Genre: Stoner/sludge/doom metal
Origin: Sweden
Released: 2009
Website:
Label: Solitude Productions
Uploaded: 02.02.10

I�ve heard a lot of good stuff about the debut album of S:T Erik, and comparisons to Acid King and Om have been available in abundance. I�ve never really listened to either of the two, but I�ve also read some comparisons to Electric Wizard, which I�m a little more familiar with. But I was quite eager to hear the album, �cause there was something special about it both name and layout wise. After I initially pressed play it didn�t take long before I was completely in awe.
Goddess is a mesmerizing track with excellent groove in the form of stoner riffing, the tempo and riffing commands the listener to gently mosh along in his or her seat. And I can�t help myself but to violently nod along (I use �nod along� loosely, �cause this is so freakishly groovy I�m almost on the verge of headbanging, which is unusual for this type of music). With the addition of the spaced-out synthesizer sounds and the unorthodox vocals it�s a terrific opener, one that ends with a bang; just fastforward about 6:15 into the track and you�ll be struck with the epiphany of violent and heavy groove.
As The search commence we�re introduced to the more psychedelic landscapes of instrumentalism, and they are vast. This track also has a duet touch as a female vocalist is added to the fold of everlasting weirdness. The two vocals work excellent together, as the already psychotic male shouts are enhanced in its psychosis by the addition of equally drugged-out female magic. It�s superb, but sounds very different in comparison to the previous track.
S:T Erik mix heavy-as-hell stoner groove with ambient keys and long sections of instrumentalism. When they really get going it�s catchy, energetic and as heavy as a mammoth. But I have to admit that the spaced-out keys gets too spacey for me to fully handle, it sounds as though going through space trapped in an old arcade game; and I�m just way too sober to handle it. The instrumental sections are on a couple of occasions a little too long, but that�s just �cause I�m not used to this type of psychedelic music, which feels like taking a camp of stoned hippies from the 70ies, jamming them into an arcade hall consisting of nothing but old Asteroid games and with Black Sabbath as the soundtrack. As I said I�m way too sober to handle it, but I can�t help but to love it.

Tracklist:
01. Goddess
02. The search
03. Your highness
04. Black wall
05. Swan song