Sleepwulf – Sunbeams Curl
Release Date: 18th February 2022
Label: Heavy Psych Sounds
Bandcamp
Genre: Psychedelic Rock, Doom Rock, Stoner Rock, Occult Rock.
FFO: Black Sabbath, Crow, Church of the Cosmic Skull, Jethro Tull, Orange Goblin, Kyuss, Psychedelic Witchcraft.
Review By: Jay Creepy
If I made a top 5 list of bands away from metal that I simply adore, Jethro Tull would figure very high, and I also reckon they would for this magnificent gathering of talented beasts from Sweden. Sometimes musically, but definitely the vocals, I felt like I was listening to an undiscovered unearthed treasure from the Jethro Tull archives – with tingles of Church of the Cosmic Skull.
Okay, it’s hard to explain why at a few points of this album I actually cried out in pleasure. Nice changes and transitions, certain lyrics delivered masterfully, gave me this outburst of emotion. And that is what music is about, a road and exploration of your inner feelings and loves. Prog rock, psychedelic rock, stoner, doom… call it what you will, I will simply state that Sleepwulf has built (to my ears) perfection with Sunbeams Curl, apparently recorded into an old tape recorder within their woodlands studio.
Musically, I’d compare to the muffled old school sounds of Psychedelic Witchcraft and especially Sleep’s Dopesmoker album. Track one, Satan is King, totally knocks your head off your shoulders with its cranium nodding fuzzy rhythms. “Come to realize, life will begin when Satan is king…” the melody and upbeat delivery will likely convert more people to the cause than Mayhem or Burzum, Owen Robertson could lead a mass with his words and claim souls. The whole tune is a ritual, not on Coven level, but so descriptive and enthralling.
Green Man Dead slows it down a tiny bit to again give us a story. Sebastian Inme on guitar and Viktor Sjostrom on bass totally weave complex music together, whilst Carl Lindberg pounds the skins to infinity. The transitions are great, unpredictable and very early 70s. Oh, my Dark Lord, Sex Magic Manifestation continues our journey through the ancient forests and is so damn funky. Each song thus so far has stood alone with their own identities. “What is the worth of a man, who cannot build castles from sand?” Indeed.
Okay, show stopper upcoming and the first one that made me cry out genuinely in eargasm. Stoned Ape has a key note that rides along one of the heaviest but slowest melodies I’ve heard in a while. The key changes to a higher pitch and I needed to change my jeans. Can I swear on Metal Epidemic? Well, Stoned Ape is f**king jaw dropping. I played it three time sin a row and did not tire. If you have any adoration for the bands I’ve mentioned or just deep music, this is the one! Lyrically, it isn’t the best so far, but that isn’t the point. It all keeps building to a monolithic noise before dropping us back suddenly to the gentle and dark waters. The guitar from 3.30 elevates even further.
Tyrant Song is sooooo damn Jethro Tull, if you know, you’ll know. Eight songs, each as rewarding as the previous. Sleepwulf have crafted a very intelligent album. Oozing occultism and daring you to tread their dark grounds, Sunbeams Curl is essential.
(5 / 5)
