Tennessee Two

THE HEAVY EYES: FOCUS

The Heavy Eyes have got a new album, and it's another winner.  The Heavy Eyes are the Tennessee version of Fu Manchu, with their own unique slowed-down take on the heavy fuzz sound.

The Heavy Eyes are from Memphis, and are:

Tripp Shumake: Guitar, Lead Vocals

Matthew Qualls: Guitar

Wally Anderson: Bass

Eric Garcia: Drums

ALL THEM WITCHES: HOUSE OF MIRRORS

2020's "Nothing As The Ideal" album was one of my favorites of that year, but after that I kept seeing the band sell lots of memorabilia on Bandcamp, and figured they were on hard times and were possibly done making new music.  So when I saw this pop up in late May, I got excited.  A little more mellow than I expected, but I've still kept it in my rotation since its release.  Here are a couple of cool tracks:

All Them Witches are from Nashville, and are:

Charles Michael Parks, Jr: Vocals, Bass
Benjamin McLeod: Guitar
Allan Van Cleave: Keys
Christian Powers: Drums

You can find both these albums on Bandcamp.

You can fnd 

TRIPLE SHOT

LORD FOWL: GLORIOUS BABYLON

ELITE RETRO HARD ROCK

I've already called an album a ten out of ten this year, and here's another one.  Lord Fowl will remind you of the best of 1970s hard rock.  This album has the same kind of authenticity as releases from Crypt Trip and Siena Root.  Check out "The Grammercy Riffs", my favorite tune of the new decade so far: (remember how controversial The Warriors was when it came out? It was blamed for inciting several murders)

Now here's "In Search Of", with a hint of funk:

Lord Fowl are from New Haven, Connecticut and are:

Jon Conine: bass, guitar
Vechel Jaynes: guitar, vocals
Mike Pellegrino: guitar, vocals
Michael Petrucci: drums, percussion

THE HEAVY EYES: LOVE LIKE MACHINES

BEST HEAVY EYES ALBUM TO DATE

The Heavy Eyes have managed to sound different without sounding different, if that's possible.  They still have that Fu-Manchu style heavy fuzz sound but have managed to diversify their songwriting in impressive fashion.  There's quite an assortment of great riffs and moments on this album, and I feel it's a bit more aggressive than past releases as well.  Here's one that made my best songs of January - April list, "A Cat Named Haku".   

Sounds silly but what a great groove:

And here's "The Profession", which epitomizes bad-ass hard rock guitar playing.  This is exactly the kind of tune you want playing when you pull up to the stop light with your windows down, if you want to be 'the man.'

The Heavy Eyes are from Memphis, Tennessee, and are:

TRIPP SHUMAKE - LEAD VOCALS, ACOUSTIC/ELECTRIC GUITAR
MATTHEW QUALLS - ELECTRIC GUITAR, PERCUSSION, BACKING VOCALS
WALLY ANDERSON - BASS GUITAR
ERIC GARCIA - DRUMS/PERCUSSION

with guests:
JUSTIN TOLAND - GUITAR TRACKING & SOLO (GOD DAMN WOLF MAN)
JUSTIN TRACY - GUITAR SOLO (THE PROFESSION)
CARMEN FOWLKES - PIANO (VERA CRUZ)

The Heavy Eyes are frequently compared with Fu Manchu, although a fan of either band would never confuse the two.  This is a must-own album for stoner-fuzz afficionados.

Speaking of Fu Manchu, . . .

FU MANCHU: FU30, Pt.1

STONER ROYALTY RETURNS

 In addition to frequency modulation, FM stands for Fu Manchu and for Fuzz Masters.  I long for the day when I can hear fuzz masters Fu Manchu on my FM radio.  Tracks 1 and 2 are classic Fu, and really paint this band as ageless.  There's been absolutely no loss of energy or sincerity from these guys since the nineties.  Here's the opening track, "Time Is Going On":

While I prefer track 2 to this, Fu Manchu's
"Takin' It To The Streets" demands to be shared because of its unusual interpretation of the Doobie Brothers classic.

Fu Manchu is comprised of four rock legends:

Scott Hill - Vocals / Guitar
Bob Balch - Lead Guitar
Brad Davis - Bass
Scott Reeder - Drums

-ULTRA

The Heavy Eyes: "He Dreams Of Lions"

THE HEAVY EYES: He Dreams of Lions

What Do You Call This?

The Heavy Eyes have been around for a while, but are new to me.  A quick Google search will show them characterized as Psychedelic Blues Rock, but the first bands that come to mind for me when I listen to this album are Fu Manchu and Freedom Hawk.  The tunes are played slowly and deliberately, but done in such a way as to make the them come across as lively and upbeat.  Whatever description you want to give this band, they are a welcome discovery for me.  Their old-school hard rock guitar, bass and drums sound with a touch of fuzz puts them square in the middle of Stoner Rock country.  There are 4 or 5 tunes on the album that really stand out for me, and here is one of them; "Somniloquy":

and here's "Saint:"

The Heavy Eyes are from Memphis, Tennessee, and "He Dreams of Lions" is their third release.

  The Heavy Eyes are: 

Tripp Shumake:  Guitar, Vocals
Wally Anderson: Bass
Eric Garcia: Drums

Here's something I'm thankful for:  I have awesome music to listen to; not everybody does!

Happy Thanksgiving      -ULTRA