Band:	Acid King
Album:	Beyond Vision
Style:	Stoner metal
Release date:	March 2023

01. One Light Second Away
02. Mind's Eye
03. 90 Seconds
04. Electro Magnetic
05. Destination Psych
06. Beyond Vision
07. Color Trails

Acid King have returned with classic, droning, stoner metal… and not much else.

American band Acid King were founded already in the 90s, but since 2005 there have been large breaks between their album releases. As a result, their newest instalment, Beyond Vision is only their second release in a total of 17 years. Similar to a certain album that I reviewed some weeks ago, we have here stoner metal guided by eerily-sung female vocals. However, while Daevar's album had a through line of groovy, catchy riffs, Acid King choose a variant of the genre that resembles more the approach of Sleep and Electric Wizard, rather than High On Fire or Kyuss. What do I mean by that? Well, forget about any gripping hooks — this band take their sweet time, creating a thick, hazy ambience with long, drawn-out, distorted guitar tones. Most of the album is pure instrumentation, in fact, as the spectral vocals only appear on three of the seven songs.

I've come to enjoy many stoner bands over the past months and I'm even fond of those that don't use vocals entirely, like Black Sky Giant. However, I've also now come to realize that it's truly an art to produce music that simultaneously gives you this hypnotic, psychedelic atmosphere and keeps your attention for the whole ride. It's a fine balancing act that few can pull off perfectly. In my opinion, Acid King fail in delivering anything concrete for the listener to latch onto. But that doesn't mean it's not enjoyable to listen to. All of the musicianship is well performed, and the bass guitar is especially satisfying to listen to. Any song from Beyond Vision will soothe your mind into a trance, and soon you'll find yourself drifting off to sleep. Overall, it's standard, good stoner metal, but there's not much that stands out or stays with the listener as soon as any given song ends.

In conclusion, if you like music that drones on in a rhythmic, mesmerizing, yet directionless fashion, Acid King is the perfect match for you. But if you're like me and need fuzzy riffs that'll scratch that headbang-craving itch, don't expect much from Beyond Vision.