Dead Meadow

Old Growth - Matador Records Old Growth

Black Sabbath has often been called the originator of the heavy metal genre, but very few "metal bands" sound anything at all like Sabbath. There has been a movement over the last few years to bring back the Black Sabbath sound, which has the unfortunate moniker "stoner rock." One of the seminal groups in this movement is the DC-based Dead Meadow. Their songs are for the most part mid-tempo, minor-key tunes layered with fuzz guitar and deep, growling bass lines. Old Growth, recorded in a haunted farmhouse in rural Indiana, is more psychedelic than Dead Meadow's previous output, but it still retains the basic elements that have made them the favorites of the stoner rock movement. The acoustic guitar-driven tracks "Seven Seers" and "Either Way" have the feel of acoustic Led Zeppelin tracks, but the dreamy vocals of Jason Simon sound more like an American Syd Barrett. Old Growth still has plenty of heavily layered early Sabbath-style songs like the opening number, "Ain't Got Nothing to Go Wrong," and the tune "The Queen Of All Returns." For music fans who enjoy the heavy psychedelic music of the late '60s and early '70s, Old Growth will bring a smile to your ears.