elephant tree - s/t

the upcoming records for this blog will all be stoner metal related as i bought a nice little batch over at the ever fantastic kozmik artifactz. again i wasn't looking for anything in particular, just browsing through the new-in-stock section. the first record i came across was elephant tree's self-titled record on magnetic eye. i read about it at the vinyl diaries blog but didn't come as to close to actually listen to the record.

this changed when i saw the record up for grabs with a listening opportunity included in the listing. the band plays a highly infectious brand of stoner metal. lovely psychedelic melodies, heavy and stomping riffs and a great voice. it felt reminiscent of another magnetic eye band i bought a record of not too long ago - summoner. check out the whole album on the tube.

the version i snagged up is a recent re-press from 2017. it is the doublemint with milky clear merge version and looks pretty nice. at first glimpse it looks pretty much mint green but at closer examination the merge pattern is clearly visible, albeit not in the pictures. therefore i took a photo with the record in front of a light source, that did the trick. the rest is a gatefold sleeve and a printed dust sleeve. 100 copies made. magnetic eye records. 2016.

summoner - phoenix

after i bought the latest summoner record "beyond the realm of light", i felt the urge to search what else might be available of this boston based stoner four-piece. they have three full lengths under their belt with "phoenix" from 2012 being the first and "atlantian" from 2013 being the second album. all have been released on magnetic eye records on multiple lovely looking vinyl colour-ways across three pressings each.

it speaks for itself that all of the coloured copies of those re-pressings are sold out, except a few copies from the latest re-press of "phoenix" from overseas (all that is heavy). in such cases i see what second hand markets has to offer. ebay and discogs are the main sources and while the bay didn't have any options, discogs saved my day. a seller from latvia came to my rescue with a very nice looking copy of the third press from 2015.

the album itself lacks a bit of the progressive feel that "beyond the realm of light" comes around the corner with. still "phoenix" is a very solid stoner metal album which doesn't have to hide behind the band's subsequent records. the presentation is more than solid. the artwork by alyssa maucere is stunning. the colour pattern chosen for this third press copy is almost as stunning. awesome cream and red split with grey splatter. a beauty. magnetic eye records. 2012/2015.

summoner - beyond the realm of light

some new stoner metal in my collection. summoner is a band from the boston area an is around since 2011 if information is correct. they already have three albums out but somehow they have managed to elude me for the better part. i think it was during some e-shop surfing through the kozmik artifactz store, when a nice cover art cought my attention. i was intrigued by this dreamy picture of a mountain landscape and it made me want to check them out. after i listened to the first tunes of the album on the summoner's bandcamp page, i was sold already.

"beyond the realm of light" is summoner's third record. chunky riffs, fuzzed out guitars and vocals that reminded me of baroness' singer john dyer baizly. all in all it feels like a mixture of elder and said baroness with a little doom edge added, a combination you can't go wrong with. so of course i needed a vinyl copy of this piece. i checked some options and found a german seller on discogs who offered a coloured copy for a real good price.

the album was, as all summoner records to this point, released by magnetic eye records from the united states. they did some nice colour versions with the coolest being an obi strip edition but i didn't want to go the extra mile and order from the states. my baby blue inside bronze copy looks lovely in its own right. actually colour inside colour patterns work best with the main colour being a clear one. in this case you have to hold the record against the light to see the full effect. great match with the all around great art work. magnetic eye records. 2017.