Bottomless – Bottomless
Release Date: 16th July 2021
Label: Spikerot
Order/Stream
Genre: Doom, Sludge Metal.
FFO: Black Sabbath, Down, The Sword, Saint Vitus, Sleep.
Review By: Jason Batus
Bottomless is a band born of a love for the true creators of heavy metal – Black Sabbath. The band consists of members of several other well known acts such as Messa, Assumption, and Undead Creep; the members came together to honor the slow, grinding, riff heavy metal that started it all. Giorgio Trombino on guitars and lead vocals, David Lucido on Drums, and Sara Bianchin on bass make up this power trio. The band originally started working on material in 2018 but due to a heavy touring schedule in their individual bands it wasn’t until now that their first self-titled release was ready to be unleashed on the masses.
When I first put on this album I was convinced I was listening to a band that was clearly influenced by Black Sabbath but was from the southern US. The riffs had that southern groove feel to them similar to bands such as Corrosion of Conformity, Down, and The Sword. After listening I did some research on the band and was blown away to find out they are from all the way across the pond in Italy! This album has it all if you are a fan of dark, thick, hypnotic riffs. Unlike some other bands of the same genre it isn’t all slow and trancy either. There are plenty of tracks that are more upbeat and aggressive as well.
I love this album. It carries you through from the opening track Monastery, setting a tone for the listener. The opening dual guitar leads backed up by a heavy dirge combo of bass and drums sets the stage for what promises to be a trippy ride from start to finish. Followed by the more driving track Centuries Asleep you are pulled out of the trance of the first track and can’t help but catch yourself head-banging as the tempo increases while keeping the same doomy-grind feel that the album carries with it throughout.
The album does a great job of being true to itself as an entire piece of artwork with a central theme and feel but still having enough dynamics between the individual tracks to not get repetitive or boring while listening to it. Some tracks, such as Ash even have a psychedelic grunge feel similar to that of early Alice in Chains, Soundgarden and Monster Magnet. The vocals by Giorgio Trombino are haunting and very reminiscent of Layne Staley here as well.
The final track, Hell Vacation, closes out the album with a similar, but uniquely its own, feel to the beginning of the album. You can tell the band really took their time in not only writing the material but arranging it to take you on the journey with them.
Normally I like to point out things I feel the band could have done differently, as I feel we all grow from hearing others’ opinions of our work. I honestly do not have anything I would change about this album or the band except for one thing. If it were up to me the band would be based here in the US, so that I could selfishly be able to see them live as often as possible. There really aren’t enough bands playing music like this and still making it feel fresh and new.
Too often these days albums are just a collection of tracks that artists try to sell on platforms like iTunes individually. The members of Bottomless wrote an ALBUM. You take a ride from beginning to end, and feel satisfied for having gone on the journey. There are certainly no “filler tracks” here. This is a well thought out project and was clearly worth the wait from conception to this first release. Make sure you get this album and listen to it often!
(5 / 5)
