Jay's Top 20 Releases Of 2015...

Christ! Where the hell did 2015 go? It disappeared in a bloody hurry didn't it?! Good riddance too, what with various religious and political zelots still kicking seven shades of shit out of each other, and natural disasters abound. Usually in the form of storms, floods, wildfires and Donald Trump. Not to mention the loss of BB King, Sir Christopher Lee, Scott Weiland and of course, our lord and saviour, Lemmy - yet leaving the likes of Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj and Kanye fuckin West unscathed. There really is no justice.
But it hasn't all been downers in the Burning Beard camp. We had a big revamp, remodel and rename and have been absolutely inundated with emails every day of the week. So much so that we've taken on three new writers - Martin, Richard and Andy. But onto the releases of the year. Not quite as volatile as the worlds current events, but not without their own ups and downs. We had a plethora of fantastic releases from all of our close friends independent labels and some fantastic returns to form from likes of Refused, Goatsnake and Valkyrie. A few middle of the road released from Windhand, The Sword and Clutch (sorry but something just didn't stick for me with those). Then my biggest let downs of the year in the shape of Uncle Acid's third album, Baroness's Purple and the debut from With The Dead. All of which I just expected more from. 

I've have seen few top 2015 releases lists over the last month and I cant help but feel that most bands have made their way in to some of them on name alone, and had many of those albums been released by unknown artists they wouldn't have even garnered a mention. So with that in mind the following list of my favourite releases of the year consist of not just albums, but EP's and demo's alike. They reside here not just because they've excelled expectation or surprised, but, to me, shown more passion, conviction, ingenuity and originality, giving them far more reason to make this list than many of the more well known artist's offerings of the last 12 months.
Enjoy.


20. Watchtower ~ Radiant Moon

Two big fat heavy slabs of doom from the Aussie trio. Heavier than a death in the family and beautifully pressed and put out on 10" by our friends over at Magnetic Eye Records.
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19. Rifflord ~ 26 Mean & Heavy

Dirty, heavy and kinda sounding like the Doors if they were to have gotten heavily in to weed, ouija boards and black masses. Dark fuzzy and riff hungry are always a great mix.
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18. Witchsorrow ~ No Light, Only Fire

A brilliant return from one of the UK's best and most humble doom acts. Retaining their full blooded heavy approach with a subtle nod to dooms classic origins.
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17. Blackout ~ Blackout

Riding Easy Records began the first quarter of the year with yet another brilliant discovery in Brooklyn based trio Blackout. Deceptively sludgy and psychedelic in equal measures, don't let the albums cover fool you.
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16. Ufomammut ~ Ecade

This long awaited follow up to 2012's Oro double album didn't fail to impress. In fact, the only thing to out do the albums content was the deluxe version of the LP, in all its silkscreened hand made beauty.

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15. Acid†Priest ~ Outta Control 

A near perfect combination of occult style rock mixed with a hint of punk aesthetics. Acid Priest gave similar acts like Uncle Acid and Satans Satyrs a run for their money, and in my eyes well and truly beat them.

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14. Kaleidobolt ~ Kaleidobolt

Our friends over at Pink Tank Records have done a great job at digging out some fantastic psych bands over the last couple of years, and none come more thrillingly psych'y than Kaleidobolt.

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13. Egypt ~ Endless Flight

Just making the 2015 list with their late in the year entry, Egypt finally return with their first full length album in over 2 years... and it's a fuel guzzling desert rock monster. Look out for the LP release later this year.

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12. Yuri Gagarin ~ At The Center Of All Infinity

After teasing us earlier in the year with the Sea Of Dust EP the Swedish space rockers finally dropped their best work to date, and it's as trippy, spacey and heavy as I could have ever hoped.

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11. Waingro ~ Mt. Hood

I was a big fan of the Canadian's 2014 self titled release and when I heard they'd pressed themselves a second release I snapped it up without hesitation. Once again, the furious trio have well and truly smashed it out the park.

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10. Barbarian Fist ~ The Whorelord Cometh

I took a punt and bought this LP sight unseen. Or hear unheard. Is that a thing? Anyway. I bought it solely on the cover and I have not one single regret. It's like the soundtrack to a Viking stag party. Bloody brilliant.

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9. Glowsun ~ Beyond The Wall Of Time

A beautifully groove filled return from the French psych rock masters that seemed to fly under many peoples radar. Which is a bloody sacrilege as is a brilliantly executed progression from their first two releases.

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8. Kadavar ~ Berlin

When it came to Kadavar I could always take them or leave them. But this drastically ambitious change of pace and sound really paid off, making Berlin one of my biggest surprises of 2015.

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7. Moon Curse ~ Spirit Remains

Showing a huge step forward in almost every aspect of album creation, Spirit Remains has cemented Wisconsin's Moon Curse as being true giant slayers when it comes to the whole occult/acid rock genre. Go get the vinyl from Bilocation Records while you can!

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6. Red Sun Atacama ~ Part. 1

This little known French trio really blew my hair back with their high octane EP Part. 1. If they can keep up the same highly addictive and satisfyingly furious pace of this beauty then I really can't wait to hear what they've got in store for this year.

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5. Indian Handcrafts ~ Creeps

Another release that really came out of left field for me. Fuzzy, frantic and fantastically original, Indian Handcrafts won't fail to get you stomping your feet and air drumming within an matter of minutes.

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4. Top Dead Celebrity ~ High Horse

One of my most anticipated returns for a long long time. Utah's Top Dead Celebrity have been one of my favourite bands since I first discovered them about eight years go. High Horse didn't disappoint either, residing high up in my iTune all time top 25 most played albums. 

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3. Dr Colossus ~ Shut Up & Eat Your Pinecone/Whack Sabbath

Another small morsel teasing at an album that just can't come quick enough for me. The Simpsons inspired stoner doom aficionados from down under once again gave us fantastic riffs coupled with killer lyrics. A winning combo in anyones book.

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2. Bedroom Rehad Corp. ~ Fortunate Some

This was easily my best new discovery of 2015. Heavy, groovy, thunderous and pleasing in every aspect. Bedroom Rehab Corp pulled off an absolute blinder with Fortunate Some and have me itching for full length in 2016.

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1. Elder ~ Lore

Eager anticipation seldom delivers overwhelming satisfaction. Lore however was one hell of an exception. Arriving early in the year, from day one, Elder's third album never received much competition when it came to toppling it from my top five. With a stage show to rival the album's awesomeness Lore, for me, was a highlight of the year.

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Honourable Mentions...

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Springfield's Sonic Supremos...

Dr. Colossus ~ Shut Up & Eat Your Pinecone/Whacking Day - 7"

If ever I had an excuse to drop all the shit thats been keeping me away from here for the last 15 months or so then this is truly it. The return of one my favourite Aussie bands and pioneers of blues influenced stoner doom with a vocal content exclusively dealing with a beloved animated tv program. A slightly niche avenue of genre I know. If you didn't catch my review of the duo's first EP, then go here now. I'll wait.
Done?
Good, lets crack on.

It's safe to say these guys made quite the impression on me with their first release IV. A quick perusal of my iTunes will show that all three tracks sit firmly at the very top of my 25 most played and it's a pretty safe bet that this new three will be clawing their way up in hot pursuit. Hell, it's only been a few hours since the release went live and they've already racked up double digits. Yeah, did I mention I really love this band?
So in my previous review I made a comparison and described Dr. Colossus as being like the Mark 'Chopper' Read's of the music world. Mainly down to their ability to be essentially light hearted yet possess the means to suddenly turn and tear your face off. Metaphorically, speaking of course. I've no doubt both Jono and Nath are upstanding members of their respective communities, and to the best of my knowledge neither have ever shanked anyone in a prison court yard or hacked off their own ears (Google Mark Read if you don't get that reference). Nonetheless, I still stand by my original statement, as once again right from the outset you're lulled into a somewhat false sense of security before being repeatedly pounded about the head with a sonic assault of thunderous riffs and crushing drums. Shut Up & Eat Your Pinecone begins with a quintessential stoner lick, reminiscent of early Sleep, underlying the first verse before the chorus kicks in, the reverb cranks up and you're met with an overwhelming urge to head bang, air drum to every one of Nath's hits and roar the songs title at the top of your lungs. As it turns out this has proven pretty troublesome while driving as I have almost discovered to my detriment. Not that it needs to be said, but this hypnotic marriage of down tuned guitar, drums and killer vocals isn't a mere flash in the pan, it well and truly extends to track two, the brilliantly titled Whack Sabbath - to which I defy anyone to resist the urge to air guitar and sing along to the chorus. Seriously, Iommi himself would be proud to have conjured such riffage.

But man can't live on riffs and thumping drums alone... Granted, Karma to Burn have done pretty well out of such a formula, but sod all that for now, because when it comes to lyrics this is where Colossus really bring their A game, and no track proves this more than the third and final track and the return of Mono. Easily one of my favourite songs, not just from these guys, but anyone. This live version still absolutely slays and to my mind at least still contains some of the best stoner/doom lyrics ever slapped onto tape. So much so that you know what? I'm gonna put them here...

Bleeding money with a silver tongue,

Fooling people with a smile,

Rats to slaughter by your tainted song,

Killing slowly, single file

Monorail take me higher, 

Far beyond the solar fire

Doubting Thomas with a voice unheard,

Silent witness to the crime,

Clouds of aqua - Armageddon's Whore

Fleeing 'monst the funeral pyre

Monorail take me higher, 

Far beyond the solar fire,

Leave behind this mortal plane,

Bury Springfield in your flame

Sorry, but even if Bob Dylan went all doom on us and began filling his days with nothing but Saint Vitus and the writings of Matt Groening he couldn't beat that.

So if you've not been sold on this awesome Aussie duo already, then bollocks to you, you're a lost cause. If on the other hand you've a brain in your nut then head on over to their bandcamp page and preorder the new single on red vinyl. There's only going to be 150 of these beauties pressed so don't snooze! You won't find a more satisfying 7 inches!... Unless your going to fork extra out for batteries and into that kind of shit.

~ Jay

For Fans Of; Sleep, Electric Wizard, Karma To Burn, Down, Crypt Trip

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Simp-ly Awesome...

Dr. Colossus ~ IV (2014)

It's a pretty good rule of thumb that it's hard to accurately gauge a bands true caliber by just a short EP alone... but fuck it, I'm gonna go out on a limb and do it anyway.
Dr. Colossus may just ruffle the feathers of a fair few stoner, doom and metal acts doing the rounds out there at the moment. Why? Well to begin with they're a two piece. Sure, not exactly a new concept by any stretch of the imagination. But when you consider the doom genre as a whole, you'll be hard pressed to recall all that many duos. So to sack off the additional guitarist and bass player and retain a truly immense and resonant sound is a feat in itself. Their other potentially painfully irritative features lie in their sheer talent. Not only are both in a number of other bands of assorted ilk, and guitarist/vocalist Jon currently half way through a world tour playing bass for Vance Joy but these guys seriously know how to craft one hell of a riff! With ease, they can join the ranks alongside the likes of AC/DC (yeah, I know they're mostly Brits, but we'll let em' have that), Wolfmother, The Vines and of course Men At Work, when it comes to harnessing that all-encompassing lick. But when all's said and done, the duo's real key is their ability when it comes to lyrical content. Many bands have slaved away for weeks, months even years trying to nail their lyrics and hone their subject matter. So there's no easy way to say this, but Dr. Colossus base all their tracks on Simpsons episodes. Yup. I shit you not. Now right now I'd bet my bollocks to a barn dance theres a number of you reading this that have just turned your nose up solely because of that announcement. But please, PLEASE think twice. You honestly will not be disappointed with what this pair can do with this EP's mere 15 minute runtime. Besides, the real kicker here is that it took me a good few listens before the penny dropped. Going into them somewhat blind, having not checked out their Facebook page, it wasn't until I caught the lyric "I choo choo choose you" in the final track Son Of A Pig. Casually overlooking the blatant obviousness of the opening line of track two; "So I went to Shelbyville"... Doh! But lyrical content aside and taking into consideration the chap's unlikely sound within their other projects, Dr. Colossus genuinely produce some of the best stoner rock and doom I've ever heard. Opening track Mono could not be a better opening to any recording, and the fact that it's already racked up a total of 35 plays on my iTunes serves as testament to that. Slow, heavy and packed to the gunnels with groove, fuzz and reverb. What more do you need? But it doesn't live and die at that. As the EP progresses the pace varies. From your textbook down tuned doom chugging to whats pretty damn close to desert rock territory on track two, Because Of The War. The high octane changes of pace do absolutely nothing to throw these guys off their game though. Everything sounds effortless and tight. With the end product big, sporadic, dirty and relentlessly both fun and brutal all at the same time. For all intense and purpose Dr. Colossus are the Mark 'Chopper' Read's of stoner doom world, and fair dinkum, they should be bloody proud of that!
So there you have it in a nut shell - an Australian duo playing top notch stoner doom about individual Simpsons episodes. It's really this kind shit that makes it pretty much impossible to dislike the Aussies. Yeah, they're predominantly descended from thieves, murderers and rapists, and sure, many of them have a penchant for casual racism. But goddamn, when they hit the mark, they really hit the mark. So if you're in the market for something essentially lighthearted but under the guise of ferociously monolithic doom, look no further. I urge you to hit up their Bandcamp page and pick up this beauty of an EP. It's a scant $5, which is made even more appealing when you realise that thats Australian dollars! I'm not sure what that is in real money, but I'm pretty sure when converted that's like minus figures in every other currency. I have no idea what the current exchange rate is.
~ Jay

For Fans Of; Electric Wizard, Planet Of Zeus, Mountain Witch, Elder, Heavy Blanket

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