Some projects take a while to get off the ground and become a concrete reality, but Ontario’s Pale Horse Ritual (formerly The Pale Horses) took the idea of not rushing anything to extremes. The earliest line up of band the dated back to the late 90s when they were an on/off project for the musicians involved, but it wasn’t until 2024 that a stable line up was formed and the band finally entered the recording studio. They might have taken an age to reach the world’s ears, but the ‘Enchantress’ EP (released via Black Throne Productions (home of Sons of Arrakis and AAWKS) is a real treat.
Tag Archives: metal
STONE DISCIPLE – Stoner Thrash EP
‘Stoner Thrash’ by Stone Disciple is one of those releases that, to use an old phrase, does exactly what it says on the tin. The guitar tones used throughout are pure stoner; the speed of the material, less so. Attacking like a harder edged Fu Manchu colliding with a riffy, speed loving Sabbath clone, this EP’s songs cover all the important stoner bases, and yet convey an energy that feels pleasingly fresh at the time of release.
Listen: Skye share new track ‘What Am I’
A five piece band from the north west of England, Skye take in a wealth of hard rock, prog metal and alternative influences to create a massive hybrid sound.
On ‘What Am I’, the quiet, almost disquieting vocals and busy basslines owe a debt to the mighty Tool; a massive, relatively commercial chorus pulls influence from bands like Alter Bridge and Shinedown, and a really punchy drum sound adds something even harder. These things combined lead to a massive and genuinely impressive slide of contemporary metal that’s guaranteed to build upon the current Skye following.
VOLT RITUAL – Swamp Lake City EP
From the moment their self-titled release arrived on Bandcamp in 2022, Polish doom/stoner/space rock band Volt Ritual proved to be an act headed for greatness. Whether channelling Black Sabbath on that debut, or putting elements of Hawkwind and Neu! through a much heavier filter on their ‘Return To Jupiter’ follow up, the musicians never sounded anything less than a hundred percent committed to delivering the riffs.
SYPHA – Borderland EP
The release of their ‘Sober’ single in 2022 heralded Sypha’s arrival on the metal scene as something worth celebrating. That track shared a heavy riff which blended a classic metal sound with a more modern edge, working something that sounded like Shinedown crossed with the swagger of an on form Halestorm. In Alicia Pilling, the band also possessed a hugely melodic talent, and the blend of sounds led to a near perfect slice of chunky yet accessible metal. Subsequent singles proved that this was no fluke: with each successive track, the band flaunted a great sound, and the vocals continued to suggest Pilling would be an asset to the UK’s rock scene.