Stoner rock doesn’t always need a desert to generate that funky powerful dry sound we associate with the genre. It can also come from the likes of a temperate climate like Melbourne, Victoria where the band, Foot, originates. On the tenth day of June, they release their fourth studio album, “You are weightless”, with stoner and psych rock supporting label, Copper Feast Records. They have a base in both the UK and Australia.
Those with a hand in Foot are Paul Holden (vocals, guitars), Dave Pemberton (guitar), Shaun Stolk (bass), and Jack Eddie (drums).
The album cover has an incredulous vibe to it that gives it a funky feel. I find the artwork to be quite unique and appears fresh. A bikini-clad woman floating amongst a planetary scene with a bunch of asteroids. Surreal and so totally unrelatable that it works so well.
Perhaps it expresses a certain sense of freedom of expression and allows us to just go with the ride even though perhaps we are showing some of our vulnerabilities. Or perhaps they just thought, “How can we make this album look as cool as it sounds?”. They in fact contacted an artist via Instagram in Indonesia. They gave the artist, Zulfajri Maulana Budianto, a rough concept of what to do and he went with it.
Drums open up the album setting the groove before the melodic guitars kick in. In the background, the synthesizer plays their chimey chords and a variety of solos. It has the pace and energy of a feel-good rock song.
Gliding through the mists of the music we have vocals cruising around with siren-like ability. He achieves tones that glide on the power of the music and lift your mood up when listening.
When the tuning is dropped to tie in with the style or it can also link well with vocals with the majority of songs played in C-standard tuning.
For the most part, the songs have their songs laden with Psychedelic vibes and a positive attitude. When we hit “Fire Dance” we get that dense rhythmic guitar crunch that we love from the style of music. The songs were recorded largely with Ryan Fallis at Inventions Studio in Footscray, Victoria, and also with some overdubs at Paul’s home.
“Gold Lion” is a great rendition of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs song that applied it from the Foot twist to it a song lying the pop-rock genre.
If you need an album that gives a sense of place and lifts you, then this album has the potential to draw you in and shoot your consciousness into the asteroidsphere. And there are more albums to back to and get even more of the experience.
Rating: 4/5
- Bitter
- Caged animal
- Fire Dance
- Gold Lion
- I’ll Be Just Fine
- Impossible
- Scared
Foot: Facebook
Release Year: 2022
Label: Copper Feast Records
Category: Album
Country: Australia
Reviewed by Byron Lotz