Truckfighters - V (2016)

"Truckfighters are one of the more immediate desert/stoner rock bands in a genre very well known for forgetting to get to the point (maybe lay off the weed a little, guys?). The Swedish band has a sound propelled equally from the desert and 70s smoke-filled arenas, but there’s a decided Soundgarden and Tool influence that makes Truckfighters’ music (even the more sparse and barren soundscapes) feel more propulsive than their peers. It helps that their music is certainly at the more melodic and accessible end of the stoner spectrum. These guys are much more focused than many of their peers, and the songs have reflected that over the years. Truckfighters have been known for a riff-fueled good time.

Wight - Love Is Not Only What You Know (2016)

Sometimes, things today are better than they used to be. But that’s not always the case. WIGHT know exactly when to take queues from the modern world and when to go back to the roots. Combining a powerful groove with complexity and extraordinary musicianship, they celebrate their musical journey throughout times past and present. Presenting doom-based psychedelic rock at the beginning of their career, WIGHT these days are Miles (Davis) ahead of that. Their carefully crafted fusion rock sound incorporates influences from artists as diverse as the Beatles, Parliament/Funkadelic and Mahavishnu Orchestra. Throw in some African rhythms and sounds along the lines of Osibisa, and the sun

SVVAMP - s/t (2016)

Swedish trio Svvamp is the real deal. Countless bands today strive to sound genuine — whether faking their way through a ProTools pastiche of carefully assembled takes, painstakingly tarnishing tracks to give them a “live feel” or simply copying the style of their favorite band. And, usually, their posturing is entirely transparent.

Every once in a while though, you find a band without self-conscious pretense that truly echoes the mood and vibe of an era when the rulebooks were burned with the draft cards and the act of playing rock’n’roll was simultaneously defiant and inherently casual. Svvamp is just that type of primordial beauty captured on a perfect 11-song debut.