In the world of doom metal, all knees bend to Black Sabbath. But the femurs tremble and the patellas shatter when the dread name of THE WIZARD is uttered. Electric Wizard.
The name of THE WIZARD strikes awe into the frail hearts ov every doom metaller on the globe. Why? Because THE WIZARD is responsible for the most soul-ravaging LP in doom history. "Dopethrone."
Released at the very height of $#!%-rock's reign, "Dopethrone" instantly obliterated warehouses full of "Creed" and "Staind" records and pinned back the ears of the metal demimonde. Perfect in conception, monumental in execution, and with a pencil drawing of Satan holding a bong on its cover, this LP changed everybody's idea of what exactly it meant to describe music as "heavy."
Beginning with a muted drum lick and foreboding, insistent bass line, the record wastes little time in maiming your psyche with the one-two evisceration of "Vinum Sabbathi / Funeralopolis." This dire diptych begins with the propulsive "Vinum," a song that turns a cliché note progression into a harrowing four minutes of headbanging pain. Then, a denouement comes in the form of a clean, loping bass lick overlaid by some quiet guitar filigree, which continues just long enough to lull you into complacency. Suddenly, an anguished scream cuts through the background and with a lacerating finality, immense mountains of molten-lead sound crash down and obliterate your heart with the desperately phlegmatic riffs of "Funeralopolis." By the time that pounding assault of nihilistic agony is over, you're left stunned and breathless.
There are plenty of great tracks after that initial salvo, but in reality, you're too beaten and psychologically altered to notice the particulars of them. One's about a witchfinder. One's about a barbarian. One's about a dopethrone and black amps tearing the sky. You get the idea.
The point is that this LP is a monolith of heavy atmosphere that you cannot prevent from altering your consciousness. It's like Massive Attack's "Mezzanine" in that and other respects (including the unbelievable opening song sequence that leaves you gasping), and is probably influenced by that landmark record. But "Dopethone" exceeds "Mezzanine" in a couple of ways. One is that there is no sliver of angelic light to give hope in the endless steppe of brutality that is "Dopethrone." The other is that Massive didn't have a devil with a bong on the cover of "Mezzanine."
There is consensus in the music community that "Dopethrone" wasn't written by Electric Wizard. Instead, Satan, feeling sorry for the three stoned kids stuck in a grimy basement in Dorset with little but a cheap guitar, crummy old amps, and a few bags of Doritos, composed and notated out the entire album, then personally appeared to them in the middle of a reefer session to hand over the black manuscript.
That's really the only reasonable explanation for the reality of "Dopethrone." There is no album more crushing, terrifying, wrenching, convincing. Many of THE WIZARD's other LPs are outstanding, especially the, uh, seminal "Come My Fanatics" from 1997 and the smug but wonderful "Witchcult Today" from 2007. But none of them can match teh flawless evil assault on your mind that is "Dopethrone."
The formula for this album, Sabbath riifs + dub feel + adolescent horror / drug / fantasy lyrics, sounds (at best) chuckleworthy on paper. But lay this platter down, drop the needle, and you will be harmed by the relentless gravity and violence that is embodied therein.
THE WIZARD produced a followup, "Let Us Prey," which was pretty good but nothing like the demonic wonder of its predecessor. The band probably knew this and broke up soon after. Which is too bad, because when they re-formed a bit later without Mark Greening on drums and Tim Bagshaw on bass, THE WIZARD turned into a precise, satisfying purveyor of doom music rather than a tectonic force from the nether regions. Greening's drumming, which has a backbeat feel reminiscent of '60s soul records, IS doom metal. And the PiL / dub / dancehall influences brought by Bagshaw lent the music an authoritative heft that hasn't yet been recaptured.
That said, "Witchcult Today" is tied with "Come My Fanatics" for their 2nd best overall, with horosho songwriting and a very good retro doom sound. The new lineup with 2nd guitarist Liz Buckingham sounds tight but not uptight on this disc, and they're dripping with bad vibes to harsh your mellow. It's got a grip of astounding cuts : the sinister title track, the surprising upbeat "Dunwich," the hilarious but cool "Satanic Rites of Drugula," and the Mel Brooks-conjuring stroke of genius "Torquemada '71." It's a must-acquire.
"Black Masses," from 2010, is much more in the deliberate '70s stoner-rock vein and doesn't really pack the visceral power of their earlier releases. Plus, Oborn's vocals, usually buried in the mix, are distractingly upfront. It works fine as ambient music, but make sure that your mind is already pummeled (or, as Oborn would say, "turn off your mind") before popping this one in.
Check this out : the original lineup of Electric Wizard playing "Supercoven" from the EP of the same name in 2002, for a miniscule audience. This is before they became lionized and a little complacent. Look at the intensity of the performance and how lead howler Jus Oborn utterly commits to laying a brutish trip on the witless witnesses. He visibly channels Kurt Cobain here, but it doesn't detract from the weight of this brilliant show.
So last night, one of my chums wrote me an email asking what doom metal is and who are its most notable practitioners. That's like asking a NorCal hippie swine what reefers are and what are the best types. So, I thought I'd share the result with you Latewires. Also, c'mon and chime in if you've got some wizardy insight. Freshman remedial doom academy is in session!
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DOOM 093 - 3 credit hours
Doom metal is a genre defined by ponderously slow tempo, low despairing tones, and a dire atmosphere. In doom metal, virtuosity is of low importance compared to the ability to send chills into the listener. Black Sabbath are generally credited with founding the genre. The lyrics in doom metal (as you may have guessed) are usually cartoonish verse concerning the end of the world, the complete absence of hope, depression, profound abandonment, war, the occult, demonic topics, drug abuse (cannabis in particular), along with Dracula, goblins, witches, barbarians, and other filmic monsters.
The most significant practitioners of doom metal are :
1) Electric Wizard : paradoxically the most important and most cartoonish of the post-Sabbath doom bands. Their "Dopethrone" is flawless and the ultimate touchstone of modern doom metal.
3) St. Vitus : Genius, kickstarted the modern doom movement.
5) Sleep : The most prominent and wonderful figures in "stoner doom"
5) Goatsnake : Catchy popular doom
6) Trouble : Influential Christian doom from the '80s
7) Celtic Frost / Triptykon : Avant-garde bizarre doom metal
Candlemass : Unintentionally hilarious but undeniably accomplished epic opera doom
9) Corrupted and Boris : both great Japanese experimental doom bands
10) Sunn0))) and Earth : the endless drone doom, slow beyond belief
11) Cathedral and Pentagram : more classic early doom
Newer bands I like include the most excellent Witchsorrow, Acid Witch, and Salome. (24,357)
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Candlemass : Unintentionally hilarious but undeniably accomplished epic opera doom
