Artist: Sheavy
Label: Music Cartel
Release Date: 5/16/00
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Title: Celestial Hi-Fi Artist: Sheavy Label: Music Cartel Release Date: 5/16/00 |
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Abyss's Review:
Hey! I got a great name for a stoner rock band! How about Anachronism? Now I realize that exhibits my prejudices just as much as anything else, but this is the first band of this type of genre we've done, and I feel the need to get my bias out in the open so that all the true stoners out there can just blow me off rather than making them put their bongs down long enough to jam my computer with hate emails. (These are all good natured jokes by the way, sarcasm is so hard to get across in this medium.)
The problem isn't just that it's hard for one who likes "extreme" music to embrace this as a form of metal. Sure it's completely derived from Sabbath, but it's just that it sounds, more often than not, like the soundtrack of some 70s TV movie. Like the soundtrack to "Dazed and Confused" if the producers weren't able to acquire the rights to any well-known songs.
"It sounds, more often than not, like the soundtrack of some 70s TV movie." Of course, that's my view on the scene as a whole and not just this particular band. And it may seem harsher than it's meant because I do actually enjoy this music. I have been a long time Monster Magnet fan, but unfortunately, since they've achieved a certain amount of exposure, when I say that to those really into this scene, they just chuckle. And that's too bad because I really considered MM to have one of the more unique sounds in this genre. But anyway, enough bitching. These guys have the vibe down, and are among the better stoner bands. There is no way not to compare them to Sabbath, and no they aren't as good (duh). But hey, if you don't want to be compared to Sabbath, don't play this music, and if you really don't want to be compared to them, don't get a singer that sounds like Ozzy.
That aside there are some good, if not original, ideas on this record. My favorite is the riff on "What's Up Mr. Zero?" To me this is the stand out song, being catchy and interesting at the same time. The rest of the album is quite good, but it never grabs me and pulls me in. For those of you who don't share the same prejudices as me, I would recommend this because they strike me as truly having their heart in their craft. I just have to find a better appreciation for that craft.
"There are some good, if not original, ideas on this record."
Death's Review:
1) Lesson Number One: You can sound like Black Sabbath yet still lack their magic.
"Lesson Number One: You can sound like Black Sabbath yet still lack their magic." Remember that song "Sold My Fortune" from a number of years back? What was the name of that band, Sugartooth? Something like that. Anyway, most people who heard that song thought that it sounded like Black Sabbath. And the singer, in his own way, sounded like Ozzy. Cool, eh? I mean, if you're gonna sound like somebody, you might as well evoke almighty metal gods, right?
Still, there was something missing from that band. Don't get me wrong -- just because you are one of a few bands who sound like one of the alltime greats doesn't mean your band isn't also great. But that band wasn't great. They sounded like Black Sabbath, yet still lacked their magic.
2) Lesson Number Two: It is not fair to compare another band to Black Sabbath.
"Lesson Number Two: It is not fair to compare another band to Black Sabbath." So I'm running some form of the above drivel over the phone last week, and my buddy totally calls me on it. "Dude," the wise metalhead tells me, "you can't force Sheavy to compete with premium-era Sabbath, decide they stack up unfavorably, and then think you've accomplished a damn bit of anything. You gotta analyze them on their own merits." He was right. I needed to compare Sheavy with the current crop of "stoner" bands, not the alltime gods of the genre. I very quickly realized that when viewed from there, Sheavy fared much better. I guess it's not really fair to compare another band to Black Sabbath.
3) Lesson Number Three: Big satellite dishes are cool.
"Lesson Number Three: Big satellite dishes are cool." So I forgot about Black Sabbath and just listened. And I liked what I heard. Many of the album's tracks flashed moments of brilliance. No matter how much the doomy intro to "Stingray Part II" made me happy, I was even more impressed with "Solarsphere," the song that followed it. Seriously monolithic fuzz-distorted bludgeoning. Guitar solos. Huge drumming. Simple bends in the riffs. Straightforward, to the point. But perhaps a bit too musically unadventurous. Straying about as much as an experimental AC/DC record.
Just kidding. But therein lies this album's eternal downfall: Sheavy lock into some seriously cool grooves, but the songwriting holds back too much (although "At the Mountains of Madness" has a memorable hook.)
Maybe they just need to go through their weird, drug-influenced, deeply artistic mid-period ("Sabbath Bloody Sabbath," "Sabotage.")
Or maybe they're just fine as they are. "Persona" certainly leaves an impression with its inspired dynamic. In fact, Sheavy are an interesting band worth listening to.
Either way, Celestial Hi-Fi is a good record, certainly worth its share of spins in the regular metallic rotation. Try as you might, in the end you can't deny that this kind of music kicks serious ass. Whether you're driving fast or settin' down to throw back a few, this is a great summertime party record with a bit more depth than that statement might imply. Check it out. And remember: big satellite dishes are really, really cool.
Hel's Review:
It’s not too difficult to describe the sound of Sheavy, I can do that in 3 words: classic Black Sabbath. These 3 words pretty much cover all the bases. The production has that same muddled, low-end heavy feel. The vocalist sounds more like Ozzy than I ever thought possible. And so on.
The only point at which I found myself thinking, "this doesn’t sound too much like Sabbath," is the very beginning of the title track, "Celestial Hi-Fi," but that was quickly remedied. By the time the song was a minute in, it was Sabbathized.
"It's not too difficult to describe the sound of Sheavy, I can do that in 3 words: classic Black Sabbath." Now, I can only think of two things that still need to be considered: 1) would I react this strongly if I were supplied with images of the band? and 2) is it a bad thing to be a Black Sabbath clone? To address the first issue, I sought out the band’s website. After viewing several shots of the band recording the very release we are discussing now, I decided that it didn’t make any difference. Certainly, the lingering question is now, how would it translate live, but that is a question for another day.
So, we are left with the question which lies at the heart of all of this. Is it bad to sound so exactly like classic Sabbath? This is a question that will determine your overall enjoyment of the album and one that each of you must decide for yourselves. If it is your opinion that, yes, it is a terrible thing for a band to sound so much like Sabbath, then you will want to avoid Sheavy.
My opinion of this is much less rigid. Certainly, it is always disturbing on some level for a new band to sound so much like an old one. You almost always wonder if it is a result of a lack of originality. I’m not certain that Sheavy lacks originality. Rather, they seem to have picked up right where Sabbath left off. This could practically be their next album, if things had not turned out differently.
"they seem to have picked up right where Sabbath left off. This could practically be their next album, if things had not turned out differently." If that’s what you’re looking for, and you have an insatiable need for stoner rock, then you will be a huge Sheavy fan. Me, I recognize their talent, and I appreciate their efforts. I’m not sure that I will be pulling this one out to listen to on a daily basis, but I can visualize putting it on at a party. I don’t think this has filled a void in my life, but I’m sure somewhere out there someone has been longing for a record just like this. If you, like me, are not that person, but you loved Black Sabbath, give this one a spin. If none of this applies to you, I can’t imagine why you’re even still reading this.
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