Bongzilla – Dab City

Bongzilla – Dab City
Release Date: 2nd June 2023
Label: Heavy Psych Sounds
Bandcamp
Genre: Sludge, Stoner, Doom.
FFO: Weedeater, YOB, Electric Wizard.
Review By: Hillary Wisniewski

Thanks be to Wisconsin for giving us cheese, beer, and the mighty Bongzilla. Formed in 1995, these gents have been consistently singing their praises of marijuana including advocating for legalisation and, in the process, making sure any of their stoner brethren have bitchin’ soundtracks to carry them away. The sludge/stoner/doom metal boys are back with their newest release, Dab City (this is a play on the nickname of their hometown of Madison, which is referred to as Mad City). Of this release, the band says “For the recording of “Dab City” we procured 10 g of the finest concentrates we could lay our hands on and somewhere north of 120 g of cannabis flower, and recorded it on 2-inch analog tape over two sessions at Future Apple Tree Studio in Rock Island, Illinois. The fall 2022 session is known as the Harvest Sessions and the February 2023 session is known as the Propagation Sessions. The record is our second album as a three-piece and our second release for our label Heavy Psych Sounds, continuing our journey into ultra-stoned sludgey psychedelia.” Clearly spending time with their constant muse allowed Bongzilla to rip out an album as heavy as their bong hits.

 This album is not one that veers off into any experimental direction; current fans of Bongzilla should be well pleased by the work, and likely these lads will pick up some new followers along the way. This may well be their most accessible album. At times it is like the auditory equivalent of wading through a pool of molasses: sticky, mucky, yet incredibly sweet. The riffs are so heavy and just straight up tasty. The low end on this record is mighty; I can imagine a live show would have your guts jiggling. Some metal fans may sing the praises of bands who can rip through songs at lightning speed, but there is something to be said for artists that can keep things low and slow while not losing someone’s attention. Dab City does just that; the precision and discipline involved in maintaining a certain pace is impressive. Don’t get me wrong-it isn’t a slow burn of a record per se, but rather when it is, they pull it off well. One of the things I enjoy most are the vocals. No bluesy, soulful singer here-it is almost the painful howling one would expect in a black metal act. This whole album is a vibe. At just around 60 minutes, there is plenty of time to take it all in and get absorbed into the general groove. I don’t have any serious qualms with Dab City. For the genre, it has a lot of what I would hope for and want to hear. Perhaps the length and pace of some tracks may not sit well with people who typically listen to something a bit more uptempo; however, I would say it may be those people that need this album the most. Slow down a bit, kick back, and let this album give you a break from the daily grind. We all need a little escape.

(4 / 5)