Weedeater need no introduction, but for the sake of this review, I’ll give them one anyway. Formed When cult sludge act BUZZOV•EN called it a day in North Carolina, deep in the bible belt region of America, the three piece continued in the sludgy ways of their predecessors and added a bit more variety to the sound – hits of stoner rock and doomy vibes were added to create what many people referred to as “weed metal” and in 2001 the band released “…And Justice for Y’all”. Since signing up with Season of Mist records, the band’s entire back catalogue is being re-mastered and re-issued and here is the second coming of the first offering.
Opening up with the murky bass, instrumental number “Tuesday night” kicks off the album. Its slow pounding riffs with healthy doses of fuzz and steady drums leads into a slightly more up tempo section and helps prepare you for what is to come on the rest of the record – bass, fuzz, grooves and dirtiness. Following on is “Monkey junction” which starts off with a dirty bass line. The massive pounding riffs backed up by the drums is joined by a raspy, harsh vocal and the song feels like a classic blues number but with a serious amount of dirt thrown across it. Despite having a relaxed feel to the track, the vocals give it some serious intensity and you can’t help but nod along and stamp your foot as Dixie Dave spins his story. “Free” ups the pace somewhat significantly. The muddy bassline and fast paced drums coupled with the harsh vocals give this track a sense of urgency and a different kind of intensity to the first two and it also gives one of the first real headbanging moments of the album.
“Hungry Jack” brings back the slower feel and the simplistic but great riffing gives it a fantastic groove. There are some moments where the song teases by slowing to an almost doomy tempo but the stoner rock styled approach, keeping it steady and heavy comes off perfectly. The solo is straight forward and manages to stand out over the thick bass and it brings the song home nicely. “Shitfire” flows perfectly from its predecessor with a fuzzed out bassline and a howl of feedback coupled with some demented whispering and laughter before some short, stabbed chords kick in, teasing for a massive wall of sound to follow them. Instead of a colossal wall of low end filth, a simple bassline, harsh vocal line and a dissonant guitar lead line follows at a slow pace, dragging itself along. Despite sounding somewhat uncomfortable at times, it flows really well. Round the 2:30 mark the drums suddenly flare to life and after a quick fill, the pace picks up. Guided by the frantic drums, the song gets more intense and the slightly cleaner vocals come in over the thick fuzzed out instruments. It’s a fine example of what Sludge should be as it descends into madness with a trippy solo over the unleashed drums. “Calico” starts off with a real kick to it. The groove laden riffs and bassline are quite upbeat and the harsh delivery of the lyrics works brilliantly. The track keeps up this upbeat groove and its only at the end of the track where it tails off into the sustained buzzing that it slows down.
“Truck Drivin Man” has a bluesy feel to it with a healthy stoner groove. The simple approach once again shows how easy it is with minimal effort to create a good song. The drums occasionally tease at letting loose during the song and the middle section switches up the groove a little, slowing first before cranking the speed up to an almost gallop like feel. Little guitar fills with the drums create a more urgent feel to the track and the filthy bass just holds it all together. Up next is the Crosby, Stills and Nash cover – “Southern Cross”. The Weedeater spin of this speeds the track up a little and their adaptation of it is a textbook example of how to make a cover song your own. It’s one of the best covers out there and it shows how putting the dirt on your sound and letting loose can improve many songs.
Instrumental track “#86” starts off with another thick bass intro and a howl of feedback as the drums tease to begin with. The slow paced feel adds some intensity back into the album after the light-hearted previous track with its demented laughter samples and squeals of feedback over the bassline before it just trails off into silence for the final minute of it. “Bucket” is the closing track of the album and the squeal of feedback into a full on stoner groove brings the album home. The rough vocals, pounding bass and steady drums with the dirty guitar keeps the pace up to begin with, but it slows down for a muddy sounding section where the drums shine through again before it cranks the speed right up adding a new level of intensity to the track before it slows back down again with more pounding drums and an ominous feeling which trails out into more feedback as the album comes to a close.
“…And Justice for Y’all” is a classic album. It’s hard to expand or say new things about one of the best Sludge albums out there but the remaster does it justice, tightening it up where needed but still retaining the intensity and chaos of the original offering. If you’re new to sludge, get this album. If you missed out on it first time? Get this album. If you have the original, get this album (it’s available on vinyl too for you collectors). In short – Get it.
(9/10 Fraggle)
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