Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Voodoo Mule
Label: Self-released
Released: 2013
Length: 43:53
Rating: 4/5
The Slovenian trio Voodoo Mule, who started seriously coaxing out decibels of noise in the spring of 2010, have put together their studio debut, titled »Voodoo Zoo«. Shamanic, unbridled. Tribal debauchery! Just like the name hints. Once upon a time, Pater Ašič was out gathering herbs, and his mule, which he used to haul stalks of heady aromas and intoxicating substances, stuck its nose right into a sack of freshly picked cannabis. There’s no doubting the purity of Pater Ašič’s soul – the cannabis was planted on him by village villains in a fight for control of the market for the local »stash«. If the wild frolicking of a stoned mule needed a dance backdrop, there’s no better soundtrack than the musical rawness of Voodoo Mule. Or in other words: prime musical backing for video clips of Slovenian politicians delivering their quasi-moralistic speeches. A garage-bred, old-guard memorandum to doom and sludge. Stripped down, raw, greasy, and wrapped in packaging of extreme outrage.
Voodoo Mule set things on fire with their musical charisma. No deep philosophy here. Just devotion to the art of music and the joy of playing their own songs. Total surrender. You’d be hard pressed to find a more honest product. Voodoo Mule are the real deal, because they boldly follow their instinct. And instinct doesn’t lie. The music is a genuine oath of allegiance to psychotic doom droning, where the riffs often howl from wailing semitones into sludgy saltiness!
The frenetically screaming vocal, run through distortion on the first track Honeyland, even recalls the greasy vocal villainy of that brilliant musical pervert Marilyn Manson. The excess is exceptional and, together with creakily oscillating tones flooding the sonic backdrop, it hits a moment of full-on psychedelia! It’s a fantastic thrill that suits the kind of musical direction Voodoo Mule cultivate.
At the same time, it’s a pleasure to realize that Voodoo Mule have put together music that unfolds very spontaneously. More than that. It’s obvious the recordings weren’t chopped up at all, let alone polished afterwards with studio sound trickery. Quite a few »flubs« sneak onto the album, but the band kept this principle of an authentic, organically born studio product intact too. And more: amid the often dissonant, howling wail and creak of tones oozing out of the guitar phrases, the »flubs« (mostly imprecisely played transitions) don’t bother you at all. The chemistry among the trio actually works at full yield. There’s not much room for ratio here. The band simply wrote a track, walked into the studio, said they’d »nail it«, and did exactly that, completely unburdened and from the heart!
With their »ramshackle« doom / sludge look, their almost vulnerable sincerity and their hugely instinctive playing, which honestly radiates the charm of unpredictability, Voodoo Mule would get along splendidly with a trio of eclectics like Grrizli Madams. On a shared short all-Slovenia concert tour.
The debut »Voodo Zoo« is an excellent cornerstone for the band. With this album, Voodoo Mule have credibly stepped alongside the wave of exceptionally talented young new-generation bands in Slovenia, who, in a glow of creative daring, try their hand at many genre spheres of metal as well as ragged hard rock dirt. As such, with their retro-sounding orientation and enticing fusion of doom and sludge, Voodoo Mule are another important gain for the Slovenian scene, adding to its genre diversity even further.
With this release, Voodoo Mule prove they’re self-made characters who couldn’t care less about trends. The album isn’t sentimental nostalgia. It’s an instinctive, regressive journey to the cradle of rock ‘n’ roll, one that would sound very familiar even to pioneers like Pentagram, primordial Black Sabbath and Budgie. And since Voodoo Mule are a trio too, and the trio format has given rock history its greatest musical oddballs (among them Rush, Motörhead, Cream, the aforementioned Budgie,…), it’s safe to conclude that the band’s future is bright.
Sound purists: hands off this one, because you might hate it! Lovers of music built on spontaneous disconnect therapy and on the core generator of authentic musical ideas, welcome home!
Lineup
Jernej “Jagnje” – guitar, vocals
Matej “Iguana” – bass
Fabijan “Hippo” Purg – drums
Production
Rok Zalokar
Track list
1. Honeyland
2. Tapas
3. Trunkfull
4. Jizz Da Bizz
5. I’m a Midnight Moler
6. Church Snake
7. Rip Off
