Leif’s a busy guy. Which is surprising since he promised us all he needed a break from his main vehicle of doom, Candlemass. While he’s stepped away from performing with the three-decade-old gloom godfathers, he still had time to record an EP with them this year (‘Death Thy Lover’, Napalm Records), finish Avatarium‘s second album late last year (‘The Girl With The Raven Mask’, Nuclear Blast) and form a new band, The Doomsday Kingdom.

The band’s demo EP ‘Never Machine’ will be out on November 25 via Nuclear Blast marking Leif’s new reign of doom metal.

“I’m so happy that things are moving in the right direction,” Leif comments. “I’ve been putting my heart and soul into the new EP and album for about two and a half years now. So it’s very relieving to finally see an end to all the work. Soon the world will hear the sound of the catacombs coming to life! “I’m currently doing the final touches to the album. It is recorded, mixed and mastered, and has come out absolutely fantastic! Just a few graphic things left with photos, booklet etc. and then it will be ready. I’m very proud of this album! It sounds so good, therefore the visual aspect … Read More

With a bizarrely titled debut album on a hot label, a penchant for really bad puns, and eye-popping, Jesús Franco-referencing cover art, Salem’s Pot has made an immediate impression in early 2014, not the least of which is thanks to the actual music therein, a lysergic combination of hazy psychedelic rock and woozy, lumbering doom metal. When asked about what inspired the Swedes to venture down the path forged by Black Sabbath and Hawkwind, guitarist/singer Knate’s answer is succinct. “Blues and hallucinogens; the same thing that inspired those bands. For us it always feels like they were on to something and they wanted to tell the truth. Whatever the path we choose, in the end, for us it’s all about reality. We live in a small town where it’s really hard to find people to play with, but we found each other eventually. We were all lonesome riffers that just worshipped sleazy old slasher-movies before we came together. But we still don’t have a permanent drummer so we haven’t really come together completely just yet.” Released on California’s EasyRider, a record label that’s on a seriously impressive roll these days, ‘…Lurar Ut Dig På Prärien’ might be comprised of only three … Read More

It’s increasingly hard for this life-long psych-doom obsessive to get excited about new bands, but the new generation is starting to spin some interesting tales. One such act is Sussex space rock three-piece Riddles. There is a definite garage-psych vibe going on with catchy raw fuzz leads cutting through some very British vocal delivery. It’s refreshing stuff. “We are definitely influenced by our own sound,” fills in charismatic mainman Jimi Riddle. “But there are some key bands that brought us to find it, like Hawkwind, Stooges, Motörhead, early Sabbath, Pentagram and Orang-utan. But it doesn’t end there, there are so many great genres and powerful bands to come out of the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s, it’s almost impossible to list every band that made us create the vibe we have.” The broad range of influences seems to have allowed them to create a distinct sound thus far, but are they part-timers or ambitious chaps? “We all put a lot of time and effort into this band and I think we all believe in it as its own entity. You get back what you put in and so we’re putting a lot into it. It’s like a plant, we’re giving it … Read More