I Saw The Deep - Vimana 

In 2012 Darrell Laclé released his debut solo CD under the band name In The Deep.  Over the course of the eight years since then, he has added two more members to the band with drummer Domenico San Giorgi and bassist Niels Budel and they have now released a follow-up EP.  Vimana is a stellar amalgamation of heavy doom sludginess, stoner psychedelia and an everpresent underlying groove.  While there isn’t a bad cut in the bunch, the standouts tracks to me are “Villain” which has a really cool sparse technical start and then turns into what sounds like a doom version of AIC with some excellent stoner guitar work (especially Darrell’s vocals that have a strong resemblance to Layne Staley), “Titans, a more atmospheric tune that at times sounds like a super heavy Pink Floyd and my favorite “Only The Eye”. which starts with a complex 2 minute instrumental leading into a tense, very powerful heavier cut that is best described as progressive doom.  Vimana is a great “return” for this band.  Hopefully we won’t have to wait eight years the next. (www.isawthedeep.com)