Earthride-Something wicked

Earth Brain
2010

When I was kid there was this kind of syrup that my dad would get for his pancakes and it was called King syrup. When he would pour it on the pancakes it was so thick that it would slowly make it's way from the bottle to the pancakes. My brother and I would stare at the snail like journey that the substance would make. Okay, so what in world does my father's pancake syrup have to do with Earthride's latest? Well, the music contained on this disc is thick and heavy like the syrup and both went on slow steady paths. Of course this album is far more interesting than watching syrup. In case you don't know Earthride hail from the great state of Maryland (my home state) and include former members of Spirit Caravan, Internal Void, Nitro Seed and War Injun. They play doom/stoner metal complete with massive, sludge like riffs that crawl and inch their way along ever so slowly. The rhythm section is thunderous but extremely deliberate as you can feel every bass note and drum beat in your bones. The vocals creep along as well pulling you along the way. Earthride draw on classic doom influences such as Sabbath and Witchfinder General. However this band has certainly mixed those influences in with their own hand crafted sound. Earthride sure know to pour tons of heaviness into every note and beat they play. They are also equally comfortable pushing some thick grooves into their sound too and that's something that too many bands of this style frequently shy away from. Earthride are certainly one of the most essential bands going in the doom/sludge/stoner metal style today.