Angry Metal Guy<p><strong><a href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/blue-heron-everything-fades-review/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Blue Heron – Everything Fades Review</a></strong></p><p><i>By Carcharodon</i></p><p>Albuquerque, New Mexico’s <strong>Blue Heron</strong> dropped their debut record, <a href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/blue-heron-ephemeral-review/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"><em>Ephemeral</em></a>, in 2022. I remember briefly listening to it at the time, but it didn’t leave much of an impression. Dipping in again now, I think that was very much a Me Problem because <em>Ephemeral </em>was a solid slab of desert stoner rock, tinged with both blues and grunge. And I slept on it. Stoner is a genre mired in mediocrity but, for me, when a band hits its stride, it’s so goddamned satisfying. Bands like <strong>Kyuss</strong>, whom we’ll be hearing more about below,<a href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/blue-heron-everything-fades-review/#fn-203680-1" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">1</a> had this ability to just carry me away, born on the languid desert winds. Now back with their sophomore record, <em>Everything Fades</em>, whatever sort of journey <strong>Blue Heron</strong> wants to take me on, it’s one I’m determined not to sleep on!</p><p>On <em>Everything Fades</em>, <strong>Blue Heron</strong> picks up where they left off. And why not? They set themselves a great base to build on and have done so in every respect. Most of the material falls slap bang in the middle of a sand-swept bridge, leading between the lands of <strong>Kyuss</strong> and <strong>Sleep</strong>. Huge, distended guitars from Mike Chavez (ex-<strong>Spiritu</strong>) rumble and flow across a world drowning in reverb and languid melodies, while Steve Schmidlapp’s bass thrums its way through the open dunes. There’s also more than a bit of early <strong>Clutch</strong> (opener, “Null Geodesic”) and <strong>Orange Goblin</strong> (closer, “Flight of the Heron”) infusing the smoky sound on show. Not satisfied with the desert, however, <strong>Blue Heron</strong> skilfully weaves in <em>Dirt</em>-era <strong>Alice in Chains</strong> (particularly on “Swansong”), adding extra depth to their songwriting. The star of the show, however, is singer Jadd Schickler (also ex-<strong>Spiritu</strong>), who shows himself to be hugely versatile. His vocals range from a beautifully rich, bourbon-drenched husk that evokes <strong>Sleep</strong>’s Al Cisneros and early-career Neil Fallon, to a delicate bluesy style, which was uncannily familiar.<a href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/blue-heron-everything-fades-review/#fn-203680-2" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">2</a></p><p></p><p><i>Everything Fades</i> truly kicks off the moment that Schickler’s gritty voice is first unleashed. After that, <strong>Blue Heron</strong> never looks back. The <strong>Kyuss</strong> worship is both clear and very well done (“Dinosaur” and “Trepidation”) but there’s a lot more going on than that. Both <em>Jam Room</em>-era <strong>Clutch</strong> and the rougher edge of early <strong>Down</strong>, or even <strong>Neurosis</strong>, shine through in places. It’s the title track that showcases <strong>Blue Heron</strong>’s absolute best, as the song glides effortlessly from <strong>Kyuss</strong>’ desert blues, Ricardo Sanchez’s drums awakening slowly from a sun-drenched daydream, to kick off into big, <strong>Orange Goblin</strong> stoner territory. At the three-minute mark, Schickler drops down from his coarse bellow, which perfectly tweeters on the verge of cracking, to a delicate croon, which reminded me most of <strong>Mark</strong> <strong>Lanegan</strong>.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Coming in at a tight 38 minutes, there is very little fat on <em>Everything Fades</em>, which is a welcome surprise for a stoner record.<a href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/blue-heron-everything-fades-review/#fn-203680-3" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">3</a> Indeed, <strong>Blue Heron</strong> show themselves to be very talented songwriters, with nearly everything they try coming off, feeling fluid, organic, and crucially, effortless. It has to be said that “Clearmountain” feels a bit light on ideas and notably weaker than the rest of the songs, with Schickler’s normally stellar voice also feeling like it’s straining. However, the lyrics for that track properly got me for some reason, as Schickler husks “Don’t stand upon my grave and weep, I am not there; I do not sleep, I am the thousand winds that blow.”<a href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/blue-heron-everything-fades-review/#fn-203680-4" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">4</a> That slight misstep apart, the thing that really holds back <em>Everything Fades</em> is the production. At a shocking DR2, it often sounds shallow and crushed, with the drums eating up the space that should be available for the guitars (see “Bellwether” and “Flight of the Heron,” in particular). This is a real shame as Sanchez’s work behind the kit is solid and I love Chavez’s guitar tone, which sounds mellow and organic.</p><p>With <em>Everything Fades</em>, <strong>Blue Heron</strong> has improved on <em>Ephemeral</em>, showing themselves to be skilled songwriters. The songs flow and the album is at that perfect length where each time the last notes of “Fight of the Heron” fade out you’re left wanting just a little bit more. Undoubtedly a very good record, if <em>Everything Fades</em> had better production, it could easily have been a great one.</p> <p><strong>Rating:</strong> 3.5/5.0<br><strong>DR:</strong> 2 | <strong>Format Reviewed:</strong> V0 VBR mp3<br><strong>Label:</strong> <a href="https://www.bluesfuneral.com/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Blues Funeral Recordings</a><br><strong>Websites:</strong> <a href="http://blueheronabq.bandcamp.com" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">blueheronabq.bandcamp.com</a> | <a href="http://facebook.com/blueheronabq" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">facebook.com/blueheronabq</a><br><strong>Releases Worldwide:</strong> September 27th, 2024</p><p><a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/2024/" target="_blank">#2024</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/35/" target="_blank">#35</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/alice-in-chains/" target="_blank">#AliceInChains</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/american-metal/" target="_blank">#AmericanMetal</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/blue-heron/" target="_blank">#BlueHeron</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/blues/" target="_blank">#Blues</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/blues-funeral-recordings/" target="_blank">#BluesFuneralRecordings</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/clutch/" target="_blank">#Clutch</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/down/" target="_blank">#Down</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/everything-fades/" target="_blank">#EverythingFades</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/grunge/" target="_blank">#Grunge</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/kyuss/" target="_blank">#Kyuss</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/mark-lanegan/" target="_blank">#MarkLanegan</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/neurosis/" target="_blank">#Neurosis</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/orange-goblin/" target="_blank">#OrangeGoblin</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/review/" target="_blank">#Review</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/reviews/" target="_blank">#Reviews</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/sep24/" target="_blank">#Sep24</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/sleep/" target="_blank">#Sleep</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/stoner-metal/" target="_blank">#StonerMetal</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/stoner-rock/" target="_blank">#StonerRock</a></p>
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#BluesFuneralRecordings
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Angry Metal Guy<p><strong><a href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/delving-all-paths-diverge-review/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Delving – All Paths Diverge Review</a></strong></p><p><i>By El Cuervo</i></p><p>I admire artists who change. Considering the trend away from doom metal and towards psychedelic rock across the <strong>Elder</strong> discography, it should come as no surprise that the new project by frontman Nick DiSalvo focuses entirely on the latter. Diving into layers of synthesizers and guitar haze, <em>All Paths Diverge</em> blazes a new trail into psychedelic music that was only hinted at by <strong>Elder</strong> previously. Though the remainder of this review will describe their music, the <strong>Delving</strong> artwork is perfect; it fuses a warm embrace with something fantastic and foreign. Does the album match?</p><p>The opening three tracks on <em>All Paths Diverge</em> are stylistically similar and indicate the record’s core sound. They fuse twinkling synths, keyboard melodies, and fuzzy stoner riffs into songs that like to gradually layer and de-layer. It’s solely instrumental but you won’t notice the absence of vocals; the guitars, drums, and synths are plenty expressive. The flowing song-writing moves at an ambling, lilting pace, operating in a space that feels more psychedelic than it does progressive. And while I’m sure the guitars would have more heft in a live setting, as recorded nothing here has the imposing feel of true ‘heaviness.’ The majority is warm, pleasant and unthreatening. The evocative atmosphere transports me to an unhurried, beautiful walk through some sunny hills close to the Mediterranean.</p><p>Despite my overall positivity towards the core sound of <em>All Paths Diverge</em>, I prefer the songs featuring more dramatic change. Over the second half of “Zodiak” and the first half of “The Ascetic,” the album slows to almost ten minutes of crawl, featuring lots of synths and ambience. Fortunately, this is encircled by meatier riffs across the first half of the former and a frantic finale to the latter, melding keyboard and guitar solos into one of the heaviest passages throughout. Likewise, “New Meridian” is another highlight because of its dynamism. Pulsing synths and gentle beats ebb and flow for minutes before a dramatic transition into a fast, technical guitar lead. I’m an advocate for dynamic songwriting that pairs light with heavy, so I’m most engaged when <strong>Delving</strong> sprawl and develop. However, these stronger songs also emphasize that the opening tracks are rapidly consistent and predictable by comparison.</p><p></p><p>It’s clear that DiSalvo is a sophisticated songwriter. The compositions here transition smoothly and subtly, waxing and waning through the many instrumental layers and tempos. It’s just as well because <em>All Paths Diverge</em> runs for over an hour, averaging nine minutes per track. So these long songs demand smooth edges to mitigate the more abrasive track lengths. It’s a lot of music to consume. The generally relaxed approach and lengthy songs consequently results in much of the music slipping into the background. The big, airy synths and whining guitars contribute to this effect, whiffing more than a little of <strong>Steve Rothery</strong>’s solo work<a href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/delving-all-paths-diverge-review/#fn-202054-1" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">1</a>. But where <strong>Rothery</strong> consistently fuses his gorgeous, spacious synths with dramatic solos and intricate guitars, and therefore commands my attention, <strong>Delving</strong> doesn’t always do so. Besides those moments of dynamism described above, <em>All Paths Diverge</em> is a gentle nudge compared with an emotive punch.</p><p>I’ve concluded my time with <em>All Paths Diverge</em> having appreciated its presence in the background as agreeable mood music. But its lack of real potency, both of a musical and emotional variety, devalues the <strong>Delving</strong> experience. Is background music what an artist truly tries to achieve when creating their music? Something to occupy your passive thoughts while active thoughts are focused elsewhere? I suspect not. But those who enjoy wallowing in psychedelia will undoubtedly find something to enjoy here.</p><p></p> <p><strong>Rating</strong>: 3.0/5.0<br><strong>DR</strong>: 8 | <strong>Format Reviewed</strong>: 320 kbps mp3<br><strong>Label</strong>: <a href="https://www.bluesfuneral.com/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Blues Funeral Recordings</a> (US) | <a href="https://www.stickman-records.com/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Stickman Records</a> (EU)<br><strong>Website</strong>: <a href="https://delving-music.bandcamp.com/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">delving.bandcamp.com</a><br><strong>Releases Worldwide</strong>: August 23rd, 2024</p><p><a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/2024/" target="_blank">#2024</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/30/" target="_blank">#30</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/all-paths-diverge/" target="_blank">#AllPathsDiverge</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/american-metal/" target="_blank">#AmericanMetal</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/aug24/" target="_blank">#Aug24</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/blues-funeral-recordings/" target="_blank">#BluesFuneralRecordings</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/delving/" target="_blank">#Delving</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/elder/" target="_blank">#Elder</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/psychedelic-rock/" target="_blank">#PsychedelicRock</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/review/" target="_blank">#Review</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/reviews/" target="_blank">#Reviews</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/steve-rothery/" target="_blank">#SteveRothery</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/stickman-records/" target="_blank">#StickmanRecords</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://www.angrymetalguy.com/tag/stoner-rock/" target="_blank">#StonerRock</a></p>
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