ninehertz

Here's something to spend that money you get from your Aunty for Christmas. A showdown between two uprising doom duos from Nottingham, on split 7", jointly released through the excellent Vetala Productions and Rad Nauseum labels.

Side A sees Dark Mother step forward, with the Giving Tree. A towering, sloth riff dominates, blackening the sky, battering away on each revolution, taken at its own pace. There's a strong lineage down from the mighty doom of Acid King in evidence, a comparison that anyone with half an ear should take notice of.

Flip to side B, and here Shrykull bring forth The Black Moon - grim fare, lurching with no great hurry between desolate doom with shrieked vocals, to sludge splurges. Their Degenerate release from earlier this year swayed violently in pace changes, but this eschews the grind and keeps things dark and slow for the whole six minutes. The stripped down workforce keeps things basic, but much like the similarly staffed Temple Steps, this merely adds to the crackling, despondant atmosphere.

This should serve notice to anyone unaware of two British doom bands on the rise. With two truly excellent tracks, two distinct angles of doom, this vinyl release not only stands as a marker of their respective potential and talents, but a pretty special release in its own right, and with suitably attractive artwork, a record worth splashing out for.