It's difficult to read an album review of Canada's Black Mountain without hearing a plethora of 30-year-old band names mentioned. It's accurate to mention in any review the influence the band draws from '70s psychedelic rock. Everything this side of Led Zeppelin, Hendrix and Pink Floyd can be heard in their epic stoner-metal freakouts.
The band garnered a significant amount of attention with their initial EP, Druganaut (released in 2004, an obvious reference to Sleep's famous track "Dragonaut") and their debut, self-titled, full-length album (2005). They even managed to land a spot on the Spiderman 3 soundtrack last spring -- an album that attempted to catch up to the present-day indie obsession.
So for a band that looks so much to the past for its influences, In The Future is a fairly ironic title for their new album, released this week. Then again, the title does go well with the music's psychedelic slant.
In The Future takes no time in getting started. The opener, "Stormy High," is a genuine rocker, complete with heavy riffs, keyboard highlights and choral responses from backup vocalist Amber Webber. "Angels" slows the pace down a bit, recalling the Southern rock drawl of Lynyrd Skynyrd, until it erupts halfway through with a full string arrangement.
Two epic sprawlers rest on either end of the album, beginning with the 8-minute "Tyrants," which travels back and forth between Pink Floyd soundscapes and Black Sabbath doom metal. Toward the album's end, it culminates with "Bright Lights," a 16-minute adventure that successfully sums up the band's sound. The album's other intense rockers include "Wucan" -- possibly the strongest track -- and "Evil Ways."
And, as all great rock bands do, Black Mountain takes the time to switch gears and make some attempts at the rock-group ballad. "Stay Free" -- the track that appeared on the Spiderman 3 soundtrack -- is a beautiful piece that incorporates acoustic guitars, soprano vocals and cello. "Wild Wind" is an outright Eagles send-up, heavy on the drums and piano and complete with a fuzzy guitar solo. It is this track's extremely short length that serves as my only real complaint with In The Future. It is a mere 1:43, cutting the listener off right at the moment when he first realizes that, wow, this is a great, great song.
The closer, "Night Walks," relies heavily on ambient keyboards and the vocals of Webber -- it is the only track on which she serves as the lead singer. Its contrast to the rest of the album makes it a perfect way to end the great set of music that is In the Future.
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