Astralnaut – In the Gaze of the Gods [2013; self-released]

On their second EP, the Irish group of Astralnaut turn in five tracks of energetic stoner doom, with the riffs doing the heavy lifting for the songs. Some sparky drumming spices things up a bit, but for the most part, it’s pretty standard stuff, though it does lean a little harder towards regular rock song-writing (instead of metal patterns) than most stoner doom. The overwrought vocals end up deflating the music more than they help sell the atmosphere, and the guitar gets a little too cock-rocky at times, but the basic trappings work well enough, particularly if taken as a garage rock form of the usual fare.

Astralnaut – Emerald Lord of Pleasure [2012; self-released]

Buzzy guitar, bellowing vocals, and laid-back drums kick off the title track A-side of this single, which then digs into a series of fairly standard, but energetically played, stoner metal grooves, with a psych-flavored bridge that dove-tails into drum action ends up as the most memorable portion. The B-side, an acoustic rendition of Astralnaut’s “Back to the Bog”, leads the way out with a chilled atmosphere that ends up feeling more distinctive than the first song. Decent enough, but unlikely to win over any new fans.

Astralnaut – Back to the Bog [2012; self-released]

Stoner doom with production evocative of garage rock, the four tracks of this EP find the Irish band of Astralnaut bringing blues flavoring out strong while wailing and grinding along through the songs. Quick solos and strong drum backing add a little further distinction to the material, and though the touches of psychedelic indulgence are brief, they form some of the most stimulating moments on the release. A bit too much of the riffing falls into standard fare for the style, but as this was the group’s first release, that’s not exactly unsurprising, and they do land a fair number of successful hooks amid the more disposable progressions. Nothing spectacular, but there’s a nice sense of character to the tunes, and the sparing use of vocal samples adds to the fun.