the hammer falls and another, yet another, mesmerising riff weaves in. It slides slowly into calmer waters, echoing guitar navigating the way through the land they conjure up. I see mist and still grey waters hiding something powerful, something old but who knows what you will see.  “The sun will rise again…”

This is a band, already fine, seriously challenging their own talent. The song writing and the variation whilst still remaining utterly Sergeant Thunderhoof is just fantastic and packed with such emotional power it floors me. The band is so tight they can just let the music flow and relax, every part raising the other. An outstanding rhythm section builds a stage that allows these stunning vocals to let fly and the masterful guitar to explore and yet still shine through themselves. Everything is the band, not its parts.

Seriously even if stoner isn’t your regular stomping ground, this is one you need to visit and visit now. Just follow the hoofprints, they’re built on thunder.

Bloody magnificent.

(10/10 Gizmo)

https://www.facebook.com/sergeantthunderhoof

https://sergeantthunderhoof.bandcamp.com/album/this-sceptred-veil