WO FAT ‘Midnight Cometh’ Album Review.

Words El Jefe.

Wo Fat. A behemoth stoner blues band from Texas.

It must be something in the whiskey. Dallas has delivered some absolute monster bands over the years. (See a review here of WF buddies Mothership for further evidence of this HERE) Which brings me to Wo Fat. I’d bought a couple of their early albums, and always dug ‘em but they then managed to slip under my radar. Until now! Midnight Cometh, which is their fifth studio release (to go with a live record and a coupla split releases) recently landed in my inbox, and straight outta the gate, it impressed the fuck outta me.

This outing is a heavier, more psyched out-doom vibe but still with a solid nod in the direction of their bluesy earlier songs. Great raspy vocals, and an amazingly fluid guitar attack with lotsa long jammed out tunes fill this record to the brim. Michael Walters’s totally unhinged drumming screams of living and breathing the music, and there’s a truly monster bass sound that your jeezuz loving arsehole neighbours will learn to hate like sin.

The opening song, ‘There’s Somethin’ Sinister In The Wind’ is an absolute killer. The guitar tones are thick, and heavily overdriven, and bass and drums are as wild and woolly as they come.

‘Riffborn’. Title or Oracle? but either way, this song will knock you on your arse quicker than you can blink if you turn your back on it. The distortion seemed to get completely away from guitarist/vocalist Kent Stump on this one.

‘Of Smoke And Fog’ is one of the more tripped out offerings, and further proof that patience is a virtue. They take the time to let this build and boil over without forcing it, and the “weight” is certainly worth it! ‘Le Dilemme de Detenu’ is another solid hitter replete with some eerie guitar to accompany the gargantuan opening riff.

‘Three Minutes To Midnight’ is ball-tearing beast, which powers itself off the rails with the muscle car of stoner riffs and an awesome showcase of the vocal power on hand. Love it! And then comes the final tune, ‘Nightcomer’. Screaming slide guitar and a massive, lumbering riff. That slow creeping feral menace seems always ready to go for your throat. It’s a great song (my fave from this release, by a long shot) to end a really cool album.

Beginning to end, this LP is a stone cold killer. The songs are mostly long but they also have an undeniable urgency to them, are executed perfectly, and have a sound heavy enough to kill a herd of mammoth. So take it from me, you WANT to get onto it now and take a trip with Wo Fat! It’s gonna take you over the high side, but it’ll be worth it in the end!

Wo Fat’s Midnight Cometh is out now through Ripple Music HERE!
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