Rise of The Wood’s debut album – 2017’s ‘First Seed’ – shared some impressively fuzzy sounding riffs, capturing an overall sound that mixed stoner rock with a few good old rock ‘n’ roll thrills, but despite a huge amount of chutzpah, never really felt like essential listening. It was a record with some great ingredients and a great energy, but compared to similar fare from other bands, it lacked a little something in the songwriting department, and was sometimes blighted by a shouty vocal that didn’t always suit the music in hand. Taken on its own merits, though, it wasn’t without charm: ‘Hyperspeed’ played like a superb tribute to peak Corrosion of Conformity; ‘Faded Horizon’ captured the darkness of Alice In Chains tunes like ‘Nutshell’ very well, and ‘Hell Yeah’ fused stoner metal elements with a groove laden approach that showed how easily the band could handle a great riff. It was a flawed record, yes, but not without entertainment value.
Six years on, their ‘Sleep’ EP shows a marked improvement. Its three tracks maintain that natural gift for riffs, but the music is now augmented by a vastly superior vocal. Making his Rise of The Wood debut on this release, frontman Leo Gstrein is much less of a shouter, and his typical approach has a natural twang that’s suited to the stoner-ish elements the band still favours. On the title cut, he almost immediately introduces a bigger, much cleaner, tone that suggests more of a classic rock feel. The more accessible vocal hasn’t had an impact on the music as a whole, though, and this track wields a huge sound. The verse, pushing Gstrein into the spotlight, strikes a great balance between a rocky sound and huge wails in a way that almost immediately suggests the “new” Rise of The Wood means business. The mix of hard rock and slightly grungy overtones here is well balanced, showing a strong gift for arranging which really comes into its own on the chorus. Although the main hook itself is a simple one, Leo’s talent is big enough to sell it, whilst guitarists Jeff Teunisse and Ronald Boonstra slide into a heavier style to suit. Overall, this re-introduction to Rise of The Wood sounds like a throwback to the late 90s, but with some great playing, fans of the style are likely to find themselves very much on board. The fact that this is actually the EP’s weakest cut is also impressive in itself.
Slowing down to introduce an even bigger metallic chug, ‘About The Rain’ arrives with a huge intent, and then, with the arrival of a bottom end bass rattle courtesy of Alex Wijnhorst, it somehow sounds even bigger. The band works their way through a dark and slightly grungy arrangement with a huge confidence, and with a warbly, slightly stretched vocal applied to another simple chorus, it’s obvious they’re reaching for an Alice In Chains vibe. That said, the overall effect – especially with a couple more metallic guitar parts coming through – sounds more in keeping with Dokken circa ‘Shadowlife’ and the much-maligned Kiss album ‘Carnival of Souls’. In fact, there are strong notes of that album’s own ‘Rain’, but Rise of The Wood pepper the mood with more of a melodic streak, especially with Leo in good voice throughout, and one of the guitars countering the grungy aspects with a much brighter tone. As the track progresses, the vocal curls itself around the ominous mood even further, and a hefty sounding middle eight makes good on the opening chug. A few pointed notes are in place as a pseudo guitar solo, and eventually speeding up, a stoner influenced riff provides a solid bass for a dark sounding dual guitar part. There are no flashy solos, and no self-indulgent flourishes between the heavy grooves, and this track is all the better for it.
Even stronger, ‘Eyes Wide Shut’ powers forth with a speed driven riff that takes the guts of stoner rock and gives them a massive shake. A deep toned wall of guitars dominates throughout, as the band tackles something that falls between Black Label Society and a John Garcia project peppered with a pinch of SOiL. When those riffs attack at full pelt, it’s Gstrein who appears at the forefront as usual, chewing through his chosen lyrics with a natural force, but in keeping with the other tracks, Jeff and Ronald play up a storm, and their concession to a faster style doesn’t ever weaken their heavy attack. If anyone deserves maximum credit here, though, it’s drummer Eric Stolze, who opens the number with some very heavy toms against a chopping rhythm guitar, but never lets up throughout a very hefty four minute workout, striking his snare with a huge amount of heft, but also dropping in occasional double bass pedals to lend more of a mechanical rhythm that works brilliantly against a strong vocal. This is classic metal with a slight 90s alternative flair, and between some tight playing, a gang vocal to boost a decent hook and a middle eight flaunting the kind of groove that John Bush era Anthrax would love, it’s easily this EP’s best track.
With a strong mix of tough sounding stoner, post-grunge retro cool and a pinch of classic rock, Rise of The Wood sound absolute huge on ‘Sleep’. Although they’re still ploughing a musical furrow that values familiarity over obvious originality, they now sound ten times better than their former selves, and much more like a band who’ll pummel European audiences into submission on the live circuit. In terms of stoner infused, classic hard rock dressed in some oversized boots, this is good – very good indeed.
May 2024