Howl

The thing about the SXSW music festival is despite careful planning, you will never be able to see all the bands you want to see, even if you were in the same venue, but happened to be in the wrong room at the wrong time. Since signing with Relapse last year and releasing a three-track, self-titled EP, coupled with the success of their appearance at this year's SXSW, people have been anticipating their full-length debut, Full of Hell. While in the same vein as the doom-laden Kylesa, Zoroaster and some early High on Fire, what the Rhode Island band might lack in flourishes is mitigated by an attention to texture and depth. Like the title of their album, tracks like "Asherah" feature heavy-as-fuck riffage and a bottomless rhythm section that despite their relative simplicity, create a wall of sound. While Full of Hell is an album definitely worth checking out, this is definitely a band whose live set is almost guaranteed to blow people away. Next year at SXSW, plan the show schedule a bit more carefully.