Back on the Road to Dessertfest
All right time to see what all the fuss is about. I know many are going crazy because they get to see the German psychedelic rock band Colour Haze for the first time in the US with their DesertFest show. I mean this band has been around the block since starting in 1994 and I am impressed with the amount of music they have released. So, I decided to dig in and see what is driving the Clean and Sober Stoner crazy. All I can say is that all the songs I have listened to are not nearly as heavy as some of their counterparts that will be at the show. As I perused their latest album, I kept coming up short on songs with lyrics. The boomer suggested She Said back from 2012 as the ultimate Colour Haze. I started there and then also listened to Turquois from their latest release in 2022.
She Said is another 18-minute epic. You’re killing me smalls. Such long songs take some dedication. Stoner Doom fans must all have ADHD and take their Adderall on a regular basis to stay tuned into such great music for so long. And again, this music is so different than the others I have been digging into.
I mean She Said starts with a wind chime and is practically something you could go to sleep to. Many of their songs have melodic lyrics and hypnotic rhythms that I can see why those who may be slightly fuzzed may really enjoy. At 740 you get into drums and a rhythm change and finally some lyrics. Not that I could understand them. But they were on key and fit with the song. Also, there is a great guitar solo at the 13-minute mark that is impressive and the drums here sound more like a mix of a regular drum set and bongo drums. Then at the 17-minute mark just when you think they are going to take you home they switch it up and groove through the end with something that is a bit heavier and more aligned with the stoner rock genre. Overall, the musicality of this song was impressive. And shows the range of skills of the musicians.
Turquoise starts with something that sounds like cutting metal then enters the melodic guitars that are telling you a story and then something that sounds sort of like a flute. Drums and bass come in at 1:15 but only to punctuate the end of the sentences. They are used here to add flair. Then at 2 minutes you add in some keyboard and begin much more of a psychedelic groove.
Overall this is a really great song and the fact that there aren’t any lyrics doesn’t matter because the music is speaking to you. It has a great stoner rock sound at the end with the grungier guitars and bass really driving you through to the end. The songs seem to be this mix of stoner rock and something more like Jimi Hendrix or Blues/Rock mix. And Colour Haze likes to play and experiment with their sounds. They provide interested in using the unusual to create something that makes you want to wait and see what they provide on the next track.
To say the least this group is impressive and likely will be much better on my eardrums than maybe some of their peers. I can appreciate this music and found it a pleasant surprise to the Stoner Rock group.
