Hills, Frid - Album review

Download: Kollektiv; National Drone; Anukthal Is Here; Death Will Find a Way

Like their fellow Swedes Goat, Hills plumb hitherto unmined depths of heavy psychedelic drone-rock on this third album, setting up monster, lumbering grooves sparsely punctuated by the occasional short snatch of sitar or lead guitar.

“Kollektiv” starts things off with a stomach-churning, woofer-threatening bass resonance, heralding a sludgy psych-rock riff that’s like molten lead being poured into your ears, albeit pleasantly so.

“National Drone” picks up the baton via a fizzy drone of tamboura over lumpy Krautrock drums, adding guitars and finally an om-like deep vocal chant-drone whose ringing, cyclical manner recalls Popol Vuh’s soundtracks to Werner Herzog movies – until a stinging, distorted guitar line cuts through the rolling groove like cheese-wire. It’s a sound looking simultaneously eastwards and inwards, perhaps best realised on “Anukthal Is Here”.