Moon Coven is a psychedelic stoner metal band from Sweden that I came across recently during a late night adding binge. The group has been active since about 2012, and released four EPs between 2013 and 2016, and has since released their two albums in 2016 and 2021. This album, Slumber Wood (2021), was released just earlier this month on May 7th. I’ve really been digging that sort of stoner/doom metal sound recently, so I’m pretty stoked to give this album a listen. With that said, I’m going to jump on into the music.
“Further” starts out with a super fuzzed-out guitar playing a slow, super groovy riff that reminds me a lot of Dead Meadow at first. Oh wow, a second guitar and the drums come in, providing a super heavy, dark, hard grooving doom metal riff that I’m really digging. Oh wow, one of the guitars plays a super sweet line right before the vocals drop into the soundscape. Oh wow, I’m really digging this track so far. I’m also reminded of some of Dead Shaman a bit, a heavy doom/stoner group from Switzerland. Holy smokes, the fuzzed-out guitars are replaced by a really interesting melodic, melting guitar duo that honestly reminds me a ton of the guitarists from Avenged Sevenfold. Super groovy track, and I’m excited to hear more.
“Ceremony” gets started with big, heavy waves of cymbals and a strong backbeat that seem to increase the heaviness of the fuzzed-out guitars in this track. Oh wow, I’m really digging the heavy stoner rock sounds in this track. The vocals have a really big, somewhat distant sound that almost make the soundscape feel cosmic in size. Holy smokes, a guitar solo started with some super groovy, melting licks that seem to make the soundscape increasingly psychedelic. Oh wow, I’m really digging this track so far. Oh wow, the track seems to enter a different movement as the beat changes up to something of a syncopated, primal nature, while the fuzzed-out guitars seem to mellow out and a droning tone is gently heard from the background. Oh wow, the track seems to take a darker turn as the guitar riffing gets heavier and the crashing of cymbals rain into the soundscape. I really dig the ending of the tune. Super sweet track.
“Gobekli Tepe – Potbelly Hill” begins with some mellow tones from a guitar or two that almost sound like feedback to some extent. Oh wow, a guitar line with a sort of stoner raga rock sound has taken a sort of mystifying form as the track seems to take form. Oh wow, the track breaks through to some really groovy, heavy, dark riffing from the guitars accompanied by super heavy cymbals and strong drums. Oh wow, I really dig the mellowness of the bass guitar that seems to groove along nicely with the fuzzed-out guitar riffs. Oh wow, the track changes from the overt heavy darkness of the riffing guitars to be something a little more psychedelic in general as the fuzzed-out guitars are seemingly momentarily replaced by some melting licks that I’m really digging. The drums have really changed up nicely between the movements of the song as well. Oh wow, the track ends with the sort of stoner raga guitar line from the beginning of the tune. Great track.
“Eye of the Night” gets started right away with a combination of heavy, fuzzed-out riffs, and a super strong backbeat that I’m really digging. Oh wow, I really dig the reverberation on the vocals in this track, which almost makes it sound like someone is singing in some sort of massive cavern. Oh wow, this track gets some into some really nice, heavy, fuzzed-out stoner rock grooves that reminds me a lot again of Dead Meadow. Super sweet tune.
“A Tower of Silence” starts out with a somewhat fuzzy droning tone that sounds as though it is accentuated by some really light and sweet synth/keyboards or even feedback. I’m really digging how mellow this track is at the moment, and I’m sort of reminded of the trance-inducing qualities of the Mt. Mountain album that I listened to last night, Centre (2021). Wow, great track.
“Bahgsu Nag” starts out with some guitar chords that almost have a sort of raw, garage rock quality to them that I’m really digging. Oh wow, the drums come in with a really dynamic feel that sets a super sweet, psychedelic tone, which is then complemented by another guitar that comes in with a sort of melting quality that I’m really digging. The vocals almost have a shamanic presence in this song as they seem to distantly guide the narrative of the soundscape with that sort of reverb that makes it sound like the vocals were sung and recorded in some massive cavern. Holy smokes, this band gets into some really groovy jams that seem to combine flavors of stoner rock and psychedelic rock really nicely. I’m really digging this track a ton so far. Holy smokes, one of the guitars intensifies in a really groovy as some quick, melodic, stoner and psychedelic lines are played into the soundscape. Oh wow, now one of the guitars has a sort of spacey tremolo effect on it that I’m really digging. Oh wow, I really dig the outro to this track, which sort of reminds me of the stylings of The Lennon Claypool Delirium. Wow, great track.
“Seagull” gets started with some dark, heavy, fuzzed-out riffs that are backed by a big-sounding, strong beat. Oh wow, the track mellows out the fuzz after a bit, and the track almost seems to turn away from the darkness for a moment until the band launches into the next verse of the song. Holy smokes, the track changes up a ton and has now become some sort of mellow stoner rock version of the Resident Evil theme song, and I’m really digging the sound. I really dig the contrast between the sort of sweeter and mellower movements and the darker, fuzzed-out, heavy riffing movements in this track. Wow, great tune.
“My Melting Mind” starts out with some really interesting, somewhat fuzzed guitar that almost has a bit of a swishing sound. Oh wow, the other guitar(s) and the drums come into the soundscape with some heavy riffs and cymbals. Oh wow, I really dig the vocals in this track, which somehow sound even bigger in this track, and also make the guitars and cymbals sound even bigger as well. Oh wow, the track seems to mellow out and become more spacious as the track enters its second half. Holy smokes, there’s a really groovy psychedelic guitar line that seems to walk along a spacey stoner rock territory that seems to gradually grab my attention more as the track continues along, and then the track jumps into another verse for the outro in a really sweet way that resolves the track nicely. Great track, and a great way to finish up the album.
I’m definitely glad that I checked out this album from Moon Coven tonight, and definitely will be checking out more of them soon. I really dig the sort of ebb and flow throughout the album of the heavy riffing in the guitars with strong cymbals in a sort of doom/stoner metal style and the mellower movements that seem to be a sort of stoner psychedelic rock style. If you’re into doom/stoner rock/metal groups like Dead Meadow or Dead Shaman, and/or enjoy psychedelic rock groups that seem to have a heavier, somewhat darker feel, such as The Lennon Claypool Delirium, then you might want to consider checking out this album. If you do decide to check out this album, then I sincerely do hope that you enjoy the listening experience at least much as I did.
-A