Generous Maria & Skua Split CD
2001 - Custom Heavy/Alone Records
By Mark Bridgeman
I'd been wanting to hear Generous Maria for a long time before getting my hands on this split with Skua from CustomHeavy.com -- and the wait was worth it.
Staggering across the stage with a glass of bourbon and not spilling a drop - that's Generous Maria. This is groove with its flares on.
'Strict Nurse', their first track, is coolness personified. Goran Florstrom drips rock honey vox down the mic while Ulrik Nillson and George Winnberg rock away on the geetars, and Jesper Klarqvist (bass) and Mats Ohlsson carry the balls behind them. 'Like A Dog With A Frisbee', with its tongue deep in cheek lyric (like a dog with a frisbee, never letting go) keeps the groove up, and has some very nice shredding in the middle section as well. 'Lack Of Faith' is much of the same groovng fuzz rock, with Florstrom taking a more lowky voc approach, reminding me somehow of Iggy Pop (tho' I'm probably the only one who'll see it!).
Their final track on this split, 'Brother Pain', has the strongest Sabbath-esque feel of all the tracks, reminding you (in case you've missed it), that this is a disc made for the 'heavy music' label. It's layered, it's catchy - it's the Black Crowes with nuts the size of bulldogs, brewed in a stoner rock stew, and played through a blown-out amp to a room of mushroom-lovin' hipsters. And yes I'm generalising! They aren't my favourite heavy-music-band (Slow Horse takes that), but they rock in that slow, liquored up way that the best pub bands with eyes on greatness do.
4/5
www.stonerrock.com/generousmaria
Onto Skua, who here have 4 tracks recorded in 1999 as demos. This 3 piece from Stockholm, who've been going at it since 98, provide what at first seems like stock stoner fair, but with the odd twist and psychadelic tweak, it manages to break from the usual Kyuss-inspired mould. Gasping, shaking vox over detuned, mind-surging guitars. 'Spittin' is like being locked in a closet, with its introverted guitar work and restrained vox, to be let out to the open air of 'Blue Temple', with its more freestyle riffing.
Some of the playing is not always up to scratch - at times the drums seems half a beat behind. Yes, it detracts from the overall effect, but is just one flaw in Skua's half of this CD.
Check them out - definitely one of the more interesting bands in the 'stoner' scene. They have dynamics in their song writing that most plug-in-and-riff bands lack, and aren't afraid to seemingly-float with their music.
3.5/5
www.stonerrock.com/skua
www.customheavy.com
2001 - Custom Heavy/Alone Records
By Mark Bridgeman
I'd been wanting to hear Generous Maria for a long time before getting my hands on this split with Skua from CustomHeavy.com -- and the wait was worth it.
Staggering across the stage with a glass of bourbon and not spilling a drop - that's Generous Maria. This is groove with its flares on.
'Strict Nurse', their first track, is coolness personified. Goran Florstrom drips rock honey vox down the mic while Ulrik Nillson and George Winnberg rock away on the geetars, and Jesper Klarqvist (bass) and Mats Ohlsson carry the balls behind them. 'Like A Dog With A Frisbee', with its tongue deep in cheek lyric (like a dog with a frisbee, never letting go) keeps the groove up, and has some very nice shredding in the middle section as well. 'Lack Of Faith' is much of the same groovng fuzz rock, with Florstrom taking a more lowky voc approach, reminding me somehow of Iggy Pop (tho' I'm probably the only one who'll see it!).
Their final track on this split, 'Brother Pain', has the strongest Sabbath-esque feel of all the tracks, reminding you (in case you've missed it), that this is a disc made for the 'heavy music' label. It's layered, it's catchy - it's the Black Crowes with nuts the size of bulldogs, brewed in a stoner rock stew, and played through a blown-out amp to a room of mushroom-lovin' hipsters. And yes I'm generalising! They aren't my favourite heavy-music-band (Slow Horse takes that), but they rock in that slow, liquored up way that the best pub bands with eyes on greatness do.
4/5
www.stonerrock.com/generousmaria
Onto Skua, who here have 4 tracks recorded in 1999 as demos. This 3 piece from Stockholm, who've been going at it since 98, provide what at first seems like stock stoner fair, but with the odd twist and psychadelic tweak, it manages to break from the usual Kyuss-inspired mould. Gasping, shaking vox over detuned, mind-surging guitars. 'Spittin' is like being locked in a closet, with its introverted guitar work and restrained vox, to be let out to the open air of 'Blue Temple', with its more freestyle riffing.
Some of the playing is not always up to scratch - at times the drums seems half a beat behind. Yes, it detracts from the overall effect, but is just one flaw in Skua's half of this CD.
Check them out - definitely one of the more interesting bands in the 'stoner' scene. They have dynamics in their song writing that most plug-in-and-riff bands lack, and aren't afraid to seemingly-float with their music.
3.5/5
www.stonerrock.com/skua
www.customheavy.com
