Reviews
The big review: Damnation Festival 2024
What happened when Nails, Gatecreeper, Cradle Of Filth and a ton more brought the noise to Manchester for the biggest Damnation Festival yet.
Check out the video for The Longing, the latest track from The Skull, featuring former members of Trouble and Cathedral.
One only has to look at The Skull's background to know they do doom metal right. The band's ranks include vocalist Eric Wagner and bassist Ron Holzner of Trouble, as well as longtime Cathedral drummer Brian Dixon. But even without those past bands in their pedigree, the Chicago-based quintet play the kind of thick, syrupy riff rock that will have hazy-brained fans headbanging along in soporific ecstasy.
The band's latest track, The Longing, is just such a song: riffy, plodding, and overflowing with stony atmosphere. The track shows off Wagner's reedy vocals, framing their witchy tones with a lava flow of guitars, bass, and mid-paced drums. The video, directed by guitarist Lothar Keller, has a surprisingly realistic take on the life of The Skull: it features the band bumming around Europe with the vaguely amused and befuddled looks of a bunch of stoned dudes on vacation, coming upon awesome graffiti and weird old graveyards in semi-present amusement.
Describing the video, Lothar says, "The video for The Longing captures The Skull over several years of touring. The footage was shot around the world from different venues, dates, shows, travels and even where we live. We were able to see and experience some really cool places and getting to share all of our experiences with our fans is awesome."
Check out The Longing below
The Skull's new album, The Endless Road Turns Dark, comes out September 7th on Tee Pee records, but is available for preorder. Check out the cover art below:
The band is heading out on a U.S. tour with Weedeater later this month, leading up to Desertfest in Brooklyn, so catch them live at one of the following dates:
18 - Huntington WV @ V Club
19 - Detroit MI @ Sanctuary
20 - Indianapolis IN @ Black Circle
21 - Grand Rapids MI @ Pyramid Scheme
23 - Buffalo NY @ Mohawk Place
24 - Portland ME @ State Theatre
25 - Boston MA @ Middle East
27 - Brooklyn NY @ Desertfest USA