Review: Indighost - Heirophant

This is another of those albums that came out of the blue via email contact from the band and immediately caught my attention. Indighost hail from the Appalachian Highlands area of the USA (specifically Tennessee) and play a pretty cool variety of heavy, fuzzy psychedelic rock'n'roll, heavy on the dirty blues. The band comprise of guitarist/synthesizer player Cody Gilmer, vocalist/guitarist Dan Fehr, lead vocalist Randi Lynn Denton, drummer Taylor Cogdill and bassist Quentin Garrett.

'Heirophant' opens with 'Black Mountain' and a lone, bluesy riff accompanied by some stoned giggling and chatting from the band (I assume). The riff becomes more strident and then THAT voice hits in.....Denton's voice is amazing! Coming across like a 21st Century Janis Joplin or Grace Slick, it is strong and dripping with the blues and absolutely tailor made for the heavy, fuzzy riffs that accompany. Musically there is more than a nod to the hazy psych of The Black Angels albeit somewhat heavier and the skuzzy blues of The Black Keys, except better! 'Space Cash' continues in the same vein, possibly not as bluesy and more psych based. There is plenty of reverb to keep fuzz fans happy. Denton sounds more Riot Grrrl on this outing, as befits the more 'contemporary' music. I must point out at this stage that as much as I may wax panegyrical about Denton's vocal presence, the rest of the band are no slouches! 'R.S.P.' has flashes of post-punk guitar running throughout, adding another dimension to the band's sound, especially with keyboard effects running throughout. 'Waterstone' starts gently with a moody blues riff (that's blues that are moody, not a riff from the Moody Blues!) and Denton's vocals once again match the mood perfectly. Each track is layered in reverb and echo, and this works especially well on the slower tracks such as this. 'Hexensohn' (German for 'witch's son' ) opens with a strident punky riff that evolves into some cool psych guitar that swirls and meanders around, sounding pretty damned cosmic! Again, there is loads of reverb giving things a distinctly hazy edge. 'Sleepwalker' is another track deeply rooted in the blues while 'Within Me, Within You' (featuring RBTS Win) changes things up with Denton being given a rest from vocal duties, with Brien Warsham with RBTS Win picking up the baton. Musically it is different as well, it has a generic 'Indie' feel to it, with perhaps more atmosphere...must admit, not particularly bowled over by this track. 'Mystery Is The Best Kind Of Magic' sees normal service resumed, with lilting bluesy psych riffs filling the air and this time the vocals are shared between Denton and Dan Fehr. The vocal interplay is very effective, both voices complementing each other perfectly. The music wafts between the voices, adding to the atmosphere. 'Teenage Fleas' is probably my favourite track and the one that drew me to the band in the first place. Indighost place a lot of emphasis on their visuals and this borne out with the fine looking video that accompanies this track (see below). This track rattles along at pace, full of attitude and spirit. The vocals, skuzzy guitar and keyboards all combine to produce a glorious noise that acts as a perfect showcase for the band.....great stuff! 'Disaster Transport' is a real blues stomper, Denton's vocals particularly strong and the riffs deep and dirty. 'Rainkid' closes the album in style - more traditional rock than previous tracks, the guitar is clean rather than dripping in reverb and the vocals are softer to match....yet another side to this skilled and adaptable band.

I've gotta say, I enjoyed 'Heirophant' a great deal....it takes the sensibilities from the heyday of classic blues rock, mixes it with some contemporary hazy psych and wraps it all up with some heavy, fuzzy riffs. The vocals are obviously the standout feature, Randi Lynn Denton deserves to be up there with the female legends of rock...but the band are equally deserving of plaudits...highly skilled and working exceptionally well as a unit. I would urge all to seek out this album, available as a download from their Bandcamp page here and there is a CD version available as well. Word is that the band are looking for partner to begin releasing their material on vinyl.