| STEREOCHRIST Perhaps a distant Euro bastard son of Down, Stereochrist rips and shreds with Swamp Thing gusto through a dozen tracks of groove heavy macho rock. Lots of stoner meets doom riffing and elements of anything from Crowbar to Down to Godsplague to Black Sabbath, Live Like a Man (Die as a God) is good raw meat for the hungry carnivores of planet heavy. While nothing in particular stands out as a break-away stellar single, this slab serves up great background music that doesn't wear its welcome out. The English pronunciation in the vocals is a bit accentuated at times but not enough to be overtly annoying. A fair bit in the way of sludge elements here also. Lots of dragging riffs seguing into eccentric gallops, with plenty of jerk and erratic rhythms. This stuff might be argued to groove as much as it rips and tears the bone from sinew. A closing tribute to Down in the form of cover song Bury Me In Smoke rounds out a sturdy album, albeit offering nothing new to the original. Good for what it represents, Stereochrist's second coming is a step beyond their debut but still wavers on the fine ledge of being too artsy for the general consumership. More of a straight-forward approach to the song structures themsleves would've cleared up the boggy swamp to get them further I'd argue. Yet, thumbs up for listening longevity. Starbuck, 26.09.2006
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