Unitron
A relatively new band in the constantly growing yet underrated stoner metal scene, Red Wizard released their debut full-length studio album in 2016 after being around since 2010. The band delivers their own unique take on the usual stoner metal sound, and in doing that, one of the best albums of 2016.
Red Wizard masterfully combines the always lurking bluesy doom metal of early Black Sabbath, the majesty of Candlemass, and the driving groove that's often essential to stoner metal with a bit of space rock in the vein of classic Hawkwind for taste. The opener "Tides of War" immediately starts the album off amazingly, taking the spot as my favorite on the album. All the instruments keep an infectiously catchy groove, as they do on the majority of the album. Sometimes they go into space metal jam mode, as heard best in the ten-minute long title track. The three parts of "The Red Wizard Suite" that closes up the album has plenty of great catchy riffing, awesome drumming, fantastic soloing, killer bass grooves, and Travis Baucum giving a beautifully emotive vocal performance.
Travis Baucum brings an excellent vocal performance up there with the best stoner vocalists. His varied tones are part of what makes Red Wizard so great, as he can deliver multiple vocal styles with much conviction. He's perfectly able to nail the majestic Candlemass-esque vocal style on the track, "The Temple of Tennitus", which is more of an old-school doom metal tune. His vocal performance on "Blinded" is a bit reminiscent of Pepper Keenan of Corrosion of Conformity, and his harmonica playing is killer and adds a perfect blues touch.
The production is as perfect as can be for a stoner metal album, having none of that annoying polish that's way too prevalent on metal albums these days. It's a bit fuzzy, dirty, and all rock 'n' roll. The production could be compared to classic Soundgarden records as well as most stoner rock/metal albums. The production and album cover should fit the music, and it does that job perfectly here.
Red Wizard may be a recent band on the scene, but they're already up there with the classic bands. If you're looking for some varied stoner metal, or are a fan of the genre in general, you should not miss out on this masterpiece. Hope you found this review helpful, feel free to comment!