Stone Magnum-Stone Magnum

R.I.P. Records
2012
  
Doom from Michigan City, Indiana. Thankfully that's Michigan City and not "the" Michigan as I bleed scarlet and grey! Formed in 2010, and lead by the talented guitarist/vocalist Dean Taverniera (Skullview, ex-Black Funeral, ex-Sorath and more), Stone Magnum delivers the goods on this self-titled release. As this 7-track "journey into the darkest regions of the soul" soundtrack is their full-length debut album (previous to this they did release a 3-track demo) it's all the more impressive how well the band lovingly conveys a true sense of sorrow and sadness over a blanket of 70's inspired doom. Opening with the Black Sabbath-like "Fallen Priest", complete with vocals that sound like a younger (ie clean and sober) Ozzy, this album is loaded, front to back, with mid-paced doom that shows a surprising amount of maturity and individuality for a band so young. Then again when you've got a band that is jammed packed with veteran musicians (members having previously played with such bands Black Rhoades, Quadra and Latent Fury) it shouldn't be all that surprising to hear such glorious doom out of a band like this. y favorite cut would have to be "Pictures Of Your Life", but there's not a single filler track to be found out of these 7 cuts. Highly recommended if you're into bands like the aforementioned Black Sabbath as well as such greats as St. Vitus and Pentagram.