GIANT - Beneath The Mountains (Primitive Moth) album review-"like a mammoth dragging itself from primordial sludge"

 GIANT - Beneath The Mountains (Primitive Moth)

Melbourne's demigod-like GIANT just dropped their second full-length, and it's exactly the kind of riff-worship the underground needs right now. These Aussies aren't reinventing doom, but fuck if they don't understand what makes it crush.

The title track opens like a mammoth dragging itself from primordial sludge—everything's tuned low enough to rattle your fillings loose. What separates GIANT from the pack of Iommi disciples is how they layer their dual guitar attack. Both PattO))) and Sean "1/2 Giant" handle vocals and axes, creating this thick, suffocating wall that still leaves room to breathe. They know when to let a repugnant riff hang.

Echoes Eternal was the first taste they gave us back in November, and it holds up as the record's centrepiece. Six-plus minutes of hypnotic, repetitive doom that builds without ever rushing. Louis Reed's bass sits perfectly in the mix—not flashy, just anchoring everything while Geeks keeps the clobbering tempo locked in that sweet spot between funeral dirge and head-nod groove.

Lord Misery leans heavier into the stoner side, conjuring obvious Sleep comparisons but never feeling derivative. Gods of Violence picks up the pace just enough to keep things from getting too monolithic, and closer The Fated Path sends you out with ten minutes of cavernous, echo-drenched doom that justifies every second of its runtime.

Production-wise, Amesh Perera nailed it at Mysteriis Audio and Brad Boatright's mastering gives it that warm analog heft without sacrificing clarity. Tristan Barnes' cover art matches the vibe perfectly—ominous, earthy, timeless.

This isn't revolutionary, but it doesn't need to be. GIANT know their lane and they own it. Five tracks, 38 minutes, zero wasted space. If you're into Electric Wizard, early Sleep, or that classic Sabbath DNA that runs through all good doom, Beneath The Mountains deserves a spot in your rotation. Solid slab of heavy.

9/10

—Limited red/white splatter on blue vinyl through Suitcase Records if you want to own it proper...

https://loreofgiants.bandcamp.com/album/beneath-the-mountains

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