stoner rock – Nine Circles

Album Review: GAUPA — “Myriad”

November 17, 2022November 17, 2022Angela Block1 Comment

Psychedelic riffs, rock goddess powerful vocals, soulful melodies, and exuberant drumming are just a few of the awe-inspiring elements Swedish progressive stoner rock band GAUPA brings to the table with their sophomore full length release Myriad. This enchanting band kicked off their discography in 2018 with an EP that quickly grew a fanbase. Their debut full length brought in even more fanfare in 2020, and here just in time to make some year end lists, GAUPA brings all the heat with Myriad. This album contains the same doom/folk/psychedelic influences from earlier releases but with sonic amplification and no holding back. Here, the band unlocks their full potential and hits their stride in these eight mind blowing tracks.

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Album Review: Void Cruiser — “Call of the Void”

November 14, 2022November 14, 2022D Morris1 Comment

When listening to the opening track “Dragon’s Tail” on Void Cruiser’s third album Call of the Void, two questions came to mind. The first is if this band was from Southern California? No, they’re from Finland. The second question is this a reissue of an album released in the mid 90s? The answer is also no. For some reason, Void Cruiser made an album that’s a throwback to 90s alt stadium rock. It’s not an unpleasant album but it is an unsurprising listen.

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Nine Circles ov…Stoner and Psych Metal in 2022

June 14, 2022June 14, 2022Chris2 Comments

Recently I created a new playlist featuring what has fast become my go-to genre when I need to bear down and get some serious groove on: the luscious low-end of stoner rock and metal (Spotify users are welcome to it here; Apple Music users can find it here). Throw some psych elements in and I’m an even happier camper. We don’t feature nearly enough of it her at Nine Circles; all too often the staff are mired in extreme noise and suffocatingly depressive odes to inner turmoil – and that’s perfectly fine…if that’s your thing. Lately it’s not mine; I’d rather get a nasty fuzzed to the heavens riff in my brain accompanied by sweet-ass vocal melodies and anthemic choruses I can shout along to as I air-guitar until my arthritic wrists cry out for reprieve.

So for this edition of Nine Circles ov… let’s highlight some of the boogie down rifftastic stoner and psychedelic rock and metal that’s all the rage in my frontal lobe, shall we?

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Album Review: Low Flying Hawks — “Fuyu”

August 31, 2021August 29, 2021Angela BlockLeave a comment

Masters of shoegaze, Low Flying Hawks, have returned with their third full-length release and final part of their musical trilogy centering on the ancient Greek myth of Sisyphos, King of Corinth. The story is of the trickster king who cheated death twice and was then punished by the gods to spend eternity pushing a massive rock up a hill. Every time he neared the top, the rock slipped and rolled back down for him to start the grueling process over again. This conclusion album titled Fuyu means “winter” in Japanese and centers on the ups and downs and struggle of life. It is an emotive and beautiful album that stands perfectly on its own while also acting as the last piece of the puzzle in the band’s five-year long project.

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Nine Circles ov…Recent Albums I Only Have Time to Review in One Sentence…Part III?

April 27, 2021March 20, 2023ChrisLeave a comment

I mean…it may be Part III, but who’s keeping track? Anyway, it’s been a while since I’ve done one of these, and the metals are flying fast and furious enough that there’s a veritable cornucopia of releases worth your time. I mean, not my time…I’ve been busy, you know? Work, um…more work… that one YouTube video I’ve benn playing on repeat forever (it’s this one, by the way).

Really there’s no excuse for not enlightening you, the honorable and erudite Nine Circles reader, on my pithy and concise views of what’s been popping’ on the metal threads the last few weeks or months that our staff haven’t already covered. So for this edition of Nine Circles ov… sit down and fasten those seatbelts as I once again provide one-sentence reviews of stuff that’s been floating my proverbial boat.

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