Vinyl Review: "Where The Merfalo Roam" by Into The Storm

Where The Merfalo Roam

Something that annoys me....

Seattle, WA is not known for its heavy metal and by Seattle, WA, really we're talking about the entire Pacific Northwest, save Vancouver, BC proper.

Now, as I've never visited there, it's totally acceptable for me to now make wild accusations about this area of the world. Clearly it's raining there right now.

Beyond just the rain and the damp, it must be assumed that they have a large mold problem up there too right?

There's also a lot of coffee.

I can't help but think....wouldn't all the rain, mist, and caffeine create something more than just grunge?  It really seems like there should be a huge speed metal scene up there, just because...how do you play slowly when you're drinking coffee all day and night?

I mean, do they even have tea?

Into The Storm

Into The Storm isn't thrash metal, grunge, or anything else that the wider world thinks about Seattle.

They're sludge metal.

Sludge metal doesn't come from a place of anger, but desperation or sadness.

Being in the rain all day and all night long could certainly put a body into that frame of mind don't you think?

Of course it's impossible to create metal without any anger at all, because that's what metal is, it's angry blues, but when the sadness is reinserted, something special often arises.

Into The Storm is an interesting group. If you're looking for flat out bone jarring metal, it's just not here.

If you're looking for Melvins style weirdness, it's kind of here, but only in small doses and there's nothing as avant-garde as someone hammering a nail for over three minutes.

Moving back to the idea that Seattle has only birthed grunge still bothers me to a point. That movement has come and gone.

There has been one part of grunge that really took hold and has never let go. Kurt Cobain often cited Black Sabbath as an influence. Looking at the two bands, they have nearly nothing in common, at least on a cursory listen, but bands like Into The Storm sound like Black Sabbath after an assault by Nirvana.

This is a heavy, dirty, and somewhat off the wall record. Which is the best kind. Into The Storm has not checked off a single box that would place them into any of the heavy metal subgenres.

Which is very good if you're into those sorts of things. This album is conceptual at heart, if perhaps not featuring a cohesive storyline. This gives the album another bit of extra flavor.

Consider it the hot sauce on the burrito.

Let's talk vinyl!

The vinyl edition of Where The Merfalo Roam comes in a standard sleeve, no gatefold to be found. It's limited to only 250 copies and does indeed come with a download code. It's one of my greatest pet peeves when a record doesn't come with a code.

The album itself is pressed onto a 160 Gram, mermaid blue and white teardrop colored vinyl. See in the unboxing video for this gorgeous disc.

My copy came with the novela describing the album as well as the lyric sheet and stickers.

This is a pretty fancy release for a single disc album.

Release: 11/11/16
Genre: Sludge Metal
Label: Living and Breathing Records
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LE: 250 copies on vinyl