Wolves of Winter are about to unveil their debut self-titled album on Jan. 9, 2016 and if you were lucky enough to get a listen of their demo released back in 2013 you'd be as excited as I am upon getting word of the new material. WoW waste no time in hooking their claws deep right away with a string of songs laced with razor sharp riffs and oscillating groove rumbling with thick grungy fuzz, living up to their acronym of WOW!
A post-progressive
grunge metal of sorts veers in and out of desert rockish haze into raging slags
of metallic fury like a stoner kid flailing in a thrash metal pit. Deep, beefy
rhythm throbs with an unrelenting bassline and crushingly crisp production. The
do-it-yourselfer, singer, guitarist and producer Josh McGee, demonstrates apt
skill and ample dedication to his craft having written the songs, produced and
mixed the album himself with the help of some friends and bandmates. Band
members Mike Horn (Drums) and David Weaver (Bass) add just the right volume to the
blazing 10 song set.
Soaring melody lurks consistently with a brutally playful touch of the wah peddle to enrich the mildly chaotic, yet astral atmosphere. Vocals lament with a suave flair while keeping pace with the predatory groove like a howling wolf on a winter night’s prowl.
A heavy ode
to the late 90's alternative metal scene is present and it encapsulates today's
modern stoner swagger with captivating riffs and wildly progressive groove. I
hear a lot of similarities to the Canadian heavy rockers, ‘We Hunt Buffalo’ whose‘Blood From a Stone-EP’ splashed ripples here
earlier this year with raving words by MeteorJadd speaking
of a casual nostalgia presence and referencing obscure references to other
bands when describing the obscure band he is writing about. So with that in
mind, We Hunt Buffalo comes to mind when listening to Wolves
of Winter. Oddly enough wolves hunt buffalo in the winter on occasion
and the two bands sound like they co-exist within the same musical habitat
amongst a familiarly hypothetical forest of guitars and amplifiers. The music is brimming with immaculately heavy licks and mastered with an infectiously precise groove.
The temperatures are dropping, snow is on the horizon and the Wolves
of Winter are on the attack. Prepare for an onslaught of heavy chords,
blazing distortion and virulent rhythm as our ears are about to be annihilated
with pleasure. Hear the opening song below, Astrothoughts.
Feel free to leave your astrothoughts in the comments section below.
-The Huntsman
