Bandcamp Volume Tree is the third album from Sundsvall’s Tidal Wave, and reportedly their heaviest, which tracks: this is Sabbath worship with the amps pushed, roughed up with grunge grit and the occasional progressive turn. It is unpretentious, riff-first Swedish stoner rock made by a band who clearly just want to move air.
When it locks in it is a good time. “Sideburns” is the highlight, an earthy, un-crushed track where the dynamics breathe and a growling, clanking bass carries the groove, exactly the loose live energy stoner rock lives on. “Hangman” works the quiet-verse, loud-chorus contrast well, and across the record the riffs are sure-footed and the band never overcomplicate what does not need it.
The mix is where it gets uneven. Several tracks lean warm to the point of dull, the low mids overloaded and the top end short on air, and the louder passages get squeezed until the snare loses its punch and the depth flattens. Stoner rock thrives on a fat, warm low end, and Tidal Wave have that, but a cleaner balance with a bit more sparkle up top would let these riffs hit with the weight they clearly carry live.
Volume Tree is a solid, honest slab of heavy Swedish stoner rock, no frills and no apologies, and anyone tuned to the Ripple Music roster will feel right at home. Heard loud, with the low end doing its work, it delivers exactly what it sets out to. A cleaner mix is the main thing between this and a real standout.
Volume Tree is warm, riff-first Swedish stoner rock, Sabbath-heavy with grunge grit. “Sideburns” is the best-sounding track, earthy and un-crushed, the dynamics intact and a growling, clanking bass driving it. The recurring limitation is the mix: several tracks run warm to the point of dull, the low mids overloaded and the highs short on air, and the loud passages compress until the snare loses punch and the depth flattens. The riffs and groove are strong; a cleaner, airier balance would let them land as hard as they should.
Standout tracks: Sideburns, Hangman
