All Hail the Mighty FROGLORD! We’ve covered previous releases by the band and featured them in our Doomed & Stoned in England Vol. II compilation. Suffice it to say, we’re believers!

Now the mysterious UK project is back with a new EP, and today Doomed & Stoned is giving you a first look ‘n’ listen with the music video premiere. LBTF((((or))))DBTS (2024), e.g. Live By The Fuzz or Die By The Slime is a three-track work where ominous tones mesh with tongue-in-cheek humor.

So, the gods decree, spoken unto thee
Play it low and slow don’t rush, live by the fuzz!

Our trip to the swamp begins with psychedelic blues rising like vapors in the warming sunlight. Welcome to “Live By The Fuzz,” where guitars pulse like ripples on the water and we hear the sound of the hurdy-gurdy with mysterious Near-Eastern groans. You might be reminded of OM or Zaum in the first two minutes (and that’s a good thing), but no worries if you’re seeking a headbaning moment because it’s coming with the all crash of an alligator jumping out of the bog to snag a heedless crane (at 2:38). Later, a blast beat and ferocious throaty voices take us to the edge of sanity – or, if you’re ready for it, enlightenment.

Cleanse yourself from pain, numb away the fear
Hiding from impermanent endings growing near

Middle track “((((or))))” ushers us into the haze of the sun as the day dawns, and this time we’re in ancient desert places and there’s the addition of enchanting female vocalizations, pedal effects, and what sounds like the didgeridoo. Acolytes of the Froglord recite their purpose in hushed, drugged tones. Then the power of this mysterious force bursts forth with wild drums and intimidating roars (at 10:35). The song at last returns to those chill opening moments, taking us all the way to sundown.

In the swamp where darkness dwells
A figure emerges, casting spells
Creature arise, a presence so grand
Deity of doom of this cursed land

Closing doomer “Die By The Slime” begins by asking Why do the living disturb the sleep of the dead? Indeed, why would one awaken such a fearsome creature of Old? It’s a slow 'n’ low ride, with boisterous outbursts of percussion, guttural singing, stinging guitar licks, damning riffage, and a cultish chorus. Strange rituals are afoot, and one imagines this gathering turning into a very messy bacchanal before long.

Meanwhile, the visual accompaniment is at various junctures meditative and disturbing, with trippy mirror effects and a veritable collage of hypnotic imagery. Hints of frogs (or tadpoles) lie around every corner. Maybe don’t watch it on LSD!.

Froglord’s 'Live By The Fuzz or Die By The Slime’ (2024) to release this weekend, March 9th, on CD and cassette (get it here), as well as digital format (here).

Give ear…

SOME BUZZ

Since the dawn of time, mystics have long prophesied the coming of an ancient amphibian bestowed with death ray vision and ectoplasmic slime. Emerging from deep within The Mystic Swamp, Froglord arise bringing their unique blend of stoner groove and psychedelic doom. With face melting fuzz and foot stomping grooves, Froglord’s reign of amphibious terror shall begin.

Having released four full length albums in the last three years, Froglord returns once more. This time with a shorter three track EP, 'Live By The Fuzz or Die By The Slime.’ Adopting a distinctly more blackened-psychedelic-doom sound for this release, Froglord once again showcase their ability to blend genres across their already vast discography.

Previously, Froglord records have been entirely recorded and produced as a one-person operation, however this EP sees collaboration with other artists, to bring in haunting cello and vocal acapella arrangements. 'Live By The Fuzz or Die By The Slime’ is the perfect record for fans of Om, Conan, and Batushka.

Formed during the pandemic as a one-man project, Froglord released their first EP in 2020, followed soon after by their debut album. To date Froglord has built up an extensive library of releases, including, 4 albums, 3 Eps, 1 split, 1 live album, and 2 singles. In 2021 just after the release of The Mystic Toad, Froglord developed into a 4-piece band as live venues began to reopen. Since then, Froglord has quickly gained a reputation for their commanding and theatrical stage performances.

Whilst Froglord’s sound leans primarily toward stoner doom, they have been characterised for their genre-bending sound, with each album taking on its own distinct style, taking strong influences from psychedelia, prog, sludge, grunge, groove and blues; to deliver the tale of The Froglord through a concept-based discography.

Currently, Froglord are set to release a single in the spring of 2024, written for the upcoming found footage horror film Frogman (dir. Anthony Cousins). As well as this original, the film also contains several older Froglord tracks.

Rooted also in environmentalism, Froglord has worked closely with Save The Frogs, the world’s largest amphibian-based conservation charity, raising over £2500 through “Save The Frogs” EP sales and campaigning, as well as £300 for the Human Dignity Trust.

Since the dawn of time,
Mystics have foretold the coming
of the Froglord
An ancient amphibian with death ray vision
and ectoplasm slime…

Behold, the mighty FROGLORD has returned! We first met the Bristol bunch in these pages when they split an album with Bog Wizard, then again for our compilation, Doomed & Stoned in England, Vol. II. Now they’re back with 11 new tracks, ‘Sons of Froglord’ (2023), each one linked to overarching plot (the saga now spanning four records):

500 years before ascension, Froglord tires of wordly trappings and so departs into the wilderness. There, the great Wizard Gonk awaits, a mighty guide through this garden. Together they seek its forbidden fruit: the Road Raisins. Once found, the flesh is consumed, giving way to visions of a coming collapse. The sound of The Amphibian can be heard, calling to the sage, and the Froglady’s embrace guides him back to earth. Returning to the world on a Wednesday, he knows he must hold on till the lord cometh. Till that time, the mind must be honed and create a swamp of its own.

The content really delivers on the storyline, too. “Wizard Gonk” is a riff-driven romp with foot-shuffling stride and deadpan, shoegazy vocals on the order of Depeche Mode. “Garden” is a dank one for sure, donning bluesy guitar, strident rhythm, and a fist-raising chorus. “Road Raisin” couples humid Kyuss guitar tone with an easy-going desert rock tempo and mysterious, doomy vox. Speaking of singing, “Collapse” features grisly pipes that remind me of Neal Fallon’s early work. Many tokes will be taken, surely, early on in this album.

It’s not all an anuran fantasy, however. “Wednesday” is an ultra cool rocker a la Velvet Revolver about riding through the midweek blues. And the album closes with a nod to the CCR classic, “Born On The Bayou,” giving it the Froglord treatment with gutsy drumming, smooooooth bass work, stinging guitar, and crooning that tells us we’re deep into marsh country now and there ain’t no returning.

Sons of Froglord is an up-beat romp through the swamp, ideal for baking on your favorite lilly pad. Look for the Froglord’s latest release on Friday, July 7th (pre-order here). Stick it on a playlist with Deep Purple, Clutch, Merlin, Geezer, and Forming The Void.

Give ear…

SOME BUZZ

During the pandemic as a one-man project, Froglord released their first EP in 2020, followed soon after by a full-length album 'Amphibian Ascending.’ Through their infectious grooves, storytelling, and DIY music videos, Froglord quickly amassed an online cult-like following. After the release of their second album 'The Mystic Toad’ a year later, Froglord developed into a full 4-piece band as live venues began to reopen.

Since then, Froglord have released a further EP, split record, a single, and two more full-length albums: 'Army of Frogs’ and 'Sons of Froglord.’ During this time, Froglord has quickly gained a reputation for their commanding and theatrical stage performances.

Whilst Froglord’s sound leans primarily toward stoner doom, they have been characterised for their genre-bending sound, with each album taking on it’s own distinct style, taking strong influences from psychedelia, prog, sludge, grunge, groove and blues to deliver the tale of The Froglord through a concept-based discography.

Rooted also in environmentalism, Froglord has worked closely with Save The Frogs, the world’s largest amphibian-based conservation charity, raising over £2500 through 'Save The Frogs’ EP sales and campaigning, as well as £300 for the Human Dignity Trust through merch sales.

We fought through the sickness, haze, and malaise of 2022 to bring you a brand new compilation before year’s end. This 48-band survey features acts from across England, a follow-up to our 2019 smasher! Big thanks to longtime Doomed & Stoned contributor Reek of STOOM for compiling and curating this powerful listening experience.

By way of introduction, he writes:

Re-emerging from the grim isolation of pandemic and lockdown, the latest incarnation of English bands express the freedom and ambition of the post-COVID age. Striving ever onwards and upwards, The English Underground scene is as vibrant and vital as ever!

As with all our compilations, this is a free download. Our intention is to give you a current snapshot of the scene with a spectrum of heavy sounds to move you and grove you. If you dig a track, click “info” to follow the band and get their music!

Give ear…

I haven’t had this good of a time since watching Hell Comes To Frogtown, and more recently the awful sequel Frogtown 2 (which has somehow endeared itself to me). As long as we’re talking about frogs, wait’ll you get a load of the record we’ve cued up for you today.

‘A Frog in the Bog’ (2022) hosts two of doom’s dankest acts separated by an ocean’s expanse: FROGLORD situated along the River Avon in Bristol, England and BOG WIZARD hailing from the Michigan habor.

Envisioned as a concept album, this split LP relates the story of “the Froglord and his congregation trespassing into the Bog Wizard’s swamp, and the ensuing confrontation between the two.” High drama ensues! You’ll hear several tracks in which vocals are shared, which I think was a master touch as it gives the record a unified and cohesive feel from side-to-side…not to mention that it sounds simply monstrous.

The troupe tells Doomed & Stoned:

We’re really proud of what we put together, musically and narratively, it ended up being a lot of fun to do, and we’re hoping it will be just as fun for listeners.

There are tons of memorable musical moments too, some of which are imminently quotable, such as the unholy chant: “Bow down to the power of the Froglord.” There’s even a You son of a bitch! moment that rivals Predator’s Arnold Swarzenegger on its delivery. Clever instrumental touches, samples, and pedal effects immerse us fully in the murky mystery of the fetid swamp. “What is it? The bog of eternal stench!” The net experience is not only fun, but quite powerful.

Look for A Frog in the Bog to gurgle up April 1st on limited edition vinyl, CD, and cassette via The Swamp Records (pre-order here, here, or here). In the meanwhile, Doomed & Stoned is giving you a chance to revel in all the mud and magic a day ahead of time!

Give ear…

Official Guide to the Battle

A Frog in the Bog is a collaborative concept split album. What that means is that this split has been written from the ground up to tell a cohesive story. Both halves of the split feature shared vocal parts between the bands, in the conclusionary tracks.

Bog Wizard and Froglord are both very narratively driven bands, telling tales of their respective characters. The Froglord is a god-like swamp dwelling being with a congregation of worshippers and followers. The Bog Wizard is an angry hermit wizard whose only preferred company is the creatures he summons to do his bidding, and he’s highly protective of his territory.

A Frog in the Bog tells the story of their fateful meeting, as the Froglord encroaches into the Bog Wizard’s well-guarded territory with his congregation, from each of their unique perspectives. It describes the Bog Wizard’s anger as he realizes this being has intruded on his land, the curiosity of the Froglord as to who and what lies in the swamp, their ultimate battle, and face to face meeting. Who will win?

“Reptilian Death Squad”

With the intention of protecting his domain, the Bog Wizard has set out a lineup of loyal lizardmen to patrol the Swamp of Doom, and the news they bring back is quite the opposite of what he wished to hear.

“The Frog Lord”

The Froglord and his followers have intruded, seeking to gain territory! This cannot stand of course, and after some observation, the Wizard decides to force a confrontation with the group. What will happen? Will one best the other? A true battle of two great powers shall commence!

“The Bog”

After overthrowing the humans and defeating the alien invaders, Froglord stands as ruler and protector of the earth. But rumours of a powerful bog creature begin to rise. Summoning his closest Sages, Froglord sets off to discover the mysterious creature and destroy it before it can rise to power.

“The Wizard”

As Froglord and his Sages enter the great Swamp of Doom after wandering far and wide, the swamp creatures inform the Froglord of a great wizard that lies at the heart of the swamp. As they descend deeper and deeper, shadowy figures dart through the undergrowth…watching…leading them further in.

“The Bog Wizard”

The air grows heavy and stale. As the dense trees begin to part, Froglord and his Sages gaze upon the great swamp. In the centre stands a creature, covered in moss with hollow, empty eyes. The Bog Wizard! Froglord steps into the bog. Battle has begun!