Review Summary: Garden of Heathens sees Heavy Temple at their most developed
As Heavy Temple’s second album starts off with the malevolently titled “Extreme Indifference to Life,” one can see their psych fuzz has taken a decidedly darker turn since 2021’s Lupi Amoris. The band’s strengths remain highlighted in the consistently swirling guitars and High Priestess Nighthawk’s powerful croons, but they are supplemented with a fuller production driven by ominous scales and a bass-heavy mix. It gives them a more upfront doom slant, reminding one of Witch Mountain meets Black Pyramid or if Smoulder took a more stoner angle.
Having eight songs to play with also allows for more variety between songs and gives greater purpose to the band’s meandering jammed out side. “House of Worship” and “Snake Oil (And Other Remedies)” make for strong centerpieces, the former cranking the apocalyptic melodrama with furiously building drums that gradually give way to the latter’s sliding desert speeds. The escalation goes even further as the title track’s tense ambiance crashes into the Soundgarden on steroids grandeur of the eight-minute “Jesus Wept.”
Thankfully, the broader scope only finds more ways to extend their persistent energy. The musicianship retains some insane chemistry, often pushing themselves to frenzied limits but also knowing when to stop and breathe. Closing out with the thrash aspirations of “Psychomanteum” is enough to indicate that they can cut it loose without losing the plot and remain focused without coming off too rigid.
As suggested by that forty-five minutes runtime, Garden of Heathens sees Heavy Temple at their most developed to date. While the musicianship of previous outings was enough to keep the band from falling into standard stoner fare, the more substantial songwriting and doomy outlook make it even stronger. I blew off a chance to see Heavy Temple play here in Indy last month, and this album makes me kick myself for missing out in the best way.
