Olmeg are one of Melbourne’s most-prized heavy, psychedelic stoner rock bands. It’s a very particular genre with a very particular following. To have a fan base as large as this, you need to do it well – which is a testament to Olmeg’s career, since they formed in 2011 and this is only their second album.
‘Trans-Dimensional’ fades in with a fuzzy amp effect before kicking off an epic blues riff that’s much more melodic than expected. This is a good start for anyone who’s only dipping their toes into the genre. Matt Dawkins’ raw vocals come to life with ‘Megalomaniac’, which at over eight minutes long has time to switch between at least five or six tempo changes.
The instrumentals of ‘Nest’ are gentle, before launching into a heavy interlude, and then switching back and forth between melody and chaos. At almost ten minutes in length, ‘Told You So’ paints a sweeping desert backdrop, putting various instrumental and amp effects to good use. The album ends with ‘Mettle’ and ‘Behind Disguise’, the latter a 13-minute opus that leaves you both exhausted and satisfied.
Primordial Soup is an impressive exploration of the genre, but you know the best from Olmeg is yet to come.
3/5.
