Cobranoid - Cobranoid

Cobranoid is a metal band from Denver, Colorado who have dropped this banger of a debut self-titled EP.

The FFO section of their press release that was sent to me mentions High On Fire.  Indeed, such a name drop requires a pedigree that few bands in the stoner/doom/sludge genre could back up. 

Despite being a “newer” band with only this album under their belt so far, they back it up extremely well across this blistering six song, 29 minute speed ball of an album.  Their press release also called them a mix of thrash/speed and doom.  Once again, the band straight up nails that sound.

It might be hard to believe that a band could be both doom and thrash but, the truth is, doom doesn’t always have to be slow.  Sometimes it is mid paced with a lot of groove—this isn't funeral or Gothic doom.  Much like HoF, Cobranoid mixes several genres at once and can go from slow to fast at the drop of a hat. 

Regardless of how you may or may not feel about what they call themselves, in the end nothing else matters except their goddamn riffs.  And they have riffs for DAYS.  Hell, they have riffs for YEARS. The guitars, bass and drums fit more groove into these 29 minutes than a lot of bands do in double that time.

The guitars are dirty, muddy, thick, yet have that certain ‘in your face’ attitude that so often graces thrash.  Killer solos, a tone that sounds like an avalanche, and rough vocals all come together for maximum effort.

Since the album is just six songs, I’ll say a little about each.  The opening song is “Flesh and Bone,” a ripper that begins with those aforementioned riffs.  The vocals are menacing and low, somewhere between a death growl and a Crowbar/High On Fire snarl.  The drums are massive and complement the riffs so well that I can’t even decide which one is better.  Why not both?  How about that bass?  Imagine rolling a tire down Mt. Everest and it hitting someone at the bottom.  Pictured that?  Yeah you can hear it through the bass on the song (and album).

The second song, “Shimmer” starts just a few precious seconds after its predecessor ends.  Rather than tip toe around the pieces left behind in the destruction, this song just plows through, breaking already broken bones.  The cymbal work is magical and grabs my head, slamming onto my computer desk (not literally but close enough).  The vocals find a very catchy rhythm, asking the question if something this dense needs to be an earworm?  Yes, yes it does.    From the halfway point all the way to the guitar solo, this song just doesn’t quit.

“Halfwit” marks the album’s halfway and, at this point, it is obvious the band isn’t just heavy for the hell of it.  Well, they might be but they also know how to craft a song that can stay with you even as it crushes you.  After about a minute, the song briefly fades out before coming back twice is a killer. The mid section speeds up quite a bit, the tempo pulling the notes like a whip. It really is impressive how this band has such a cohesive sound even while combining two genres that, on paper, can’t be combined.

“N.E.S.” is the longest song on the album, nearly six minutes.  It’s length allows the band to expand ever so slightly on their sound.  The riffs are more intricate, the drums even more explosive, and the music just seems to have a little longer to marinate. It’s also blazing hot speed metal until around the 1:34 mark when a nice little twist of clean instrumentation cuts through before leading the listener to a swampy, doomed out passage that pulls the ears through like a dredge.

“Doom Shark” is not only one hell of a great title for a song but it’s also pumped with bouncy rhythms and sharp, biting drums.  My favorite part is just after the 3 minute mark when the song sort of hangs back for a few precious seconds before jumping back in with renewed energy  in the form of twisted riffs and a cacophony of drums. 

The final song is the mighty “Hyena,” which goes for broke.  The beginning hammers it out like it’s the last thing they will ever do before settling into a stalwart thrash attack. The middle portion is as intense as anything I’ve heard this year, even being compared to the most extreme.   Wave after wave after wave just hits over and over.  Every now and then I come across a song that is physically exhausting (in a good way) and this is definitely in that category. 

Cobranoid’s self-titled EP is among the best thirty minutes or so you can spend this year.  I promise you as the seconds fly by and rip pieces of your face off, you’ll maintain that grimace as you headbang like it is 1987.