Brume
Rooster
September 2017
Released: 2017, Doom Stew Records
Rating: 5.0/5
Reviewer: Metal-Rules.com UK Team
The US Doom scene just seems to rumble on and on, churning out one quality band after another. Brume certainly hit the mark with their crunching, dark hearted seismic sonic attack. Their press release describes the release as a riff ritual, an astonishingly apropos description of these proceedings.
The album opens with "Grit And Pearls", a forboding, bassy cavalcade - heavier than a Wookiee's buffet. Augmented by Susan McMullan's anguished wail, this is slow, gloopy and more than a little grimy. True Doom as it should be. Next up is the curiously titled "Harold". Its delicate yet menacing intro soon gives way to a crushing riff assault, with the vocals the honey in an enticing but deadly trap. "Reckon" is possessed of a Grand Canyon sized groove, and contains masterful psychedelic sections which add variety and pathos. The glorious "Call The Serpent's Bluff" is up next, with its merciless and panful rifferama. A Creeping barrage of soul poisoning damnation.
The lilting acoustic piece "Welter" offers an inspired change of direction, laden with longing vocals and a yearning spirit. Proceedings are concluded with "Tradewind"; its bad trip intro followed by bone busting sonic torture, all nightmarish tropes and a heaviness that threatens to have a Scanners-esque effect on the skull. BOOM!
"Rooster" is punishing and weighty, with a constant feel of menace. Unsettling in the way that all good Doom should be. It never once loses focus. The golden, soulful voice of Susan McMullan is the glue that holds everything together. What an astonishing voice! The glorious riffing, and often atmospheric lead guitar blend with her vocals to make one of the best albums of 2017. Doom fans - your collection is incomplete without this.
Review by Owen Thompson
