If you’re ever bored OR writing an article for the fastest growing heavy underground media company (yep, 1000 subs and counting!), meander around the Doom Charts website, pull up the monthly perorations and absorb just how many submissions they review. For those not in the know, those albums/submissions you see made it to print. I’d wager that at least as many submissions didn’t even make the cut.
Let’s assume that every month has 40 – 45 artists who made the cut. Erring on the side of caution, I’m figuring that 300 to 500 submissions were sent in. By the time September rolls around, Doom Charts reviewers, as a collective, have reviewed nearly 2700 submissions for 2024. That, kids, is a LOT of music. It is a lot of GREAT music by great artists. Even the artists who didn’t make the cut of their particular month of release, have made the effort to write, record, submit, and promote their art.
I can tell you that there is a combination of talent, marketing skills, and luck involved in landing on the always amazing Doom Charts. I’m an early fan of Lungburner, and covered their debut EP Embers a few months ago.
LungBurner: Natura Duale. My Album of the Year
Friday the 13th has had a stigma of spookiness and bad luck associated with it for centuries (depending on which AI generated story you click…). I can assure that our pals in Atlanta, Georgia’s LungBurner embrace the spooky, which is why they have zero apprehension releasing their debut full-length album, Natura Duale, on this day.
Vocalist/guitarist, Jens Anderberg explains, “Natura Duale is Italian for the concept of balance of duality within the universe and nature as a whole.” Jens is a deep dude. We’ve developed a kinship of sorts since I reviewed their EP, Embers last year. He is a Chicago transplant to Atlanta, and we share a love of low-tuned heavy music and history.
Since their debut release, LungBurner have become Electric Desert Records artists alongside our friends; CLEEN, Strangled by the Sun, and Slowrepeat.
As we spent the evening waxing poetic on Facebook Messenger, I was listening to Natura Duale; actually, I was experiencing Natura Duale, both audibly and metaphysically.
LungBurner are heavy. Really heavy. However, I want to be absolutely and completely clear that Natura Duale is not just heavy in the sense of delivery. The best way to describe the Natura Duale experience is the text I immediately sent to Shadow of Jupiter vocalist, John Piotrowski while listening to the album for the first time:
Jens from LungBurner sent me the files for their new album being released on Friday. It’s the heaviest, most beautifully violent music I’ve heard outside of Church
of Misery and Celtic Frost… he’s VERY Tom Warrior.”
Once the new car smell wore off, I went back to listening again to see how the album hit me. Friends, I am going to put my reputation on the line right here, right now, and in print. This album, for me, is Album of the Year. Yeppers. AOTY.
My favorite Celtic Frost album is their final studio release, Monotheist. From the very first time I heard Embers, LungBurner takes me to this place. It’s heavy. It’s brutal. It’s serene just the same.
I’m not a Doom Charts contributor, nor do I play one on the internet. However, I can assure you that if you enjoy heavy underground music that has intelligent writing, brilliant performance, and great production, this album is for you.
The guitar work alone is magnificent. The songs have complex chords and phrasing that elevate this album above the typical heavy/doom/sludge that we love.
Drummer Dylan Mincey delivers an amazing performance and keeps things interesting but still slow and evil.
Newcomer to LungBurner is DayGlo Mourning’s, Joseph Mills, who’s low-end contribution to this album is beyond stellar.
LungBurner have brought a brilliant balance of violence and tranquility with this release. A true representation of Natura Duale.
The album will be available via Bandcamp this Friday, September 13.
As I mentioned above, there is a lot of traffic for bands to navigate to even be considered for review and mention on the Doom Charts. I’m confident that this LP will stand with any great heavy underground album. Get Natura Duale in your playlists and thank me later…
If you’re a fan of the heavy underground and how Clean and Sober Stoner/Monster Riff is covering it, we hope you consider buying us a cup of coffee. We are 100% caffeine-fueled in our relentless pursuit of the best Stoner/Doom, with no other psychoactives required.
No Knights Templar were burned during the making of Natura Duale…