Artist: The Hidden Hand
Label: Meteor City
Release Date: 9/9/03
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Title: Divine Propaganda Artist: The Hidden Hand Label: Meteor City Release Date: 9/9/03 |
Judgment Committee Reviews | Rating |
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Go to Reader Reviews | ||
Abyss's Review:
I'll be the first to admit that I'm hopelessly out of touch when it comes to stoner rock. It's rare that a band in this genre strikes me right off of the bat, and it usually takes a good amount of listens before I begin to appreciate the doomy, bluesy, understated mellowness of a good stoner/doom record. Because of this, I feel like I'm missing out on a genre that I really like (when it's done well) because I just don't have that much time on my hands.
"Their debut album is simply one of the best I've heard in this genre in years." It is for this reason that I'm glad I got a chance to listen to The Hidden Hand for the Judgment Committee, I was able to give it the attention it deserved and it has been a rewarding experience. The Hidden Hand are drummer Dave Hennessy, Bruce Falkinburg on bass and vocals, and the legendary Wino (Spirit Caravan, The Obsessed, St. Vitus) on guitars and vocals, and their debut album is simply one of the best I've heard in this genre in years.
The Hidden Hand's sense of groove is impressive, as they put together seemingly generic bars and transform them into sonic screws that bore into your brain and dance on your thoughts. The songs sneak up on you. When I first heard them, I found them to be a little unremarkable - not bad by any stretch of the imagination, but a little generic. But upon repeated spins I found myself more and more taken in by the understated, yet powerful, songs therein. All of the songs are damn good, letting loose a mellow, but heavy, dose of blues and fuzz, showing how music doesn't have to be extreme to be heavy. My favorite song on the album is "The Last Tree", which I find just plain mesmerizing, an instant classic that seems retro and progressive at the same time.
"It's not the most extreme thing out there, but it hits with a power all its own." I assume that this project will get a lot of coverage amongst the stoner rock scene due to the pedigree of Wino, but I hope that all metalheads in my position, finding less and less of this stuff in their collection, get a chance to give this one a few spins. It's not the most extreme thing out there, but it hits with a power all its own. One word review: Hypnotic.
Death's Review:
I'm generally dismissive of modern day, sloppy, "down and dirty" stoner rock. Black Sabbath absolutely fucking ruled, but after that, I think I had enough. Sabbath's guitar sound was killer, but they also added deep creativity, cool lyrical imagery, first-rate songwriting and bombastic riffage. No one else can really keep up. Trouble came close for a while, but most of these newer bands I can pretty much do without.
"It exceeded my expectations and comes across as a well-produced, professional product."
"If you like stoner rock or Wino's past work - run to the store to get this." That said, the genre has its modern day heroes as well as its classic progenitors. The Hidden Hand is fortunately enough to feature a member who has a strong claim to both. Guitarist Wino has been rocking out forever with bands such as St. Vitus, The Obsessed and Spirit Caravan. His new project, The Hidden Hand, is actually pretty good in its own right. The name refers to the unseen manipulative powers within government or something like that. The music is what you'd expect - power chords, big drums, fuzztones and post-Ozzy vocal wailing. I kinda like it. The lyrics are discernable and are pretty cool too. If you like this kind of music a lot, this is a four or even a five skull record. If you aren't a big stoner fan like me it is still worthy of at least three skulls because it rises above the ordinary. I'd give it three and a half skulls if I could. It exceeded my expectations and comes across as a well-produced, professional product while still retaining the garage feel that this type of music is built on. This is down and dirty, yet catchy and worth your time. Yes, it is just basic stoner rock, by no means essential for the average heavy metal fan. But whatever your taste, from the packaging to the songwriting, this album is well done. If you like stoner rock or Wino's past work - run to the store to get this. You need it in your collection.
Hel's Review:
Stoner rock has really never been my thing. But, with all forms of music falling under the metal umbrella, I try to always make the distinction between good and bad, even when it's not my preferred sub-genre. So I can tell it to you straight - while stoner rock may not be my thing - The Hidden Hand is a great stoner rock band.
"The Hidden Hand clearly has talent to burn."
"I've found myself listening to the dirty distortion with a fondness I didn't really know I had for this kind of music." Recently, the news was announced that the Obsessed was reforming with the original members except Wino. So where's Wino? You guessed it - he's in The Hidden Hand. After hearing the debut studio effort from this three-piece, I consider his decision to have been a sound one, as The Hidden Hand clearly has talent to burn. The riffs are monstrous, the production is dirty (a standard for this genre), and the lyrics are intelligent and catchy as hell.
Though this is not the kind of record I would generally leave spinning in my CD player, I have a feeling I'm going to have some difficulty when it's time to replace this one. I've become attached to it in a strange way, and I've found myself listening to the dirty distortion with a fondness I didn't really know I had for this kind of music. See, you learn something new every day. Sure, maybe the recent blow to my head has something to do with my benevolent outlook on this band. But maybe, just maybe, they are really fucking good. Check it out and decide for yourself.
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