(c) Benny Valentine
A power duo that makes a lot of noise? What sounds like an old, told formula takes in the hands of Astrodeath a spectacular momentum of its own. The two Australians Tim Lancken (vocals, guitar) and Yoshi Hausler (drums) have only been on the road together since 2018, but have already shared the stage with Nick Oliveri, Lo! and revocation. On their second album, appropriately „Vol. II“ titled, everything is worlds louder and gruff.
The haunting “Red Weed” sums up the duo’s sympathetic madness. Tasty stoner sludge, sometimes enriched with hardcore, punk and a little psychedelic, slowly oozes out of the speakers. Thick walls of sound screw up the intensity more and more, revealing likeable riffs and disguised hooks at the same time. This idiosyncratic charm with steel edges knows how to entertain and finds a more than successful continuation in “Golden Death Machine”. Here, too, the events don’t roll over one another, but Astrodeath go to work much rougher. Pointed uptempo drumming alternates with sympathetic references to early Red Fang.
“The End” closes the album and serves up a fine cauldron of riffs that pushes the limit in the most pleasant way. Doomy interludes, razor-sharp muscle packs and precise excursions of an instrumental nature literally come and go. Especially the second cold start in the final act gets under your skin in the best sense of the word. Such poison also floats to the surface in Leviathan Rising. The verses dock more than ever to classic Stoner sounds, at the same time an ominous menace hovers over the events. Black Tusk send their regards at times, when Sludge suddenly – and very skilfully – starts to rock.
Unsurprisingly, Astrodeath end very courageously and open up musically at the same time. The difficult second album is “Vol. II” but not become, but one moves quite stylishly through feared shallows. The Australians find exciting approaches for familiar sound collages, screw up the riff factor enormously and create a lot of intensity in the limited line-up. Yes, the basic mix of stoner and sludge is very familiar, but that doesn’t bother you in the slightest for a second – a manifesto of noise with tasty melody approaches underlines the qualities of the duo again.
Rating: 8/10
Available from: 05/12/2023
Available through: Heavy Psych Sounds Records
Facebook: www.facebook.com/astrodeathband
Category: Magazin, Reviews