People may not walk into shops and buy a record purely because of the artwork like they did in the good old days, but if they did, the bastard offspring of Cthulhu and Sasquatch that sits on the cover of Godhead (illustrated by bassist Jesse Roberts, no less) would certainly get some looks.
Why Sandrider chose to start kick off their second album with the exact rhythm of We Will Rock You remains a mystery, but by the time the crunchy thunderiffs and greasy bass slides come in, we couldn’t give a flying fuck.
What instantly separates this Seattle-based power trio from the stagnant pool of Kyuss clones we call the stoner rock scene is that they’ve put down the bongs and started trying to invent their own drug. Which, by the sounds of it, is like a mouthful of Quaaludes and as much speed as you can have in your system without dying.
Lead single Gorgon is like hearing Cancer Bats and Kvelertak tag-team Red Fang and The Sword in a cage fight, while the title track could easily be a lost recording of Kylesa adding their own touches to a Nirvana B-side. A no-nonsense whirlwind of snarling grunge, cosmic grooves and punk rock fury.
