Stephanie Zalta

"On the Shores of the Cosmic Ocean" is the sophomore album from Canadian garage/psych rockers Cosmic Drifter, and it's a scintillating release that I deeply regret missing back in April. However, soaking up these warm, mesmeric tones was the highlight of my weekend, the near-equivalent of a rejuvenating laze in the summer sun. Building on a base of garage, psychedelic, and indie rock, "On the Shores of the Cosmic Ocean" features captivating psychedelic expanses, the simultaneous melancholy and cautious optimism characteristic of indie, the buoyant energy of garage rock, and hypnotic repetition throughout. However, it's the nuances of Cosmic Drifter's music that are particularly interesting, generating a sound that seamlessly moves between vintage and futuristic. Specifically, the band's psychedelic and indie influences come together to create a vibe reminiscent of 70s folk rock while notes of modern neo psych and a standout post-punky synth moment on the song "Mytosis" provide a spacey feel. Be sure to check out this incredible album for yourself, best savored from start to finish! #cosmicdrifter #garagerock #psychedelicrock @thee.cosmic.drifter

Finnish stoner metal quintet Fossile has officially unearthed their debut album, the aptly-titled "No King", and it's sure to be one of the most powerful and cathartic releases you'll hear this year. "No King" is filled with barreling stoner metal energy, hulking, doomed-out sludgy riffage, and resonating stoner rock melody. However, the most memorable thing about this album is its deeply palpable passion and pent-up frustration. As much as "No King" delivers an engaging listening experience that's both deliciously heavy and intensely soulful, it's also incredibly relevant, arriving at the perfect time. #fossile #stonermetal #sludgemetal @fossiledoom

Goldfish Kaseem is a band from Portugal who is making a lasting impression in the stoner/psych underground today with the release of their debut full-length album "For A Bryter Future". It's safe to say that the trio's sound is founded on trippy psychedelia, a raw garage punk delivery, recurring cyclones of utter chaos, and plenty of volume and fuzz. Goldfish Kaseem does rein in the energy every so often, however. For example, you'll get lost in the hazy and sprawling psychedelic mindflight that is opening track "The Master Built Walls, We Brought Them Down", soak in the soulful emotion on "Situation", vibe with the Bauhaus-y beginnings of "Kathmandu", and be soothed by the light and buoyant desert tones of final song "It's Coming For You ". On "For A Bryter Future", Goldfish Kaseem gives us so much more than a run-of-the-mill garage psych album. Overflowing with energy, variety, creativity, and heart, This release is the go-to album for any mood. #goldfishkaseem #garagerock #psychedelicrock @goldfishkaseem @morbidandmiserable

Qlesaar is an up and coming quintet from Switzerland that creates one of the richest sounds I've heard in the heavy underground. Made up of members of Carson, Sons of Morpheus, Soulgazer, and Larska, the band lays down a sturdy foundation of rumbling stoner/desert riffage that they adorn with intricate, sprawling psychedelic guitar work and impassioned, soaring vocals. Well before the end of the first track on their debut album "Stratorian Oracle", released just last week, it's apparent that Qlesaar's sound is as inspired by Jimi Hendrix as it is Kyuss. This group stands out, however, with the unfettered intensity they bring to each and every note of their music. Whether it's a towering riff or a dreamy interlude, Qlesaar's tones are consistently full-bodied and the emotive expression is unrelenting in its rawness. All in all, "Stratorian Oracle" leaves a crater of an impression, delivering a beautifully vivid, cinematic, heartfelt experience that feels infinitely bigger than its six tracks. #qlesaar #stonerrock #psychedelicrock @qlesaar

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Today, I have something that's a little different yet undeniably familiar for your ears, minds, and souls. It's different in that this particular band, an Italian quartet modestly dubbed Komarov Magnificent Backflip, is decidedly not a stoner/doom group. In fact, the band plays an energetic and often quirky blend of punk, garage, kraut rock, surf rock, and post punk. However, the core of this sound is something that instantly rings familiar, as it's a brilliant exemplar of one of the things music has historically done best: uniting listeners on a global scale via their shared frustrations, fears, and outrage, providing an outlet through which that negative energy is transformed into something positive and unbelievably powerful...bigger than any individual standing alone. The time for Komarov Magnificent Backflip to record their sophomore album "Cop Days" came when "the urgency to say something be[came] stronger than the urgency to play", and, as time has proven over and over again, "music cannot look the other way". Through alternating acts of deceptively sunny surf punk grooves, bleak despondency, raw grit, and chaotic breakdowns, "Cop Days" delivers almost painfully honest and thought-provoking insight into the splintering world around us. #komarovmagnficentbackflip #garagerock #garagepunk

Dortmund-based duo The Pighounds are well-versed in delivering quick and punchy, infectious tunes, and their new single "Wabi Sabi" is no exception. While this track delivers a gratifying dose of sunny energy just as summer is beginning to eye us from around the corner, there's an equal amount of darkness lurking about that provides balance, dimension, intrigue, and as always...a surprisingly massive sound emanating from just two little piggies. Enjoy on your favorite streaming platform! 🐷🐶 #thepighounds #grunge #alternativerock @pighounds

Capacopter is on fire. 🔥 Although the coals began glowing for this German stoner rock quartet back in 2021, the release of their full-length debut in January 2026 was the spark that ignited a brilliant flame, warm with a stoner groove that's equally classic and modern and smoldering with contagious energy. ⚡ Not a group to rest on their laurels, Capacopter released a new single called "The Capadillo" on May 8, 2026, just shy of four months after their debut captivated ears on a global scale. 🌍 Pulsing with the aforementioned infectious vibrance, "The Capadillo" soars and reverberates, taking on an anthem-like quality that embodies the skyward trajectory Capacopter's career is headed in. Further, it's very easy to envision this tune washing over a sea of concert-goers as they're compelled to chant along...and you experience just that if you're lucky enough to catch Capacopter on tour/at the Rock im Wald Festival this summer! 🌞 #capacopter #stonerrock #germanstonerrock @capacopterofficial

Mörkekraft is a trio from Norway who makes a memorable first impression with their debut album "Fragments" (released on May 8, 2026 via Argonauta Records/Octopus Rising). Nicknamed "a depressed Thin Lizzy", the band gives us eight solid tracks of stony heavy rock on this release peppered with some alternative rock energy and bluesy swagger. The powerful, expressive vocals and catchy hooks are the icing on the cake, ensuring you'll be singing along in no time. However, the grooves on "Fragments" alternate between bitter and sweet, delivering honest lyrical perspectives on topics such as deception, abandonment, internal conflict, and, particularly near the album's end, the supernatural. This is where Mörkekraft's trademark emotive intensity comes in, delivering an infectious sound that implores you to listen up and a soul that, in one way or another, has the power to resonate with all of us. #Mörkekraft #stonerrock #heavyrock @argonautarecords @morkekraft

Modern Witchcraft is a band from Ohio who plays a blend of hard rock, sludge, and doom with a melodic soul, a bit reminiscent of bands like Deftones. Today, the group is releasing a new single (and corresponding video) called "Rabbits/Never Whole". According to Modern Witchcraft, this track emphasizes that "wholeness isn't something we get to keep. Whether it's trust, identity, or connection, things don't just break cleanly, they erode. Bit by bit. Interaction by interaction. People brush past each other, leave marks, take pieces, and move on". While "Rabbits/Never Whole" marks my first time hearing Modern Witchcraft, a quick spin of their self-titled debut album leads me to believe that with this new single, the band intends to head in a heavier direction. Contrasts are sharper, more facets have been cut, the intensity is quadrupled, melodies are backed by a more powerful expression, and emotions run even deeper. "Rabbits/Never Whole" definitely makes me excited to hear what Modern Witchcraft has in store for the future, and I hope it pricks up many ears in their direction! #modernwitchcraft #melodicdoom #melodicsludge @modernwitchcraftband @helsingrecords

Now Spinning: Colour Haze - "Sacred" 🖤 This must-have vinyl is still available here in the USA via Ripple Music! #colourhaze #psychedelicrock #stonerrrockvinyl

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