SilentScream213 One of the reasons I don’t like Trad Doom is because it is not inherently dark and melancholic like the rest of Doom. It’s not carried by gloomy atmospheres but rather slow riffage that sounds more akin to lethargic Heavy Metal. For me personally, if I’m gonna be listening to repetitive and lethargic music, it absolutely has to be emotionally or atmospherically evocative. In those instances, the plodding tempo works wonders to elevate the foreboding sense of despair or tragic melancholy. Otherwise, slow, lethargic music to me is just boring.

Sleep’s style of “Stoner Doom” is everything I dislike about Trad Doom multiplied and expanded upon. Slow, groovy, repetitive riffs that do nothing and go nowhere. No atmosphere, no emotion, the riffs even sound “happy” a good portion of the time. I don’t hate happy music (my J-Pop ratings can attest to that) but as far as slow, heavy music goes, happy is the last thing I want to hear. There is absolutely nothing “Doom” about this record, it’s just slow. Sections of improvisation are common, though they never stray from the formulaic riffs. The guitar solos in these sections are usually very poor as well.

The lyrics are almost interesting. A line or two will paint an intriguing picture of some fantasy desert land… but then it trails off into something completely unrelated, probably trying to evoke hallucinatory drug experiences. It ruins any sort of worldbuilding or narrative I think they could have otherwise succeeded in.

I’m going to throw out a wild claim, but I think if some people stopped listening to these sorts of albums while on drugs, they might realize how mundane they are without… outside influence. Not to say people can’t enjoy the grooviness of this sort of thing in total earnest, but I do believe it’s probably overrated due to that sort of influence.

aglasshouse A humble step forward for the band, Sleep's second album Sleep's Holy Mountain is a wholehearted tribute to 70's Black Sabbath, with faster riffs and ultimately faster songs. It's actually quite a shock when going from Volume One to this, due to the lighter (or just less somber atmosphere) of this record. As I said before this is mainly a full-blown incorporation of Sabbath's sound (circa debut/Paranoid), from the completely changed vocals of Cisneros to a more Osbourne style yell, to the faster guitar riffing to create a more streamlined sound. Don't let that turn you off in the slightest, because this album rocks hard, with perhaps more vigor than Volume One. With a newfound confidence, Sleep goes full steam ahead!

Warthur Apparently, the recordings on Holy Mountain were demos recorded by Sleep in the hopes of landing a contract with Earache - and Earache turned around and released them as-is. Whilst it's nice that they had such confidence in the band, I can't help but think giving them the opportunity to have a crack at recording these songs with a professional budget would have been better in the long run - whilst Holy Mountain is an impressive appropriation of the Black Sabbath sound it does suffer from rather average-to-mediocre sound quality and production. We know from Dopesmoker (AKA Jerusalem) just how crushingly heavy Sleep could be when they had proper studio time; it's a shame they never had the chance to apply that to these songs.

Kingcrimsonprog Sleep, much like Kyuss were a pioneering force in Stoner Rock, who unfortunately broke up before they really got their due, and have since moved on to form the basis of other important bands.

Their second album Holy Mountain (also known as Sleep’s Holy Mountain) is a touchstone of the genre, the sort of must have album that everyone who likes this type of music either owns or should own.

The production value is absolutely minimal, the lyrics are pretty poor sang with no great musicality and the album is absolutely bursting at the seems with Black Sabbath homage.

Despite all of this, Sleep’s Holy Mountain is a good album, with big riffs and contains the majority of the band’s best loved songs. The band’s big riffs mixed with loose jam-feel style works wonders on this record. The 1970s influence comes through on everything from songwriting to the tonal choices and what amplifiers they use.

For most people, the reputation of the album alone is enough to warrant interest. If you are unsure whether or not the album is for you, listen to the album opener `Dragonaut,’ and that should give you a very good indication of the direction of the record.