Zen Guerilla

Zen Guerrilla is more guerrilla than Zen, if you ask me, although there is a certain lack of formality to be found here. Firmly built on a foundation of bluesy, blowsy hard rock, like so many Sub Pop bands of the past, they manage to hit it hard without really descending into grunge. They may call it stoner rock these days but it is really just blues-based hard rock. ZG inject a nicely sleazy Southern boogie element in several places, which makes it swing just a little more than your average bashing boys, like, say, Screaming Trees, and they even get a little slide-y on guitar with "Shadows.” "Where’s My Halo” is a tasty blend of Canned Heat and "Sympathy For The Devil.” Marcus Durant’s vocals are straight out of the garage, meaning that these yobs would also not sound out of place along side the acts from that other Pacific Northwest titan of indie quality, Estrus.