#New Wave of British Columbian Heavy Metal

[thenwothm]

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: SPELL (CANADA)

There are bands out there that stand out above others and one band that truly is unique and captivating is the one and only Spell from Vancouver, Canada. Made up of brothers Cam and Al along with their friends Gabriel and Jeff, Spell are a band of tenacity and calibre. Their music is something truly special that heavily evokes emotions and feelings. Spell took the time to provide us with an…

[doomedandstoned]

British Columbian Doomers HOOPSNAKE Awaken the Snowmanmoth!

~By Billy Goate~

Concert Photos by Christian Granum

The drum beats. The riffs engage. The Snowmanmoth is coming. Today, Squamish, British Columbia doomers HOOPSNAKE make a roaring return with perhaps their most ferocious album to date. It's been a good four years and then some since 'Curse of the White Widow' (2014) and their first big album, 'Hoopsnake (aka Knucklehead)' (2012). The scene in and around Vancouver is absolutely unstoppable right now and these dudes right here, they really know their doom.

You can feel pure animal energy radiating through every track on the new record 'Snowmanmoth' (2018). That's right; they said “MANmoth” not “mammoth.” The beast you see on the cover art (the doing of guitarist Dave Hardy, who’s done covers for all of Hoopsnake’s records to date) takes front and center with opening number, "Snowmanmoth The Abominable." We feel the tremor of earth, pause, and wonder. Something is coming.

Just ahead of the rampaging beast is vocalist Shane Carmichael, who herald's the Manmoth as he passes through the mountains and glaciers. Shane's vocals echo through canyons and valleys with a fearsome roar. The rhythm has a tribal feel, though I confess I'm not a student of Native American music (the Squamish people are indigenous to southwestern BC, so perhaps this factors in). Drummer Oli Gagnon does a hearty job of maintaining the heartbeat of this half-man, half-mammoth monstrosity. What are his origins? We may never know, but he will henceforth and forevermore be lodged in our collective consciousness.

"We usually write about fiction," Hoopsnake tells Doomed & Stoned. "We are huge fans of science fiction and mythology, so often our songs are kind of like a sci-fi story playing out through heavy metal. The title track, 'Snowmanmoth the Abominable’ is a about a hybrid yeti-mammoth that terrorizes a village. It starts out slow and ominous but as the fear of the beast increases so does the song until the avalanche is unleashed and death is submitted."

The beat finds a frenzied pace for the next track, "Skate And Die," and those vocals are running hot here. Loving the trills in Dave's riffslaying, too, and the overall rhythm (Shane also plays bass) is approaching High on Fire velocity. "We always write every Hoopsnake number as a full band," Shane tells me. "One member will bring a riff to the group and we rework it until we are all stoked with it. Then eventually someone will come up with where the song should go next and slowly, but surely, the next riff will come to us. We always write everything together." This would explain why everything flows so harmoniously from the word go on the new record. Shane says this approach to songwriting "makes everyone feel fully involved, but also creates an environment that is slower at producing new music, probably why we have a few years between releases."

The crowd gets loud when the band gets right Steel guitar cryin' through the night Yeah, try'n to cover up the corner fight But everything cool 'cause they's just tight

"Beer Drinkers And Hell Slayers" is pure rock 'n' roll sex, just with a hellishly heavier stomp than we've experienced elsewhere. According to Shane, this is a long overdue tribute to "that lil' ol band from Texas." You know which one: ZZ Top. The spirit of Lemmy and Malcolm Young are haunting this cover, as Shane, Dave, and Oli play like a band possessed. This is an anthem to the roughnecks, teasing us with brief toe dip into groovy stoner-doom waters midway through. Toast up a couple bottles of Pilsner Urquell (the band's drink of choice) and let's get rowdy!

"Scorpion," the album's single, kicks off the record's B-side with the start of an engine and voices (presumably the band) climb aboard their rig and set a course to cities across the Great White North. "It is about our tour van," Shane tells me. "We have had the same van since our first tour in 2010, an '87 Dodge Ram van with scorpion decals on the side. The song is a metaphor for our van, but also a jam about a scorpion hitting the road at high speeds travelling where the road takes it." A Pale Divine-style groove warms up the pistons, cylinders, drive shaft, and flywheel. We're off, fellas! Hoopsnake is a well-oiled machine. Climbing over windy mountain paths and venturing through sweeping valley floors, this is a jam for the journey, so light one up and enjoy the slow burn!

"(H)eavy Metal" dishes up some good ol' fashioned Sabbath worship (as the name might imply), though arguably the vigorous tempo of the song would also give a nod to the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. Time for another Pilsner? Time for another Pilsner! A toast to the godfathers of metal! "Black Sabbath influenced riffs have always been a mainstay in our songs," the band tells me, "and it will once again come through on this album."

At last, we make arrive at our destination, a sludgy, stoner-doom romp called "Weedcraftian (Beat By The Odds)." It makes a fine companion to "Weedfiender General" from Hoopsnake's debut, though by contrast "Weedcraftian" seems a little more on the introspective side of a high. The band tells me the song's "about an alien race whose planet was in total disrepair, but after discovering weed the few remaining aliens realized the plant's potential for helping with intergalactic peace, so they hit the starways in search of the best weed to potentially share it with the universe and save everything from eternal doom."

Snowmanmoth was recorded by the band last November at Rain City Recorders in East Vancouver by Jesse Gander, who has produced albums by Baptists, Bison BC, and quite a few others. Jesse also did the mixing and the mastering was done by Rain City's Stu McKillop. They did a great job of capturing the action (including those gargantuan vocals), giving us a window into the seasoned musicianship and chemistry of three guys who are in it for the long haul, making Snowmanmoth a distinguished 35-minute spin.

Doomed & Stoned is proud to bring you the full album premiere today, ahead of the Snowmanmoth release on July 30th. You can pre-order it right here. And, yes, a vinyl release is imminent, a black wax offering with a 32-page 12x12 photo book consisting of memories from the trio's first decade, as well as lyrics to all the tracks and a comic strip drawn to the lyrics of "Weedcraftian." Hoopsnake hits the road this weekend on tour across Canada with Japan's GUEVNNA (featuring former members of the band Coffins).

As Hoopsnake get revving for the next 10 years, Hoopsnake is a band whose time has come and they're more determined than ever to cast their electric spell upon the world.

Give ear...

Snowmanmoth by Hoopsnake

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