| Few bands have earned the distinction of composing “the soundtrack for the Apocalypse”, but according to Maximum Volume Music Oakland’s stoner metal quartet Blackwulf have done just that… and convincingly so. The sold-out successes of 2015’s Oblivion Cycle on Ripple Music and 2014’s Mind Traveller on Wickerman Records prompted metal luminary Lars Ulrich to pick up copies of the albums and publicly name check the band.
Combining vintage ’70s head banging riffs with doom cloaked soundscapes and vintage heavy metal and hard rock, Blackwulf is bracing for even greater heights of heaviness with their upcoming Ripple Music follow-up, Sinister Sides. The eight-song album comes complete with gatefold and coloured vinyl, and finds The ’Wulf ambitiously venturing further afield, deep into vintage rock, sonic jams and dark breakdowns, all the while keeping one matted paw within their established heavy riff-orientated approach.
The band – unchanged from its original line-up since 2012 – features singer Alex Cunningham, guitarist Pete Holmes, bassist Scott Peterson, and drummer Dave Pankenier. However, something classic is almost made new again for joining Balckwulf on Sinister Sides as a very special guest is lead guitarist and Bedemon/Pentagram co-founder Geof O’Keefe. O’Keefe’s discovery and subsequent affinity for the band led Blackwulf to invite him to play guitar (and even a gong) on their new record… and play he most certainly did. Bringing his trademark doom vibrato and signature heaviness, O’Keefe features on three tracks from the album; ‘Dead to the World’, ‘Sinister Sides’ and a blistering cover of the Cream classic ‘Sunshine of Your Love’. Additionally, O’Keefe will also be storming the stage alongside the band at the official Ripple Music showcase at the South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin this March, where Blackwulf plan to officially unveil Sinister Sides.
Taking to the road with gigs across the US and jumping across the pond to the UK for a short run anchored by an appearance at Desertfest London in May 2018, Sinister Sides is released worldwide on 23rd February 2018 on Ripple Music.
Stream and share the title track ‘Sinister Sides’, featuring Bedemon/Pentagram’s Geof O’Keefe here – https://soundcloud.com/ripple-music/blackwulf-sinister-sides |
