SPACE LIZARD (Month Of The Rabbit) MCD-R
SPACE LIZARD (formerly known as Devil's Harvest with roots that reach back to the 1990's) from Finland are back with their second demo that contains three massive cuts. In doing this, they are presenting themselves as dedicated, metal infested doomhounds with lots of rock 'n' roll in the blood. SPACE LIZARD are traditionalists and they make no secret about that. Already the mid-paced opener 'Plutonium Sunrise' sounds like a mixture of early Orange Goblin, Mourn and The Ethereal Mirror-period Cathedral. There is plenty of groove while the rough vocals supply a constant amount of dirt.
'Never Free' takes a different direction and will surely appeal to those who like their doom metal with more drama. Here, SPACE LIZARD slow down the tempo and reveal their predilection for epic heavy metal. Even vocalist Matti Pitkänen changes his style and mostly he succeeds quite well. He is definitely not an exceptionally gifted singer, but his voice fits well with the rustic riffs. The last track bears the titel 'Nazi Woman' (do they mean Ilsa, the She-Wolf?) and this time SPACE LIZARD show off their 1970's heavy rock influences coupled with some rockin' and rollin'. Somehow it sounds as if later Misfits had crashed into Grand Funk Railroad or something like that.
It is obvious that SPACE LIZARD is not here to revolutionize the world of doom, but it is simply entertaining to be taken on a ride by this band. One feels the passion and the joy in playing that these four guys put in their heavy music. This is also reflected in the tasteful packaging of 'Month Of The Rabbit', where a professionally printed CD-R comes along in a slim digipack. All things considered, SPACE LIZARD is right on track.
(KK)