Posts from the ‘Reviews’ Category
WJCU Metal Benefit Concert Review 2.11.12
Red Giant helped make the 2012 Metal Benefit a success, not to mention a rockfest! (Photo: Gene Natale, Jr. / 88.7 WJCU)
On Saturday the 11th of February at the Beachland Tavern in Collinwood, The Suede Brothers, Red Giant, Venomin James, Lotus Pedal and The Del Rio Bandits rocked the stage in support of college radio! Those who braved the cold and snow to make it to the show certainly got more than their money’s worth – with all proceeds from the show going to support 88.7 WJCU – a non-profit, non-commercial radio station that has served the Heights community for over 40 years.
The Soda Shop reviews “Crowe Valley Blues”
This review is a long time in the coming. After sitting on this for a few months, and enjoying the hell out of it, here is the long awaited review for Venomin James’ Crowe Valley Blues. Crowe Valley Blues is the second album from the Cleveland doom metal band.
Doom metal is sort of a generic label for this album. While it does have many doom elements, there’s a few (minor) rock moments. One constant that this album does have is it’s heavy as all fuck!
It opens with the track “Desert Rider” which is about as perfect an opening track that you’ll find anywhere. “Cosmonaut” is next. This track you should be familiar with as it was on The Soda Shop Comp vol 1. This was the first song that the band released from the album and even made a video of it. It’s fast, heavy and ready to hurt you. The chorus about 2:50 in is worth it alone. “Death’s Wings” is next with a mellow paced verse and melodic chorus. “Dire Days” is a bit slower and certainly a doomier track. Singer Jim Meador’s voice is haunting. The song speeds up about 4 1/2 minutes into it and before you know it, it’s back to the doomy sound that started the track. This track is going to be a classic. “Make No Mistake” is a bit more of a punk metal number. It’s faster paced throughout and less doomier then other tracks. “Under The Gun” and “Tierra Muerta” are both more melodic numbers. “Penitentiary Glen” is the last song on the album. It’s slow and doomy. Read more…
Lucid Culture reviews The Soda Shop Comp 1
If you’re wondering what the cool kids across the USA are listening to, chances are that some of it is right here. Last month our colleagues over at the Soda Shop put out a massive free compilation - the first in a series – that you should get your hands on if you like metal or the louder fringes of stoner music. The corporate media are trying as hard as they can to make you believe that anyone over age eight actually listens to Kesha, or that anyone actually enjoys Arcade Fire instead of merely pretending to because they don’t want to seem uncool in front of their trendoid friends. The reality is that metal is bigger than ever, and maybe better than ever, because the new wave of bands who play it have gone back to the source, the motherlode of it all, Black Sabbath. Tony Iommi should be proud of what he spawned here, yet while most of the bands here have the sludgy slow stoner groove, double and tripletracked solos and chromatic riffage, they aren’t ripoffs either. This is a LONG album, sixteen songs, most of them well over five minutes a clip and most of them various shades of excellent. A couple of them are spoofs, but most of them are straight up pure adrenaline.
Reeferjournal Top 40 of 2010
We made reeferjournal’s list. Doom on, brother!
“39. Venomin James – Crowe Valley Blues
This band owes a great debt to the first Karma to Burn album along with Kyuss, Fu Manchu, Cleansing era Prong and straight up heavy metal. Still or maybe because of which, Crowe Valley Blues is a total fucking blast.”
Full list is here: http://reeferjournal.blogspot.com/2011/01/2010-top-40.html
“Crowe Valley Blues” reviewed in Metal Hammer, Mar. 2011 issue
Hailing from Cleveland’s Crowe Valley, which its creators describe as ‘the home of murder, Mormon, and mayhem’, this is the second album from an outfit that specialises in swampy, doom-laden and moonshine-infused metallic blues.
Modelled upon Black Sabbath, Down, C.O.C., Kyuss and Trouble, the quintet’s sound is rooted firmly in the last millenium, and here that’s no bad thing. As well as delivering lumbering elephant-sized riffs, the two guitarists keep the lead solos sizzling throughout. Meanwhile, Jim Meador’s Southern-tinged voice enhances the album’s air of menace via such standout cuts as Desert Rider and Downer - the latter included as part of a bonus four-song EP called Death’s Wings. [7] Dave Ling“
Pretty good, eh? Thanks to Mr. Dave Ling.
![Venomin James "Make No Mistake" [Official Music Video]](http://i2.ytimg.com/vi/snCgTSPAZKI/0.jpg)
