Ghostsmoker - Inertia Cult

Ghostsmoker is a doom metal band from Australia, who formed in 2021. Their latest release, “Inertia Cult,” is their full-length debut; they have also released a demo and an EP.

This album is fantastic! I had, and still having, a really good time with it.  Their doomed out sound is mixed with sludge and blackened elements, resulting in a massive and abrasive album. It's more catchy than music of this weight caliber usually is—it is full to bursting with low riffs and sweltering grooves. 

I love how atmospheric it can be as well, using clean tones to expand the songs or push them in a different direction.  Unlike most bands that inject heavy doses of atmo elements in their songs, Ghostsmoker doesn’t really ebb and flow like a pendulum going back and forth.  Instead, they only give the songs just what they need.  The songs aren’t overly long but neither are they short so in many ways they are to the point, with crisp, tight songwriting without being simple or complicated.  Everything is just right. 

The album wastes little time with the opening song, “Elogium,” choosing to come out swinging with an immediate song.  The first forty sings are slow but supremely heavy—the drums compliment the riffs perfectly with a cadence that shows that even doom bands can get the head banging without the need for speed.  Around the 3:13 mark, the song uses clean tones to get a little dissonant, pushing the drums through liminal spaces before melodic bass arrives to build the song back up to a roaring flames. 

I like the way the “Incarnate,” builds up; clean guitar with extreme vocals crawling out of the production’s mist. It whips to a froth with blackened vocals then a crushing guitar tone.  The first two minutes settle into a slow groove with black metal vocals, tight drums, and bass that digs deep to boost the guitars to a layered sound that fills up the space. Around the 4 minute mark, the song gets a little  unnerving by incorporating whispered vocals, tribal-like bass drums and metallic tinged clean guitar notes. 

The last song, “The Death of Solitude,” has a stormy, thundering effect through the very clever use of distortion; it’s an urgency, one built upon trepidation and danger, that I don’t always hear in doom.  The riffs that begin around the 1:37 mark are INSANE—they kind of come in and out of the background, creating the effect of an alarm going off and on as some kind of warning.  The band holds off on any violent outbursts however; they instead opt for more atmospheric tendencies with a passage of subtle violence that builds off the “alarm” riffs but connects effortlessly into the vocals that explode around the 4:49 mark as the song finally comes to a middle.   This is definitely my favorite song on the album and a stunningly gripping way to end on.  

“Inertia Cult,” is the best album I’ve heard this month.  Its ability to convey moody danger through a dynamic execution of the usage of light and dark elements is potent as hell.  Any fan of doom and/or sludge absolutely cannot miss this album. 

Rating: Excellent