As with any other genre, doom metal can be hit or miss. Whether treading the waters of desolate drone or keeping with the tried and true formula of “slow and low”, it can be easy for a band to saunter into the realm of borderline boring or just downright bland. Sometimes we’ll give such recordings an A or B for effort, but secretly wish for something more. Enter Samothrace: a Seattle four piece reinvigorating the world of stoner doom, yet again, with their second full-length Reverence to Stone.
In only 35 minutes, over the course of two tracks, Reverence evokes expansive landscapes of both hope and despair. Fans of Samothrace will of course notice the release has a reworking of the heartfelt and heartsick track “When We Emerge” from their demo released years ago. One can only imagine what a daunting task it is to revisit an already superb track in an attempt to revamp it for a new release. While “When We Emerge” has an undeniably different feel to it’s predecessor, it has indeed “emerged” as a horse of an entirely different color; spectacular and vibrant. To an almost unbelievable extent, the track has been reworked into an even more thunderous and multifaceted entity. While the original manifestation of the track may have been endearing and enjoyable in its rawness, the upper-tier production value only highlights the transformation the song has gone through since it first came into existence.
The second track is the 20 minute long “A Horse of Our Own”, and lends it’s integrity to the swelling feeling of a goal slightly out of reach, a want that’s somehow unattainable. The beautiful, bluesy guitarwork and pained vocals the band does so well are of course put to great use on this track. “A Horse of Our Own”, through lyrics and instrument alike, tells a tale of misanthropy and the unavoidable loneliness of what it is to be human, and in listening to it, one can understand why the first track was reworked for this album. “A Horse of Our Own” seems to stealthily borrow components from “When We Emerge” to complete a story, not only in its musical composition but in its lyrics as well. A tale of life; beginning, struggling, faltering, and ending, as all life is want to do.
If they had deemed it acceptable, Samothrace could’ve easily married both tracks to make a monstrous, one-track album. The fact that this wasn’t the case seems to only solidify the confidence the band has been building over the years. Not only have they beautifully reconstructed an already gorgeous song, they’ve crafted another to accompany it, and have each compliment the other almost seamlessly. After giving a great deal of attention to Reverence to Stone, and the band as a whole since their formation, I can only imagine the amount of satisfaction they must feel after completing such a wonderful piece.
