ZONDERHOOF (s/t) MCD
Hailing from the UK, ZONDERHOOF are here to beat your brain into submission with their relentless brand of bone crunching instrumental rock. It's their debut in 2007 for English label Sound Devastation Records, and what this four Norwegian guys have recorded here is amazing! ZONDERHOOF relies on thick, mean, down-tuned riffs accompanied by sledgehammer drum beats and sometimes bizarre vocal parts, altough this is an instrumental band through and through.. This has so much power, rage and heart that anyone being a fan of heavy music can appreciate it. Musically they sound like a conglomeration of High On Fire meets Gore with a dash of Boris.
The reason I find this disc so crucial is the fact that it is totally heavy without being part of the Doom Metal or Sludge "scene" that many bands feel they need to adhere to. ZONDERHOOF does what they want on their own terms and let everyone think for themselves whether or not they like the band. The natural heaviness of the songs is encapsulated in a production as fat and dynamic as all adjectives for describing something fat put together. All four songs hit you like a ton of bricks and make you beg for more, but after 30 minutes this feast of pulverizing riffage is over. This is one of those rare moments when its possible for something so conventionally and unconventionally powerful to be so good. I'm absolutely impressed and I want to hear more!
(KK)