Alunah
Strange Machine – Heavy Psych Sounds
Drawing inspiration from the likes of Black Sabbath and their doom-laden sound Birmingham’s Alunah operate at the edgier end of stoner metal. They are (thankfully) more bad acid nightmare than hippy dream and opening salvo ‘Strange Machine’ gets right down to business with one of the heaviest riffs known to man. Yet for all their brute force Alunah are a band who have a wide palate and juxtapose lithe moments with crushing, heavier sections and the result is a musical tempest that ululates with the force of a planet’s gravitational pull. Producer Chris Fielding has done a great job, and this is an album best experienced through headphones and it’ll reward repeat spins as subtle nuances buried deep in the mix slowly reveal themselves. This album is a cohesive listen and it’s one that flows like a river of silk and evidences a band who know they’re onto a good thing. Alunah are a tight unit who focus their energies into a finely honed laser beam and there’s very little fluff on this record; just nine songs that’ll lodge themselves in your memory bank and won’t be leaving anytime soon.
Review by Peter Dennis