Elder-s/t

Meteor City
2008


This is the first official full-length release from Boston's Elder and it's heavy-duty monster for sure. My initial response that it reminds me a lof Sleep's Holy Mountain. Perhaps it's more like an album that would have followed had Sleep became heavier and gone a more progressive route. I dare say that Elder have a greater knack for subtlety than Sleep and they be a little less self-aware as well. From the opening notes of "White Walls" I could feel my self being sucked in by the thick, dark sludge being created. They take a basic approach to their music, but that works wonders as they just dip down low and start hammering out the skull-crunching rhythms. Each track just seems to get better as Elder summon up slabs of Sabbath style doom and when needed they call forth some fuzzed out type grooves reminiscent of early Electric Wizard. Yes, indeed this album is a virtual doom paradise that roughly grabs you and drags you ever so slowly down a dark and winding path. Each song has it's own personality the band seem to gain momentum as the move along. The riffs are mainly slow and deliberate, but you can feel parts multiplying as they move along and become more and more comfortable with what they are constructing. Everything is very deliberate, but they have a strong grasp on how to create and manipulate these massive grooves. This year hasn't had as many good doom albums as I was hoping for, but the Elder's self-titled release does a lot to fill that gap.



http://www.myspace.com/beholdtheelder