Crosss

While known in the Halifax music scene for quite some time thanks to his work in art-leaning indie rock groups like Museum Pieces and Cousins, gloomy grunge outfit Crosss finds multi-instrumentalist Andrew March exploring a darker sonic palette on the band's debut album, Obsidian Spectre. Inspired by the slow-lurching, classic stoner metal and psych-rock of his youth (think Black Sabbath-meets-Saucerful of Secrets-era Pink Floyd), the album blankets listeners with an opaque layer of punishing darkness. Album opener "Lucky Loki" recalls the single coil shredding of the Melvins, while tracks like "Sacred Cow," the Stacy Peralta-inspired "Bones Brigade" and the 20-minute album closer "Will-O-The-Wisp" fully epitomizes the band's doom-tinged take on art rock. While not necessarily a varied mix in terms of production and songwriting, Obsidian Spectre hints at better things to come from the rising power trio.