Psychedelic Hard Rock Band Royal Thunder Debut Stream Of New Record 'CROOKED DOORS'

Royal Thunder's sophomore record sees them trading in pained and soulful heavy riffing for moodier, more conflicted terrain.

The difference's between Royal Thunder's debut CVI and their sophomore record Crooked Doors is immediate when comparing their intro tracks.

CVI's opener "Parsonz Curse", named after front-woman Mlny Parsonz, launches into a bong-smoke drenched Sabbathian riff, complete with classic Ozzy-era soulful vocals and meaty bass work.

"Time Machine" on the other hand plays it closer to the chest, siding with a moodier and more psychedelic approach to their signature blend of hard rock, stoner metal, and psychedelia.

Royal Thunder always did play along the boundaries of stoner metal and heavy psychedelic hard rock. Stoner metal is, after all, just a combination of doom metal, a little sludgy grit, classic hard rock riffing, and a whiff of psychedelia for richness; the distance between it and the moodier moments of bands like early Deep Purple or Hawkwind isn't terrible far. This time, Royal Thunder opts to slip closer to the psyched-out hard rock side of things, offering ever-so-slightly cleaner guitar tones and a more balanced mix (as opposed to the heavy rock onslaught of CVI's mix).

All in all, it sits perhaps closer to the moodier end of grunge, like Soundgarden somewhere in the Superunknown-era. And, when it comes to rock records, that's one hell of a good place to be.

Expect a full review closer to the release of the record. This is shaping up to be a favorite of mine for 2015.