Lonely Kamel “Shit City” (Napalm Records, 2014)

The year 2014 saw the return of heavy-stoner adventurers
Lonely Kamel with a new, refreshing full length, aptly titled “Shit City”,
published by Napalm Records.

Formed in 2005 in Oslo, Norway, and always dedicated to the
most psychedelic, bluesy and trippy elements stoner rock has to offer, the
quartet (Thomas Brenna on guitar and vocals, Lukas Paulsen on lead guitar,
Espen Nesset on drums and Stian Helle on bass) have managed to keep things
interesting throughout 7 years of recording career and 4 full-length albums to
their name by adding to their sound (or taking away from it, depending on the
case) elements and reminiscences of numerous musical influences, such as doom,
grunge, groove metal and funk, which one could bet make up the band members’
steady diet of listening pleasures when they’re not busy tearing up a stage or
recording a new album with their own, magnificent tunes. All this while
retaining a convincing, immutable style of their own and a personality (onstage
and on record) second to none of the “small”, underground bands in the scene.

The different stages on their path do seem to have a few
linking elements holding it all together (weed, ladies, hallucinations and
friendship being among the most recurring themes in their lyrical archive), and
their style, always easily recognizable, sits them pretty damn comfortably
among the greats of the stoner realm. But the shifts in form and delivery,
especially on a guitar/vocal level, make each new album from these young,
tireless Norsemen as refreshing and interesting a listen as any output from the
most experimental post-metal act. In the simplicity and directness of their
language, Lonely Kamel seem to have found a whole vocabulary which allows them
to effortlessly deliver, riff after riff, and howl after howl, one great album
after the other.

So, after 2008’s easy-going, psychedelic-infused,
self-titled debut, which came out almost unnoticed but left enough an
impression on those who did notice it to guarantee their return, 2 years later,
with the transitional, audacious “Blues For The Dead” (which came out on Kozmik
Artifactz, was never repressed and has now become a vinyl collector’s Holy
Grail. For the record, the label also picked their debut for a well-deserved,
proper vinyl issue.), the Kamel hit it “big” in 2011 when Napalm Records grew
an interest in the band (also following their triumphant appearance at that
year’s Roadburn Festival) and “Dust Devil” saw the light shortly after. This
last album saw the band mix more doom, traditional heavy-and groove-metal than
they’d ever done before, making it their most metallic album to date, and the
fantastic production and flawless performances didn’t do any harm either. “Dust
Devil” has been sitting on my turntable and in my iPod ever since and it’s
always a pleasure to get back to it, every now and then, and listen to the
frantic grooves of “Rotten Seed”, the aggressive grunge of “Evil Man” and
impending doom of “Seventh Son”.

So the question arises: how does a band top their
masterpiece? The answer for singer/guitarist Thomas Brenna  seems to be pretty simple: leave it alone,
hone the craft, sharpen the blade and get out once again with simply everything
you’ve got. So, their return this year with their fourth full-length “Shit
City” sees the band incorporating basically all their songwriting skills,
influences, compositional ideas and unconditional love for heavy music into as
diverse and multi-colored an album as anyone could expect from them.

The title-track opens up on a fast-rocking pace, tinged with
raw grunge fury a-la early Soundgarden, and sets the tone for about 5 minutes
of headbanging stoner delight. Even Brenna’s voice takes on a Chris Cornell-esque
quality, which will make fans of both high-pitched screamers rejoice. From the
start, I noticed a slightly rougher tone in the guitar sound, which is balanced
by a slick production and by the crystalline, cohesive sound of the drums and
bass, which lay down the foundations on which the double set of six-strings can
freely do their thing. The second track, “White Lines”, slows up the pace and
places a catchy melody to the forefront, mellowing things down a bit in
preparation for “Is It Over?” , another ass-kicker, a devilish boogie in the
vein of Blue Cheer’s finest moments. With a dark twist right at its core. “I
Feel Sick” follows, and it feels  like a
wrecking ball hitting the listener right in the gut, much like “Rotten Seed”
did in “Dust Devil”. Side 1 closes with “Seal The Perimeter”: a panzer-like
riff interplayed with spaced-out, doomy verses and bluesy guitar solos, all
carried through by the constant hammering of the drums and bass guitar.

Side 2 opens with what’s probably my favorite track of the
album, “Freezing”. Brenna’s vocals shine once again on this one, this time
shaping almost to an angrier version of Eddie Vedder. Even the guitar work,
melodies and rhythm section take on a Pearl-Jam-on-steroids feel, down to the
slick guitar solo, which could make one Mike McCready green with envy. The
funky heavy blues “BFD” and the tortuous southern rock of “Falling Down” again
display the band’s penchant for melody (the latter track’s beautiful
mid-section), while always reminding the listener just about how crushingly
hard Lonely Kamel can hit when they want to. As if you found out the beautiful
lady neighbor of yours you’ve always wanted to take out on a date works the
hammers at the steel factory. Sexy, to say the least.

“Shit City” ends with a cover song, “Nightjar”, originally
recorded by obscure hardrockers Necromandus and included in their 1996 album
“Orexis Of Death”. It’s a dirge played fast forward, half Black Sabbath and
half Blue Oyster Cult, and the Norsemen here re-interpret its message in their
style, with their signature touch of heavy that always hurts but in a good way.
Another gem in a flawless album.

That wraps up “Shit City” and it’s 40+ minute trip. A trip I
would recommend to anyone who likes their rock dirty, heavy and stoned. Not as
pleasant as “Lonely Kamel”, not as daring as “Blues For The Dead” and not as
crushing as “Dust Devil”, but surely enough a well balanced mix of all the
elements that made those albums so good.

Be sure to catch these guys live next time they’re near you;
I promise, you won’t be disappointed, because on stage they totally own.

“Shit City” is out now on Napalm Records, and available on
LP and CD.

Review made by Tommy Morelli/2014

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