(This is Andy Synn‘s review of the new album by the Finnish dark underlords of psychedelic drone, Dark Buddha Rising, which was released by Svart Records on November 13th.)
You know, despite existing on pretty much opposite ends of the spectrum, Drone and Grind have a weird amount in common… at least, they do from my perspective.
For one thing, both styles are – in my experience – more enjoyable live than on record (with some notable exceptions, of course), and both make a lot more sense to me when they’re mixed in with more… let’s say “traditional”… forms of Metal.
This means that if you want to get me bumpin’ ‘n’ grindin’ then you’d best inject a heavy dose of Death Metal along with it. And if you want me to embrace the Drone you’ll need to bring the Doom too.
On top of that, they both exist in that weird space where, although I understand what people mean when they use these terms, I can’t necessarily define them.
But, to paraphrase Justice Potter Stewart, “I know it when I hear it.”
Case in point, Dark Buddha Rising’s seventh album straddles the line between genres so adroitly that I still can’t tell you exactly where it lands.
My head says it’s Drone, but my heart says it’s Doom, and my guts… well, my guts just say that it’s one of the best albums of the year, and yet another career highlight from Finland’s favourite sub-sonic sorcerors. Continue reading »
