ninehertz

In this age where not only is stoner rock dying a slow death, but its older edgier teenage brother doom is at its height of popularity, it's quite rereshing to come across a band so brazenly open in their embrace of the old stoner vibes. The preposterously named Chubby Thunderous Bad Kush Masters, three men with past experience in Dopefight, Witchfist and Mama Moonshine deliver the fuzz grooves unashamedly, the tide of retro action unavoidable in its infectious enjoyment.

There's a definite fuzzed blues rock power trio centre, but with a raw edge - Stubb meets early Alabama Thunderpussy perhaps. The likes of the excellent opener Earth Hog, or the riff and solo of Chopsticks and Bad Meatballs take you aback with how much fun they engender, while the dirt of the tar filled Mother Chubb would appeal to 70's bikers on a spirallingly inward and violent bad trip, like Solace or Roadsaw but with an assured British accent. The final track Riff Richard simply earns its great title.

It's nothing new, but done extremely well, instantly elevating themselves to the higher branches of an admittedly autumnal UK stoner rock tree. It's maybe a smidgeon too rough to get you digging out your long forgotten Meteor City albums, but, perhaps, with 'stoner' now a dirty word for anyone wanting to act cool within the genre, this is the new rebellion. If so, Chubby are well equipped to lead the fight back.