Band:	Planet Of Zeus
Album:	Afterlife
Style:	Stoner metal
Release date:	October 11, 2024
A review by:	AndyMetalFreak

01. Preview Of An Afterlife
02. Baptized In His Death
03. Step On, Skin Off
04. No Ordinary Life
05. The Song You Misunderstand
06. Let's Call It Even
07. Bad Milk
08. Letter To A Newborn
09. The Vixen
10. State Of Non-Existence

The Afterlife on Planet Of Zeus can be really quite satisfying.

Greece are certainly well accustomed to the genre of stoner metal, with many great acts such as Khirki, Naxatras, 1000mods, and Green Yeti originating from the country; also amongst these names is Planet Of Zeus, who formed back in 2000. Planet Of Zeus are not only one of the most followed and well established acts on the scene, they've generated quite a unique style and sound true to their own; although stoner (inspired mostly by Queens Of The Stone Age and Clutch) is at their core, their music style goes beyond that, as they incorporate a large portion of Southern and hard rock elements inspired by bands such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Allman Brothers Band, and AC/DC.

The band's career got off to a flying start in 2008 with the releasing of full-length debut Eleven The Hard Way, and since then they've gone on to release a further 5 albums, including this latest offering Afterlife, the concept of which represents the beauty and the curse of the human condition. Following a short instrumental intro, the album begins with "Baptized In His Death", a song with an abundance of fun, catchy hard rock melodies, from groovy bass lines and stylish drumming, to catchy hard rock riffs and a chorus sang with a slight Southern rock tinge. This style is something Greek metal bands seem to have a real knack for, the recently thriving Khirki being a prime example, and it's also an early indication of where the album is heading, as "Step In, Skin Off" continues this cool catchy form, throwing in some crazy bluesy hard rock solos similar to those of Angus Young from AC/DC.

This approach more-or-less continues throughout; each song is short, sweet, and catchy, brimming with satisfying melodies, but there are also a few interesting features to break the mould along the way. The riffs, for instance, aren't just light and catchy, but also vary from heavy fuzzy stoner territory that possesses a meatier tone, to the psychedelic distortion presented on songs like the "The Vixen" and  "The Song You Misunderstand". The latter of these is one of my personal album highlights, and is really is as traditional, fun and catchy as it gets, but the 7-minute closing song "State Of Non-Existence" finishes the album in the most memorable way possible. The closing song is remarkably different in style to the rest of the album, starting off in quite a trippy psychedelic fashion, with heavy mid-tempo fuzzy stoner guitar riffs and distorted vocals, before gradually becoming heavier and slowly progressing into a more traditional heavy doom approach. In essence, the song is a lengthy build-up that slowly gets heavier, louder and more pacey as it progresses, where guitar leads begin to wail uncontrollably towards the end.

Afterlife is a wildly fun ride, brimming top-to-bottom with catchy tunes and non-stop melodies. If you've been looking for a combination of Southern blues rock and traditional 70s hard rock with a slice of 90s stoner, then this here is exactly what you've been seeking. The album title is also fitting, as this Planet Of Zeus foursome have been brought to life from the ashes of the global pandemic of 2020, reborn stronger, more energetic and ambitious than ever. Let's hope this is only the start of a great return.