Death Rides A Horse-Tree Of Woe

 Infernö Records
 2013

Admittedly I was unfamiliar with Denmark's 4-piece band Death Rides A Horse prior to listening to this re-release of "Tree Of Woe". That said, when your band hails from Copenhagen (which is home to King Diamond/Merciful Fate, D-A-D, Volbeat and yes, even the prima donna himself, Lars Urich!) and (I would assume) takes their name from a 1967 spaghetti western staring Lee Van Cleef (who frankly rocks!) then your quite likely to peak my interest to start with. But, being that your talking about a female-fronted heavy metal act as well then, in all honestly, it's likely you'll end up getting moved toward the top of my play-list for the week all the more. So, with that being said, I tuned into Death Rides A Horse and their particular take on stoner rock/doom metal. Although I used to find myself at a loss when it came to most stoner rock/doom metal releases (as that was always Metal Mark's groove thing to begin with) it seems as if more and more I'm learning to appreciate the effectiveness and grace of the genre. That's especially true, and easy enough to appreciate, when a band like Death Rides A Horse comes knocking at your door with pulverizing metal material! It's like sweet candy for my eardrums! Death Rides A Horse, which was formed in 2008, proved to be so much more then just another young stoner/doom act making the most out of their moment in the spotlight. Really it's the band's appreciation of traditional heavy metal that makes "Tree Of Woe" work ever so magically. That much is obvious when you cover "Fly to the Rainbow" by the Scorpions and issue a track like "Dominion of Metal" which, it is said, was inspired by and dedicated to Accept! Simply put you've got a young act that transforms stoner rock/doom into some captivating heavy metal thanks in large part to well-crafted tunes and the the lead vocal work of bassist Ida. With Infernö Records set to release the band's debut-album later in 2013 the label is re-releasing what was originally a limited-edition/cassette-only 3-track EP. So far then (if anyone has been counting) this makes Infernö Records 2 for 2 then when it comes to cool promo material they sent my way. With "Tree Of Woe", which was originally released back in 2012, it isn't so much that it's getting a much-needed/much-warranted CD re-release (as the majority of people these days do not have cassette players anymore), but it's the slew of bonus cuts that have been added on for special effect that make this a real winner. For you see this re-release of "Tree Of Woe" tacks on the group's "Pantokrator" EP (which had the Scorpions cover on it) and then adds that killer Accept-inspired number "Dominion of Metal"! In a nutshell Infernö Records is re-releasing what was already a great EP and making it all the better! If you haven't heard of this 4-piece band yet then let me just say that you are truly missing out! This re-release is a must if you're into stoner rock/doom metal and/or female-metal. With 8 tracks total this is a smoldering collection of stoner/doom metal grooves with some great classic metal undertones. Suddenly I find myself anticipating this band's full-length debut album when, not all that long ago, I wasn't familiar with this band to begin with! That speaks volumes my friends.