I'm going to make an admission right here. I'm not a steak guy. Never have been. When I say that, what I mean is that I will take a big, fat juicy burger over a steak any time. All the same, I also haven't been much of a stoner rock guy over the last umpteen years either. Sure, I can't deny the love I had for the big daddies like KYUSS & FU MANCHU, and there's been some other notable purveyors of the style and yet...tired, bassy riffs that Iommi would've jettisoned got pretty old pretty quick. So, hearing that there was a stoner rock band called STEAK a few years awhile back didn't exactly land them topside on my radar.
So, some time ago I was scrolling along and happened to see a blurb about a new album by STEAK. I was about to continue on my merry way when I noticed a couple things. It was on the Ripple label and there was also an associated film/comic book release. Hmm...that sounded at least remotely interesting, 'specially the Ripple part. I know those guys from way back & know they don't put out humdrum shit. So I clicked on the link and...well, I'll be damned, time to call Todd.
Right from the outset of the first track, "Wolves," it was clear to me this was gonna be different. The background vocals in the first verse alone have a depth I've rarely heard in this kind of music. And, in truth, what "kind of music" is it? To call this "stoner rock" is a gross understatement. The thundering thud and above all, the web of outright gorgeous melody here is way beyond any kind of norm.
And STEAK only continue to impress. "Dead Meat" ain't dead, honcho, it's shorter on length but major on groove with Reece laying down the kinda guitar riff I'd be expecting from Dave Angstrom of SUPAFUZZ legion.
Along then comes one of the coolest Sabra-Bill percussion pairings I've heard in a long time by sticks man Sammy. "Ancestors" supplies the light and shade of both "Planet Caravan" congas & jazzy "Hand Of Doom" rimshots (No, this isn't sexual, I'm just alluding to Mr Ward's drum work, smart asses!).
The first half of "Acute Mania" draws to a close with one of my favorite songs of the year so far, "Last Days."Cam's truck-like thundering bass & the overall unconscionable groove birthed by he and Sammy are massive. Imagine something between the early DOORS, Bonham & Jones and if "Rattle & Hum" were actually heavy. Kip (vocals) & Reece paint over top this like Michelangelo on acid.
"Frequencies" displays one of the reasons STEAK cooks like very few of their genre brethren. Patience. The ethereal intro allows the tension to build right into one of the heaviest riffs you'll hear in 2022. It's just like a hobby of mine, 10-pin bowling. You've gotta "wait for the shot" as you come through it. Don't hit too quick in your release and you'll destroy the pins at the other end. (Ok, no more bowling analogies!!!)
The next tune is "System" and, in a weird way, it reminds me of another band I love. The way Kip stutter-croons "Sy-system, sy-system," it actually makes me think of Ian Astbury calling "Si-sister, si-sister."A stoner-techie version of THE CULT on ludes?!?!
Alright, I'm not trying to get sex-shul again here, but the next track is called "Papas Special Custard" & I'm not trying to guess where that title came from.
Finally this album comes to the finish line with "Mono."Opening with a dark, haunting intro replete with choral chanting it then spirals upward into a crushing culmination, wailing background vox by Chantal Brown lending the feel of "The Great Gig In The Sky."
You know, it's one thing when an album you're expecting to be good delivers on that promise or even goes it one better. But when a band you've never paid any attention to comes busting through the speakers to present you with one of the best records of the year, that's gravy right there. Hmm...gravy...I think the next time out, I might just shelve that burger and order me a big, gigantic STEAK.
STEAK:
Kip - vocals
Reece - guitar
Cam - bass
Sammy - drums
