This review marks an exciting moment for me, as this will be the first in a series of reviews gauging the quality of releases from up and coming doom label Solitude Productions from Russia. I am always excited to hear new material, but I must admit to being particularly psyched about a label whose sole purpose is the genre that I love. The first, and possibly best, of the bunch is Heavy Lord, hailing from the Netherlands, with their second release From Cosmos to Chaos, their first outing on Solitude Productions.

First, let me start by conveying the unique aspect of the sound captured by Heavy Lord on this album. The band, unapologetically and admittedly, pays homage to the likes of Electric Wizard, Sleep, Reverend Bizarre and of course Black Sabbath. However, their music has a dark and sinister quality that makes them anything but a carbon copy stoner doom outfit. Of course, as with any stoner doom band worth listening to, the riffing on this album is nothing short of outstanding, aided by a solid production effort. The vocals of bassist Steve (no last name given) generally sound like they take a cue from Lee Dorrian, but tend to branch into other styles as well.

This album begins with the massive and thunderous Elephaunt, an 11+ minute stylistic showcase of everything Heavy Lord has to offer. After an opening riff barrage, the dark quality comes into play around the seven-minute mark. The descending clean riff is an adventurous choice, and one that works very well. There are moments in closing minutes where the riffs are a little too drawn out for my taste, but this is far from a major problem.

The speed is dialed up on Scorpion Sting, a straight-ahead Sabbath-esque jaunt. The presence of Wout, the drummer (or battery, as he is referred to by the band), is felt as the increase in speed gives him a chance to showcase his skills behind the kit. Perhaps the most inherently heavy track on the album follows in the comically titled The Ego Has Landed. An absolute gut buster of a riff is the driving force, and, coupled with the best vocal performance on the album, particularly in the chorus, makes for a standout track. The second half drops off a bit, as I could have definitely done without the Tasmanian Devil screech by guitarist Wes Lee, but the chaotic guitar tradeoff between Lee and fellow founder Yev (again, no last name given) make up for the vocal issue. The next track, One is a Billion, is multi-speed affair that sees Steve’s vocals experiment with a death metal growl. I must say, for all the different vocal attempts, the band would be much better off sticking to the Lee Dorrian meets Lemmy approach they primarily employ, as the other styles just don’t fit the music near as well.

Another monstrous epic is found in the closer, While Empires Burn. Clocking in at 10+ minutes, it begins with the most sinister portion of the album, a low and soft guitar line accompanied by deeply sung vocals. Around three minutes in, Wout’s drums charge in alongside a mind-numbing scream that is truly evil sounding. My only problem with this hefty package is that it drags on too long. This song could have easily been shortened to around seven minutes without sacrificing anything. Again, this is only a minor complaint.

From Cosmos to Chaos is a fresh and welcome take on the genre of stoner doom, one that can easily become stale. Besides the vocals, which will take some getting used to for some, the musicianship is superb. Heavy Lord are very adamant in their stripped down approach, as seen by their description of themselves as "NO keyboards, NO female singers and NO violins and other bullshit – this is ultra heavy doom from the underground". Although I get a good chuckle from this description, I cannot argue with it. This band exudes doom in its purest sense, introducing new wrinkles while still following the formula laid down by the originators of the genre. Though I have yet to sample the rest of the Solitude Productions catalog, we certainly got off on the right foot with Heavy Lord. Fans of stoner doom must check this out, as not doing so would be a severe disservice.