Whenever you listen to the album of a band you’ve not heard of before, there is always that excitatory expectation on what side of Newton’s cradle your feelings will be: swinging towards it or veering away. In this case, the self-proclaimed “upbeat doom” style rockers from Brisbane hook you straight up.
Originally, Gutterfire brought out their debut album, “Chill”, in September of last year, and are now back with the digital release on 25 March 2022 under the care of WormHoleDeath records. The album was originally recorded in Bedlam Records, Brisbane, produced by Brock Weston (the drummer from ‘Bugs’) and mastered by Michael Lynch (Midnight Oil, Something For Kate, Jimmy Barnes & 1200 Techniques).
Providing the firepower in the gutters we have Photon Jon (vocals), Az Stonely (guitars), Dudeman Belcher (guitars), ClayBo (drums), and Mike Stevenson (bass).
Opening the album they wanted to knock you off kilter by throwing crunchy and chunky doom fuzz at you, so they start with a slow-paced number with raw power. The opening sound of a bell peal adds an extra dimension to the intro and fresh sound to catch your attention. After that, the pace picks up leading into the different vibe of “Chill”, which packs a wallop of pace and controlled frenzy before being introduced to Photon Jon’s vocal style. When asked, he draws on many diverse influences, including Black Sabbath, QOTSA, the Dead South, and surprisingly, The Beatles and Kylie Minogue.
Checking out their music videos, these guys like to have some fun and provide some quirk. When it comes to their album are they came through on that too. They provided a brief for the album cover to their good friend, Kira Fetting, who also did the artwork for their first single, “For Hela”. What she returned was quite different to what they had asked, and much better, so they threw out their brief and adopted the artwork for whom they call “The Doomcock”. His pierced beak, stern poise, and malevolent stare suggest this guy knows how to throw things down and get things done.
It’d be hard to pigeonhole their style, slap a label on it, and explain it to others. Inspirations are derived from a vast array of metal and rock ranging from Converge to Clutch. Wisps of each influence blow gently past like a hurricane providing enough diversity to pique your interest. Playing primarily with dropped tunings, the low tone provides a depth to complement the style and compliment the vocals, especially when they slow things down, and Doomcock looks on with approval. In the songwriting process, they all managed to take hold of a base track and help morph into something. With the quality of the production in such a way that their distinctive flare comes through. Using layered sounds and counterpoints they have built up the songs from a rudimentary idea into a layered cake with upbeat doom icing.
Every song comes at you from a different angle incorporating different elements to create individually wrapped treats. Doom does creep into the songs here and there, but in a way that is more a desert sessions stoner rock style. “Rhythm of the End Days” opens up with wailing guitars and frenzied drums before the vocals come along to steady the nerves that’ll have you shaking your ass to the rhythm of the ending, to paraphrase one of the lines in the song.
“Recovery” provides a solid track with little flutterings of guitar-like hummingbirds and then a Dudeman solo. I also felt as is a Kings of Leon lilt to Photon’s voice, which then lends some familiarity to the sound but only as an acquaintance. He otherwise has a unique tone to it and provides fresh vocal-driven melodies.
Their lyrical content is derived from many sources. Most of it is quite personal and sometimes too private for an explanation. “Eyes Up” is basically an apologetic song sung to the youth to say that despite what world they have been left with, things will be ok and you’ll get your turn to shape the future. Check them out on Facebook as they have a track-by-track explanation on their page.
A feature of this album is its variation. So often a band will focus on what they do best and just do it all the time. These guys have taken the time to invest in creating an album that carries different attitudes throughout the album and brings forth an album that will open your mind.
- Jack O’ the Leaves
- Chill
- This is fine
- I’ll be Along
- The Day Justice Died
- Recovery
- Shitbag
- Rhythm of the End of Days
- Bonfire
- Eyes Up
Gutterfire: Facebook
Release Year: 2022
Label: Wormholedeath Records
Category: Album
Country: Australia
Reviewed by Byron Lotz
