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Album Reviews : Space Bong – In Doom We Crust

By on April 19, 2015

a1398097757_2It has been six long years since Adelaide’s Space Bong released what is possibly one of the finest pieces of Australian doom, their debut full length The Death of Utopia. This year, finally, after “many years of rehab, isolation and living off-grid” according to the press release, they are releasing their sophomore.

While there is still a few months until it arrives, In Doom We Crust is a damn fine way to pass the time. The first of the three tracks is the title track from the forthcoming album “Deadwood to Worms” and, just like the four lengthy pieces on their debut, it’s a beast. The first five of the fifteen minutes are the grooviest and most stoner-y they have sounded before heading into the more lumbering, crushing Space Bong that people know (or should know). And even then there just seem to be a bit more to it than the Utopia material. There’s no particular stylistic difference separating “Deadwood to Worms” from their past but overall it feels more thought out rather than just huge riffs interspersed with feedback.

The rest of the release is made up of “In Goon We Crust” and a live version of “The Protocols of Space Bong 13-24”. The former is a B-side from the Utopia sessions, and it’s instantly clear as to why it didn’t make it on the album. Their first EP The Passion of the Crust was a much faster animal with most tracks sitting at or under the two minute mark. “In Goon We Crust” is the bridge between that and Utopia. That’s not to say it’s a not killer piece of stoner-meets-crust, and it’s great that it got to see the light of day, but that this EP is the perfect place for it.

While so many releases over time have included live tracks just to pad out the length, “The Protocols of Space Bong 13-24” is five minutes longer than the recorded version and takes on a whole new form as a big wall of sound.

Singles and B-sides are often only worth purchasing if you’re a bit of a fanboy and need every possible recording from said band possible, but In Doom We Crust is a worthy release in it’s own right. Bring on the full album.

About

Mitch Booth is the owner, designer and grand overlord of Metal Obsession. In the few seconds of spare time he has outside of this site, he also hosts a metal radio show over on PBS 106.7fm in Melbourne (Australia) and organises shows under the name Untitled Touring. You should follow him on Twitter.