Grey Stag – ‘The Boats’ (Self-Released)

By DJ Monk

I first came across Dublin trio Grey Stag a little more than a month ago, when they impressed me with what I described at the time as their “big, pumping, doom-laden grooves as thick as the river Liffey’s sludge banks”. So, imagine my delight, and sense of anticipation when this, their second EP, popped through the letterbox here at ÜRHQ. And that anticipation was not an anti-climax, as ‘The Boats’ lives up to every expectation that that live show excited.

The opening riff of ‘Skyburner’ washes over you with the force of a tsunami, before sucking you deep into its intense groove with the seduction of the retreating tide, it’s lead riff crashing and crushing in equal measure, while the vocal snaps and spits in your face, absolutely how-fucking-daring you not to come along with it. The rhythm broils and tumbles in the background, the bass line punching through in complementary jabs of subjugation that would make Anthony Joshua hope he never has to face their ferocity.

The EP transitions between songs with a natural ease and narry a pause for breath, ‘Five Eyes’ and the title track sounding like reprised continuation of their respective predecessors, but no less impressive for that, helping with overall flow of the aural experience as it seethes around you and envelops you in its dark groove, the dank energy of which is as hypnotic as it is enervating.

Despite being only three tracks, ‘The Boats’ is an epic listen, as rich as a roasted Colombian coffee bean, dense and sonorous, bleak yet vibrant and an essential listen for fans who like their doom encrusted in layers of sludge.

‘The Boats’ is out now. You can get your copy HERE.
Grey Stag play a free show at Belfast’s Voodoo, with Strangle Wire, Sinocence and Nomadic Rituals, on Friday 3 January. They then support Elder Druid, alongside Venus Sleeps, Coroza and Slung From A Tree, at Fibber Magee’s in Dublin on Saturday 18 January.

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