I'm finally catching up on my reviews after the holidays, but I was listening to a lot of music and one album that got a lot of spins in The Swamp in December was the self-titled debut album from Chicago's FARSEER. This album sounds way beyond the typical debut effort and it delivers 47 minutes of a mostly instrument mix of progressive psych and sludge metal with two different singing styles added onto a few of the songs. I really dig this album. Take a listen:

I picked "Mouse Utopia" as one of Fuzzy's Fresh Picks on last month's show on Par9noid's Metal Underground so I guess that's my favorite song from the album. It's got a nonstop pounding rhythmn combined with guitars floating over the top, and vocals that kick in at just the right time. But it was not easy to pick a favorite from this album because it mitaintains a nearly perfect blend of progressive psych and sludge for the full 47 minutes.

The vocals do not dominate this album. Half the songs are instrumental, and when the vocals kick in they blend so seamlessly with the music it's like they are another instrument. That being said, I really dig the two styles of vocals. "Mouse Utopia" is full-bore gritty then when it gets to "Sleep in the Sound" we have a mix of those along with more angelic vocals.


Farseer is:

• Brendan McCarthy: Guitar + Vocals
• Ted Ballantine: Guitar
• George Burrows: Bass
• Kyle Curtis: Drums

From the band:

Blending post-metal and Floydian psychedelics with crushing riffs and consuming atmosphere, Farseer is a dynamic 4-piece progressive metal project from Chicago.

Led Zeppelin, Modest Mouse, Baroness, Torche, Deafheaven, Explosions in the Sky, Mogwai, Pink Floyd, Mastodon, Pelican, Russian Circles

Upcoming shows:

• January 10 at Penny Road Pub in Barringon, IL with The Darkhorse Collective show info 

Farseer on Bandcamp

Farseer on Facebook

Farseer on Instagram

Join Fuzzy's CD of the Month

Fuzzy Cracklins Presents 
heavy underground music from The Swamp featuring

ADVENT VARIC blackened stoner metal
DEAD PANDA stoner punk
OPIUM WARLOCK psychedelic doom legion
THE LANCASTERS psych rock
DOS BRUJOS metal jams
CROW BALLARD folk psych
KAVOD meditative doom
TRIPPING HAZE CEREMONY stoner doom
WIZENED TREE stoner rock

DESERTS OF MARS new heavy rock EP "Return from the Void"

20 minutes of badass heavy rock is waiting for you on the new EP from DESERTS OF MARS. It's been a few years since their last album, and by the sound of it the band has been saving up the hard fuzzy riffs until they were ready to be unleashed. This set of tracks doesn't slow down at any point, and the vocals soar over the fuzz to deliver one of the best hard rocks albums I've heard this year. Check out "Return from the Void" from Deserts of Mars:

Deserts of Mars is from Austin and its members are:

• Tony Salvaggio – Founding/lead member of DoM whose growling bass has been known to shake the stars and is the perfect complement to his melodic vocals.
• Morgan Faber - A drum powerhouse from another galaxy, laying waste to foes with thunderous fury.
• Bradley Barnes - Heavy Axe-Slinger extraordinaire, his guitar is known to soothe the stars or shatter planets, whatever the Mars Metal deems necessary.

From the band:

Austin, TX based Deserts of Mars was formed in 2006 with a heavy fuzzed out bass sound and the idea that the Riff Rules ALL!!!

Deserts of Mars web site

Deserts of Mars on Bandcamp

Deserts of Mars on Facebook

Deserts of Mars on Instagram

Join Fuzzy's CD of the Month

Fuzzy Cracklins Presents 
heavy underground music from The Swamp featuring

ADVENT VARIC blackened stoner metal
DEAD PANDA stoner punk
OPIUM WARLOCK psychedelic doom legion
THE LANCASTERS psych rock
DOS BRUJOS metal jams
CROW BALLARD folk psych
KAVOD meditative doom
TRIPPING HAZE CEREMONY stoner doom
WIZENED TREE stoner rock

STRIDER

GODBUD

Them Doomed Roads on Bandcamp

GodBud on Facebook

Strider on Facebook

GodBud on Instagram

Strider on Instagram

Join Fuzzy's CD of the Month

Fuzzy Cracklins Presents 
heavy underground music from The Swamp featuring

ADVENT VARIC blackened stoner metal
DEAD PANDA stoner punk
OPIUM WARLOCK psychedelic doom legion
THE LANCASTERS psych rock
DOS BRUJOS metal jams
CROW BALLARD folk psych
KAVOD meditative doom
TRIPPING HAZE CEREMONY stoner doom
WIZENED TREE stoner rock

GENIUS OF SUGARCANE demo EP "Preludes From New Times"

The reason to make a demo is to introduce your fans to your music, and GENIUS OF SUGARCANE has done exactly that with a 3-track demo "Preludes From New Times" that covers a lot of sonic territory. The music ranges from stoner to doom to psych, the vocals are in English, Portuguese, and an instrumental track. Even the themes range from Cthulu, spirituality, and nuclear war. This is one of the best demo albums I've heard in a long time. Check out "Preludes From New Times" from Genius of Sugarcane:

Do you dig heavy music from Brazil? Be sure to stream or download Fuzzy's free compilation on Bandcamp BRAZIL IN FUZZ with almost 4 hours of killer music.


Genius of Sugarcane is:

• Estevão Neri Massucatti - Guitarra/Vocal
• Luis Alfredo Santos - Guitarra
• Bruno Rodrigues - Baixo
• Rodrigo Gaspar Rodrigues - Bateria

From the band:

The songs on this EP cover a variety of subjects, such as literature in the song "Cthullu is Coming" influenced directly by the writer H.P. Lovecraft, spirituality in the" Mantra "track and the current themes in" Atomic Curse "that has as its theme nuclear wars. In February 2018 in Nova Venécia, ES countryside -Brazil, started as a simple joke between friends, playing covers of classic rock n roll and blues bands, and gradually evolved into something more serious. It was initially formed by Estevão on guitar, Luis on guitar and Rodrigo on drums, we were looking for a bassist to complete the lineup, was then a friend of the band started in the band, Bruno. Before it arrives, you can listen to some ready-made songs, influenced by 70s / 80s rock / metal / doom and psychedelia

Follow Genius of Sugarcane on Bandcamp to find out when they release their next set of songs:

Genius of Sugarcane on Bandcamp

Genius of Sugarcane on Facebook

Genius of Sugarcane on Instagram

Join Fuzzy's CD of the Month

Fuzzy Cracklins Presents 
heavy underground music from The Swamp featuring

ADVENT VARIC blackened stoner metal
DEAD PANDA stoner punk
OPIUM WARLOCK psychedelic doom legion
THE LANCASTERS psych rock
DOS BRUJOS metal jams
CROW BALLARD folk psych
KAVOD meditative doom
TRIPPING HAZE CEREMONY stoner doom
WIZENED TREE stoner rock

It's almost 2020 and I'm excited to share this playlist of AOTD from Heavy Metal Textbooks. Enjoy! And check out the interviews and reviews over there, too. 

Join Fuzzy's CD of the Month

Fuzzy Cracklins Presents 
heavy underground music from The Swamp featuring

ADVENT VARIC blackened stoner metal
DEAD PANDA stoner punk
OPIUM WARLOCK psychedelic doom legion
THE LANCASTERS psych rock
DOS BRUJOS metal jams
CROW BALLARD folk psych
KAVOD meditative doom
TRIPPING HAZE CEREMONY stoner doom
WIZENED TREE stoner rock