Sacramento, California has been the birthplace of some real influential bands and artists over the years which includes the likes of The Deftones, Will Haven and Tesla. Joining this list are Peace Killers, a raw sounding stoner rock four piece with some real classic rock and psychedelic influences in there with a slight sprinkling of sludge for some good measure. Being signed to Svart and ready to unleash their debut, I have high hopes for this given how Svart have churned out some fantastic records over the past few years. Anyway, let’s get killing!
The thick sounding bass which pounds away with copious amounts of groove introduces the album and when the punchy guitars come in, it has a real alternate rock style feel about it. With harsh grungy-like vocals with big shouts to back it up, “Devil’s Daughters” really gets the album going. Big sounding chorus, slick blues styled lead fills and a real melodic solo, it sounds like a cross between Kyuss and Helmet. As the pounding drums signal the end of the track, it seamlessly transitions into “Feast On Fisticuffs” which keeps the rawness with a kick but makes things a little louder and a whole lot grittier in the delivery. With tight synchronization from the rhythm component of the band, it has a real pushing groove to it and the dynamics of the lead melodies, floating subtly under the surface of the mix, not too obvious but not too buried adds some dramatic flair to the track, helping set it up for a frantic sounding end.
“From Sleep” brings back the bass intro and the distortion has that ‘Seattle Sound’ about it (AiC, Soundgarden etc.) With effects laden vocals in the verse, it comes off quite trippy and when it really kicks in, it has a real punchy feel to it. With more slow paced bluesy licks which ooze class dancing across the track, it’s a laid back number until the big drum break comes in. Speeding up, feeling more urgent and really beefing up on the sound, it kicks in to full gear, slipping into a twisting guitar solo which is augmented by a tasty bass moment which has some low end soloing to match! “Heavy Days Moon Blood” brings the first real proper headbang feel groove to the album and it does not disappoint. Harshly shouted vocals, heavy musical delivery and a darker feel make this one of the more heavier tracks on the album before it eases off a little into a more classic rock styled approach. With great hooks in the chorus and decent pacing and chord progressions, this is a real energetic track which works quite well given the shift in delivery style partway through it.
“Sugar’s Peepers” brings in the Hammond Organ and as I have said many times, I am a sucker for a Hammond Organ. There’s just something about that rotary speaker sound and strange choral ringing noise which just clicks for me and the fact this is a sleazy styled blues number means the use of Hammond Organ to add to the track is mandatory. Deep sounding bass, well delivered and great sounding leads, clean singing with some real emotion behind it and that magic touch of the organ draws this all together for a sound similar to that of Samsara Blues Experiment – a real psychedelic and heavy blues experience here folks! “Young Man’s Shoes” keeps that bluesy style emotion to it but it has more of an 80’s rock feel to it. With a steady pace and more organ use, the intro solo has that slight neo-classical twang to it, sounding similar to something out of the Randy Rhodes playbook. The riffs are decent sounding, the melodic harmonies have some real hooks to them and the chorus has a real dramatic edge to it as it slows down but has some clever organ placement to really fatten the sound whilst the rich bassline and sweet sounding blues solo do the rest.
“Recovery” has a real energetic and upbeat feel off it, acting as the perfect pick me up following the previous track. With gratuitous cowbell, catchy and infectious groove, big sounds and great vocals, it just grips you and refuses to let go in a similar way to that of Audrey Horne. “Green Metal” brings back the southern rock feel with its dirty blues sound. Sweet sounding guitar licks with a fantastic tone and some real gritty vocal work lead into another fantastic blues-like solo which dances across the intro with minimal fuss and that magic touch from the Hammond Organ just makes it sound even bigger. Filled with sublime lead fills and some great sounding contrasting riff sections to the lead melodies and power in the chorus, it slows the pace slightly but keeps the energy up into the closing track.
“Spoonful” begins with a real deep big bass line which has an almost jazzy-swing blues feel to it. The pounding drums and big sounding guitars add some real thunder to the track and the jazzy keyboard touches work great. Subtle in the verses which are predominantly heavy, it explodes to life in the chorus with a real pounding delivery and some hard hitting vocal delivery and it really rounds off a diverse album rather nicely.
On the whole, this self titled release is fantastic. It’s hard to nail exactly what musical realm Peace Killers inhabit as their sound is so diverse but the way the groove, stoner, hard rock and blues all combine with massive sound, what is clear is that Peace Killers are one to watch for this year. Svart generally don’t do shit releases, they’re a very consistent label and this release reinforces that statement. The only way I could adequately sum up this album without you needing to listen to it is Psychedelic tainted groove laden hard blues, perfect to kick back to or party to. Whatever you do, make sure this record is what you are doing it to at some point this year!
(8/10 Fraggle)
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