Number 13

 

 

Number 13

A bit more than thirty points takes us from Warcoe on Number 14 to lucky Number 13. Released in February through the German Prophecy Productions label, it brings a close to a six year long smoke choked wait we all had to endure. For yes, the Seattle duo comes roaring back with a self-titled album that will knock you out of your socks and hits you over the head like a rhythmic ritual performed at full volume. Powered by some colossal bass work and hypnotic no-fear vocals which are locked in mortal combat with feral bone-rattling drums, this is the doom and this is the stoner, stripped of excess and pumped completely full of high powered adrenaline. Guitars, we don’t need them, we don’t miss them, as psychedelic sludge, grunge grit, hard rock swagger and shoegaze haze coil together into something all encompassing. Grooves crawl, scramble, creep, lurch and then crush, dragging you in, under, swallowing you whole before spitting you out… Smiling… Captured with cinematic weight, this is heavy music that bites… Sharp teeth, radiant soul and zero compromise gives you a record that demands to be played loud, extremely loud, until you feel it vibrating in your chest… 

On Number 13 we find: 

YEAR OF THE COBRA - YEAR OF THE COBRA

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Prophecy Productions

Number 12 on the Stoner HiVe Top 20 Countdown of 2019

 

 

Number 13

 

 

Number 13

Are you ready for some proto touched doom jive? We leave Fu Manchu on Number 14 and jump 36 points to reach Number 13. Where we find the sophomore album by this Norwegian trio. That vintage, obscure, garage and steamy sound, that hazy and dirty atmosphere, it is all so highly addictive and drags you along a mind trip of gigantic proportions. And it will feel like one psychoactive and occult touched merry go round. Round and round it goes! Gigantic is also a word one can use for the hooks, the riffs and the efficiency in which it is all delivered. The bass that seems to bop from basement walls like the relentless dripping of a leak. And a touch of sinister gives it that ominous feeling, punctuated by the drums that stomp like those evil footsteps in a dark cul de sac in the middle of the night. We might meet the devil there… But before I burn, I need to listen to this album just one more time…

According to all of your votes, on Number 13 we find: 

Magmakammer - Before I Burn

 

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Kozmik Artifactz

Evil Noise Recordings

Number 13

 

 

Number 13

Another twenty points jump to reach lucky Number 13. Out on Heavy Psych Sounds released back in March, this fourpiece delivered an album that is doom in truly every sense of the word. Formed back in 2011, the band are known for their droning fuzzed out doom, their drums of doom and their unholy vocal lines of, well, you get the drift. And drift it does! Vocals that drag you along that doom trod around the cauldron, guitars that drift like ghosts of lost souls through the ominous night sky. And this fourth full-sized album defines their sound even more, turning their cultist touch into something you want to be a part of. The weight of this release, the drag and the hangtime is incredible, and offers more than those six tracks that plod out the destiny. This is that heavy doom smoke that swirls, with blood red coloring and offering a lingering smell of evil rituals…

On Number 13 we find…

Witchthroat Serpent - Trove Of Oddities At The Devil's Driveway


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Heavy Psych Sounds

Number 13

 

 

Number 13

Unlucky Number 13, has always been a special number for me. Friday the Thirteenth a special day. And by sheer luck we find an album on this spot which is very special to me and naturally high on my personal list. And album that dropped in and dropped out of the Top 20 Countdown on multiple occasions, but was propelled to the Number 13 spot by all those final day lists that got sent in. We find it, nineteen points above Mammoth Volume on Number 14. We were late mentioning this album on the HiVe, even though we had been in love with it since it was released in May. Imploring ever more influences from every nook and cranny of music you can think of; the ten tracks take you on a journey, that feels like you’re just rocking out to some awesome heaviness one minute and then to some earthshattering prog influenced album the next. For there’s an arc here and a setting, but many of the songs can also be listened to individually. Opting for grandiose and gravitas, the songs all have this highly organic feel and natural psych touch. Whirl winding, maelstrom inducing, are all words that fit the bill when you talk about this album... On Number 13 we find!

Besvärjelsen – Atlas

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Out on Magnetic Eye Records

On to Number 12!

Number 13

 

 

Number 13

After rocking out with Cursed! the Lucid Sins album that made it on Number 14, we jump almost forty points today to reach Number 13. Indeed, so far, all the albums were very close together with only a handful, ten or perhaps almost twenty points in between. Even bigger jumps are coming, but this is the first a bit bigger jump; for album that is close together with what comes tomorrow. But we are here now, and not gone yet. So let’s vaguely talk about that massive boom and that majestic groove that happens when you explode upon a surface of a planet somewhere. It’s their third album and a mighty rumbling effort. Straight from the barren wastelands of Canada comes a trio that will bore down deep into your soul with their intense, intergalactic and incredibly heavy riffs! Doom, stoner and sludge all so extremely low, groovy and gritty that it cannot come from anything but a huge cave or crater on a forlorn, dark, dangerous and twisted sphere somewhere orbiting through space… Indeed… On Number 13 we find:

Low Orbit – Crater Creator

 

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Number 13

 

 

Number 13

As we pass Motorpsycho on Number 14 with almost thirty points to reach the next album, we remember bang the re-release of their 2017 album made earlier in the year as well. The Off The Record Label facilitated it and it sold like crazy. Just like the new album that was done by that same awesome Off The Record Label and the band themselves. It jumped to the Number One position of the Doom Charts upon release and it took the art of psychedelic doom to a whole new level. They’ve churned mud into mercury and grime into gold. A conceptual and exceptional piece of art that shines a different kind of light on all the heavy genres we love so dearly; it shows us that heavy riffs, quiet melodies, wild sax and intense synths can work together in perfect harmony to create something so divine yet chaotic. Yes, on lucky Number 13 we find:

REZN - Chaotic Divine

 

 

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Number 13

Number 13

From those two amazing bands, Zed and The Lunar Effect on Number 14 we jump 35 points to reach Number 13. It’s lucky Number 13 today and it’s Friday; (can anyone crush the cosmic numbers on that one?) and it features an album everyone loved since it came out and I personally had expected higher up on the list. Some otherworldly heavy psychedelic and progressive gold that will have you floating through the space between dimensions in no time! Or as hombre Pat ‘Riot’ Whitaker (Riff Relevant) already stated on the Doom Charts of September: “Nashville’s genre distorting, cosmic craftsmen to the power of 3 blast off on their first full-length journey. It’s a conceptually-themed construct capturing one of underground music’s most promising acts in all their psyche-punk / stoner metal glory… with Sci-Fi ever their muse, they have set the bar high outside the box and way above the stratosphere. One may stamp Album Of The Year Contender on this opus… One small step for Blues Funeral Recordings, one Howling Giant leap for greatness!” And we could not agree more, Number 13!

Howling Giant - The Space Between Worlds

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Number 13

Number 13

All Them Witches and their ATW album soared high on the psychedelic blues current on Number 14. And now we move on with a mere 4 points to unlucky Number 13. Where we find an album that was massively voted for by the first lists that came in and stayed among the top albums until suddenly the votes faltered. But come hell or high water this album will mesmerize and will force you into submission. There’s so much Jazz here that the entire record becomes one fluent groove of doom, drone and stoner. It’s dark, its’s dusty and it’s deliriously sultry. In a big part thanks to the vocals that sway and weave across the tracks. So take a little walk to the edge of town and go across those tracks. Where the viaduct looms, like a bird of doom... (sorry)... There is so much determination and audacity that you soon become engulfed by this pure feast to your ears… On unlucky Number 13 we find…

Messa - Feast For Water

Number 13

Number 13

We jump another ten points from The Obsessed on Number 14 to get to the dangerous Number 13. Which features a space rock adventure extraordinair! Madman Tony Maim already wrote about them earlier this year. “They launch their rocket from Poland and bravely explore the outer limits of known space and beyond with fuzz boxes on full power. Jamming riffs collide with psych rock and explode with stoner/doom songs that get the head nodding while taking you on trip into your mind.” And ofcourse, these crazies also found their way unto the Doom Charts. Back in February they made it to the Number One spot. And Steve Howe from the awesome Outlaws Of The Sun said it right there: “It is a magnificent album. What more can be said, apart from, you need this album.” And that's it, so travel back to the beginning of this year and buy this album when it comes out. You already know what will happen later on! (They release another damn fine five-track called Mountains & Reminiscence the same year!)

Spaceslug – Time Travel Dilemma

Number 13

Number 13

Will Number 14 which featured Truckfighters and Elephant Tree be the last position with two bands? Or can we count on more albums getting the exact amount of votes? Well, on Number 13 we find just one. And one alone. Well, ofcourse the man did receive some help from some weird punky friends. But, the man has been reaching the Stoner HiVe Top 20 Countdown with each album he has released in the years the Countdown has been running. So, since 2009 that is. Reaching Number 7 in 2010 and Number 3 in 2014. O’ and let’s not forget about the band he was a part of back in 2013, which reached all the way to Number 1 thanks to 61 of you voters out there. He was ofcourse also part of the band that started everything and is without a doubt the one master and guru of the laidback desert scene. The new record just proves it all over again. It contains universal truths and sundried tones, raw and edgy on some moments, funky and soulful on others and always warm, windswept and dusty. And above all much more bluesy and with an intense groove. The Tao cannot be articulated with mere words. But the man has found the right amount of music to do it with…

Brant Bjork – Tao Of The Devil

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Number 13

Number 13

“Mr. Cohn was a champion of the bakery. His cakes, cookies and pastries were only rivalled by his own hearty tartes. Those were the real treats. Do not think that I am very much impressed by that fact, but it meant a lot to him and to the people cueing up for his sweetness. I was just the drunk lying in front of his store.” ~ James Maynard Keenan

As we pass Rotor on Number 14, we jump five points and find yet again two outfits occupying the same spot. Both of which ofcourse made the Doom Charts and one of these two bands made it all the way to the third position on the Stoner HiVe top 20 countdown of 2013. The Spanish five-piece, “captivates you entirely with heavy psychedelic jams, pure desert stonerrock, doom and sometimes even with a folk or pop vibe. Six epic songs to take you on a journey through time and space and with an acoustic guitar outro to bring you back to earth.” As the good Doktor420 said back in May. The Richmond, Virginian quintet once again mesmerize with that languid and husky voice that floats atop the sluggish doom riffs. They’ve turned their doom syrup into something even more swampy and wooly. Offset against the more concise songs and less lengthy compositions, it turns the entire record into a highly psychedelic wall of repetition. Less oppressive and less deceitful than the 2013 album, this flower truly opens up for the listener… The two albums on NUMBER 13 are!!!

Windhand – Grief’s Infernal Flower &

Arenna – Given to Emptiness

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Given to Emptiness

Number 13

Number 13

“Aichinger is a wine producer in Upper Austria and is slowly branching out. This wheat malt was matured for 13 years in Barrique casks. Giving it a lovely purple tint.  This exotic combination results in an extraordinary Whisky from Hilkering in Austria.”

Eight points above Monolord the well deserved Number 14 we find one of the godfathers. One of the true legends of this music we all love so dearly. It is an album that tries to bring out this voice of the desert in all its glory but does not forget to also make room for true heaviness, grand riffs and sandy grooves. Simply put, the album is brilliant and hits you like a desert thunderstorm. One of those moments where the horizon suddenly turns black and the ground shakes violently due to the sonic boom far away. And it ends with a beautiful song started, back then in 1998, or perhaps even earlier, and sounds like the clear sky after the storm passes and the rain on the ground starts to vaporize…

John Garcia – John Garcia

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Number 13

Number 13

“Stone 13th Anniversary Ale pours brilliant deep red with a light tan foam. Up front, the aroma is all piney, resinous and citrus hops. Upon tasting, the hops are still on the front, and they are balanced with the malty, toffee like flavors contributed from the blend of crystal and amber malts used in the brewhouse. The finish is deliciously bitter, with a touch of warmth provided by the 9.5% alcohol.”

Today we are able to pay homage to one of the bands that actually started the entire scene. And what amazing luck it is, that these guys really and truly made it to the Number 13 position with one point more than Ghost. With only one of the original members absent the guys delivered a damn fine album and toured the world with a great show. Better than all of us expected and definitely not as bad as everyone feared. The album mostly got flak due to the peak limiting and the compressed dynamic range. Well; the lyrics got a bit of heat too. But overall, the fans who were holding their heart with anticipation or fear were pleased or appeased and happy. The old boys had definitely delivered! Too bad ol’ Bill wasn’t there to live in this moment with them…

 

Black Sabbath – 13

 

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Number 13

Number 13

“There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilence’s. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.” Luke 21:11

We’ve already come to the unlucky Number 13 and have already climbed exactly twenty-six points from Major Kong residing at Number 20. And here we find yet another outfit that mastered the fuzzy rock ages ago. Their 2011 album was already an amazing piece of solid gold that for some weird reason did not make the list that year. Their 2009 album did and made it to Number 8. Their new one seems destined to grow and eventually best all of them; for it has been written in a dark and secret code. High driving energy and gigantic smoky riffs; throbbing rhythms and raw vocals; that all seem to end in loose and orgiastic jams. Or to quote the honorable FastNBulbous: “Someday there will be scientific evidence that certain notes and timbres reliably induce a peculiar balance state between bliss and fury, or a general state of earthy, metallic awesomeness. And it will be belatedly revealed that Wo Fat cracked that code a long time ago.” They definitely did!

Wo Fat – Black Code

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Number 13

“My love is a like a red red rose. And I am a little thorny. Je t’adore! Shut the window! I don’t care. Let’s just make mad passionate love on the sounds of number 13.”

Number 13

By sheer coincidence these guys got in contact with me after the Top 20 countdown had already started. They wanted to bring their new record to my attention. I told them I already knew them, their new record and you guys out there had been enjoying it as well. Stay tuned; I continued; you might be surprised to see yourself end up in the Top 20 somewhere. And they most righteously did. At number 13. These Greek freaks started out in 2005 and solidified in 2006. And immediately released a record. Another EP and two singles followed. Their first full-sized album was released this year and gives you an hour of heavy hitting stoner, fuzzy psychedelics and a steady doom march. It sticks close to the stoner blueprint and entices with killer riffs and tasty melodies… I feel like going on a vacation to Greece once again and this time we won’t fly but take some kind of Super Van…

1000Mods – Super Van Vacation

Number 13

Number 13

The unlucky number sees a bit of a surprise return to the psychedelic sixties once again. This time around we delve into the history that Jefferson Airplane and the likes have left behind. Producer Dave Sardy known from his work with Barkmarket, Band of Horses, Black Mountain, Oasis and Wolfmother took on the job of giving these a bit more air in their production; but still leave a small wall of sound in place. A picket fence of sound you might say. Behind this picket fence we find that sixties sound filled with psychedelic exploration in many directions; not just the Airplane side of things which they adventured through their first two records. No, on this third one we can also hear some Kinks and Cream and this is a welcome relief. Perfect for these dark times and the number 13; cause the music is black, obscure and ominous…

The Black Angels - Phosphene Dream

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Numero 13

Numero 13

Two years ago these guys came up with a spectacular album and named it after the color of blood. To follow up this hugely successful album they made an even better one and called it after the color of water. Savannah rockers sporting heavy riffs, atmospheric guitars and dueling slingers! The songs are so strong, diverse and with the ethereal voices switching between aggression and communion; there is never a dull moment. Sludge metal with a progressive and symphonic twist. True passioned music for the true freaks!

Baroness – Blue Album

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