This review has been a long time coming. Translation Loss Records seems to have a knack of finding the best of the recent crop of stoner or post-metal style bands and giving them a home. This band fits nicely into the first category. Made up of members of Boston area hardcore luminaries of sorts, they have been steamrolling their way through the stoner metal scene for the past three years or so. That leads us to Horizoner, the bands first full-length for Translation Loss and a crushing blow to any doubters that remain.
The album opens with a huge bass rumble that starts the albums first minute plus nothing else coming into focus but creating a perfect atmosphere for the rest of the album. This LP, like most of their style, is all about the build up that may or may not lead to a release. The production is as clear as possible and allows a perfect mix of the players to be heard and the total package to engulf the listener. Each song on this album makes the most of its time almost like a cobra waiting to strike. When these songs attack it sounds like the first four Black Sabbath albums. Heavy, melodic, trance inducing vocals that lie smoothly in the middle of the mix. This is the best way to describe the first song as well as the LP in it's entirety; "A Good Son" builds and breaks repeatedly building momentum and power over it's nearly ten minute running time this acts as a perfect introduction to the rest of the album as it never feels as long as it really is.
The bass player acts as a perfect anchor and almost the guiding light of the rest of the band. The bass sits quite strongly in the mix and almost acts separate from the guitar player to build it's own separate melodies to counter the deep riffs of the guitar. Meticulously created solos abound throughout each track. This band truly took their time to create a complete and engulfing full-length record. No song takes too long or seems too lengthy. When the band gets truly heavy it's almost overbearing; the riffs stand alone and remain interesting throughout almost propelling the listener deeper into the abyss created by the rhythm section.
Needless to say, after listening to Horizoner repeatedly since it's release months ago, Translation Loss has done it again. This is a very complete album that points Bloodhorse towards the top of the stoner rock heap. With tons of stoner bands coming Bloodhorse clearly smoked them all (pun intended). Vinyl nerds should rejoice in the beautiful artwork and amazing etching on side four of the vinyl.
