Artist: Hydra
Album: Beyond Life and Death
Label: Piranha Music
Release Date: 18/02/2022
Country: Poland
Polish doom/stoner rock/proto-doom act Hydra return with another offering of fuzzy, groove laden tunes. The band’s second album Beyond Life and Death is out today through our friends over at Piranha Music.
The thing I love about Hydra is that they know exactly who they are, which means that you know exactly what you’re going to get with each of their releases. The delivery and song writing may vary to a degree, but you know for a fact that the album will have killer riffs, catchy melodies and powerful vocals. And low and behold this latest offering remains true to this fact.
I’m not sure what pairs better with drugs than the occult, if someone finds a better combination, please tell me. However, until then, bands like Hydra are going to keep hitting us with that winning combination. Who doesn’t want to see the devil in a cloud of marijuana smoke while blasting this album in their basement?
One of my favourite elements on the album is the band’s ability to pick and achieve tone. Both their guitar tone and vocal tone are perfectly suited to both each other and the genre. Another element that really draws me to the release are the ultra-catchy choruses and verses. The band really know how to write a song that sticks with the listener.
The vocals on the album are simply perfect. They manage to capture that old-school 70s/early 80s tone and energy and employ that sought after Sabbathian essence. Instrumentally the music that accompanies them sits somewhere between doom and proto-doom with stoner rock influences. The song lengths really work in this styles favour, allowing the band 8-11 minutes to really have their music unfurl before the listeners ears.
Overall, I was extremely pleased with the album, and I believe that most fans classic fuzz will find a lot to love. If nobody had told me this was a modern release, I could easily believe that the album had dropped four to five decades ago.
Listen to and order the album:
