Hermano – When The Moon Was High
Release Date: 4th October 2024
Label: Ripple Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Desert Rock, Stoner Rock, Heavy Blues.
FFO: (the mighty) Kyuss, Wo Fat, Truckfighters, Brant Bjork, Black Rainbows.
Review By: Paul Franklin
Since their inception in the late nineties, Hermano have become known as ‘the greatest band that never was’, a tongue-in-cheek reference to the impact and influence of a band that consistently refused to operate on anyone’s schedule other than their own, releasing three studio albums and touring when they wanted to, not when contractually obliged.
Six years after their last live performance at Hellfest, in the summer of 2016, the band acquired full ownership of their back catalogue and decided that they would remix, remaster and reissue their studio albums (and a live collection). A sonic update, if you will.
Whilst the back end of 2023 saw the reissue of their debut “…Only a Suggestion “, it was while they were digging through the trove of old tapes and drives they discovered some ‘lost gems’. Four never-before-heard live tracks, three (Senor Moreno’s Plan, Love and Manager’s Special) from the aforementioned Hellfest and one (Brother Bjork) from a show at the Willem Twee Poppodium back in ‘04. Listening to all four now, from the imposing grandiosity of Brother Bjork to the breakneck thunder of Manager’s Special, you can almost imagine being there and feeling the tectonic rumble vibrating every atom of your body in time to the seismic grooves.
Also buried at the bottom of the box of gems was Never Boulevard, a song that evokes an end-of-the-day vibe, laying back under the stars and contemplating the universe. Written for the band’s first sessions, it dates back to the last few hours recording in Cincinnati during the winter of 1998, and now has been brought to completion twenty-six years later.
This dig through the past also stoked some of those old creative fires, so, When The Moon Was High contains the first new music from Hermano in fifteen years. The monumental single Breathe was recorded in 2023 and shows that that same heavy blues swagger and those driving stoner rock riffs are still hitting just as hard as they ever did. Arguably even more so. It’s superb!
When The Moon Was High is a delightful little amuse-bouche that gets the taste buds tingling and hopefully means that a delicious main course may be on the way.
(3.5 / 5)
