ASTHMA CASTLE "Mount Crushmore"

ASTHMA CASTLE

“Mount Crushmore”

First off, I love the band name and the album title both, so extra points for that. As for the actual music? Well,what we’ve got here is some raw American sludge mixed with the peppy groove of prime stoner rock. It sounds exactly the way you’d think...and exactly the way it should.

The band has the drummer for Misery Index and Pig Destroyer, but there’s no real death or grind here. That’s not to say that Asthma Castle is not heavier than the USS Intrepid because the sound here is truly crushing. That goes double for the awesome gut-wrenching bass of Jeff Davis. Just listen to the opening rumbles of “The Incline of Western Civilization” and the title track to confirm. That bass helps make Asthma Castle a bit more potent than just another run of the mill sludge band.

At its heaviest, this is up there with Weedeater, Eyehategod and even High On Fire, complete with plenty of bellows and screams from guys you just KNOW have got long beards and beer guts. But there’s also quite a good portion of just plain RAWK in more of a stoner vibe, like Clutch. “Brazilian Catbox Incident” and “The Book of Duderonomy” have plenty of that swampy swing. My favorites would be the stomping title track and “Here Comes The Black Ship”.

There is less than 1% innovation from Asthma Castle, who obviously take their cue from many bands that have gone before. But it’s so heavy and steamy that you won’t care. “Mount Crushmore” is right…

HELLMISTRESS RECORDS

ASTHMA CASTLE