XII BOAR (Split Tongue, Cloven Hoof) MCD
If this is Stoner Rock, I think I have no clue what Stoner Rock is. That was the first thought I had when XII Boar start their Heavy Rock Party with some Thrash Metal of the fast and fine form. 'Smokin' Bones' is the opener to this 4 tracker, which the band offers for free on bandcamp. This is quite Metal with a lot of double bass thunder, speedy riffing and when finally some groovy chords as well as some kind of quietness sets in, there I can see the link to Stoner Rock. No, ladies and gentlemen, this sounds like Southern Metal to me. And that is no wonder. The band is a southern based band. There is not much that is more southern than the Hampshire in England.
The second track 'Hellspeed Viper' is pretty much the same as track one. We got the hellish speed of Thrash Metal at the first part of the song while the later one gets into a nice groovy, doomy mood featuring a laid back lo-fi blues guitar solo. The groove of 'Slam Hound' just gets interrupted by tiny trips to punky waters. This is a raw, bluesy piece of musical dirt. But it's the most surprising cut.
'Triclops' is by far more doom that the rest of the tracks. Stomping mid-tempo riffs collide with slower parts, guitar dropouts and a general dark vibe as well and just when you think that only the throaty barking vocals tie this to the first track for example, an abrasive riff rings out to show where the band comes from. I know bands that are less diverse in more tracks than this trio on their EP. You are up to a cool sonic ride, if you chose to listen to 'Split Tongue, Cloven Hoof'.
(Thorsten Frahling)