The Zodiac Sessions combines the Through the Devils Doorway EP and the full-length Capricorn CD from San Francisco stoner rock/metal upstarts Orchid. With the band now signed to Nuclear Blast and creating a ton of buzz, it makes total sense to reissue these first two releases in one remastered, glorious package. For those of you that have yet to succumb to the wonders of Orchid, imagine a mix of vintage Black Sabbath, Pentagram, Led Zeppelin, and Dust, all through a bong smoke haze with lava lamps bubbling in the background. Theo Mindell has a voice that's like a higher pitched Ozzy, and Mark Thomas Baker unloads wave after wave of Tony Iommi inspired brontosaurus riffs over the crushing rhythms of bassist Keith Nickel & drummer Carter Kennedy.
There are so many outstanding tunes here, from the creepy vibes of "Black Funeral", to the out and out Sabbath styled swinging doom of "Capricorn", there's just delicious '70s heaviness at every turn. "Down into the Earth" lumbers along like a long lost reject from the Master of Reality sessions, and "Masters of it All" has plenty of eerie psychedelia elements to give a full on mind trip to lovers of the wacky weed. In the end though, it's all about the riffs on an album like this, and just about every tune contains no shortage of booming, pulverizing Gibson SG delivered power chords from Mr. Baker, especially on the headbanging fury of "No One Makes a Sound".
As I'm fairly new to the wonders of Orchid, only just discovering them with last years The Mouths of Madness album, I'm amazed by just how excellent this early material is. No doubt this will be on regular rotation here at the Pardo household over the weeks and months ahead!
Track Listing
1. Eyes Behind the Wall
2. Capricorn
3. Black Funeral
4. Masters of it All
5. Down into the Earth
6. He Who Walks Alone
7. Cosmonaut of Three
8. Electric Father
9. Albatross
10. Into the Sun
11. Eastern Woman
12. Son of Misery
13. No One Makes a Sound
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