The Spirit of ‘71

Orchid – Through The Devils Doorway

Church Within Records – 2009

Muthas, I don’t know how I missed this news but apparently a time machine was invented in San Francisco in 2009 by the band Orchid. Clearly these guys took a trip to 1971 and snuck into Island Studies in London while Black Sabbath was recording Master of Reality. Having soaked up the all the crushing doom that they could, the band hopped back in the time machine and headed back to 2009. Using all that they had learned on their trip through time, Orchid crafted the Through The Devils Doorway EP.

Maybe that’s not exactly what happened, but I'm having difficulty figuring out how Orchid managed to record 4 songs that perfectly capture the essence of Black Sabbath circa 1971. The guitar, bass, drums and vocals are all superb and the songs themselves are extremely catchy. The EP roars to life with “Into The Sun” which has an intro that recalls “Symptom Of The Universe” with its pummeling riffs. “Eastern Woman” is up next and it’s one of the hookiest songs I have heard all year. It will burrow into your brain and live there for days on end. It’s a totally badass jam of 70’s guitar tone heaven. Check it out below:

“Son Of Misery” is the next cut and it sails by quickly as it’s only 2:14 minutes in length. I really wanted this song to crank for about 8 minutes but alas, that was not to be. It’s a mellower tune a la “Planet Caravan” but it’s still two minutes of perfection. Lastly, Orchid serves up “No One Makes A Sound” which is an amazing track that obliterates lesser quality metal with its grinding riffs and hooks. This is doom metal of the highest quality and execution. These guys are talented as all hell.

Unfortunately it is somewhat difficult to obtain this EP at an affordable price. Luckily for us, the good folks at All That Is Heavy stock it for $10.99 and you can also get it from iTunes for a mere $3.96. Also, Orchid have released the LP Capricorn this year and it’s more of the same superb doomy goodness. The Metal Blog Of Metal will review the LP at a later date.

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The Bottom Line: If you are a fan of Black Sabbath, Trouble, Witchfinder General, Candlemass and doom metal in general you must buy this EP. This band deserves your support for gracing the Metal world with these 4 amazing cuts.

As Always, MAKE MINE METAL.