After bursting on the scene with 2011s Blood Lust and their follow-up Mind Control, the UK's Uncle Acid & the deadbeats return with their third platter of The Beatles-meets-Black Sabbath retro psychedelic metal, The Night Creeper. Curiously enough, the band have dropped the '& the deadbeats' from the album/CD packaging, but the line-up of Kevin R. Starrs (guitars, vocals), Yotam Rubinger (guitars, backing vocals), Vaughn Stokes (bass, backing vocals), and Itamar Rubinger (drums) remains constant. The Night Creeper was recorded live in the studio, and has a much denser, rawer, and seemingly more powerful sound than previous efforts, but it's still the Uncle Acid we've all grown to love over the last few years.
An effort to up the ante as far as delivering crushingly heavy Sabbathian riffs seems to have taken place here, as tracks like "Waiting for Blood", "Murder Nights", and "Downtown", the three lurid tracks that kick off the album attest to, so be on the lookout for some lumbering Iommi inspired mashing right off the bat. The lyrical content continues to be dark, as the band is clearly inspired by horror from both films & novels, with the seething atmosphere and menacing tones of the title cut and "Slow Death" conveying the overall feel the band is trying deliver. "Yellow Moon" features some creepy Mellotron, and "Melody Lane" sees those lush Beatles styled vocal harmonies soaring over bruising doom riffs, a combination that works so well for them.
The band is in the midst of a US tour as this review goes live, so if you have the chance to check them out at a venue near you you'll get to no doubt hear a selection of these songs as well as older favorites. I would have to think that the insistent riffs and haunting Mellotron & organ of "Inside" would go over quite well on the stage, but we shall see what the band has in store for their fans. All in all, The Night Creeper is another very good release from Uncle Acid and the boys.
Track Listing
1) Waiting for Blood
2) Murder Nights
3) Downtown
4) Pusher Man
5) Yellow Moon
6) Melody Lane
7) The Night Creeper
8) Inside
9) Slow Death
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