Band:	Zoroaster
Album:	Matador
Style:	Sludge metal
Release date:	June 13, 2010
Guest review by:	The Brown Umber

01. D.N.R
02. Ancient Ones
03. Odyssey
04. Trident
05. Firewater
06. Old World
07. Black Hole
08. Odyssey II
09. Matador

I found Zoroaster to be a very interesting name for a band. The name comes from a Persian prophet in ancient times that founded the religion of Zoroastrianism, but I am sure you are not here to get a religion lesson so let's get down to business.

Zoroaster's 3rd full length album, Matador is something to indeed marvel at. After I played the first full run I thought "meh", but of course we all can't judge an album after only one play through. I listened to it again, and again, and again, and so on. This album was indeed quite a piece of work and the amount of effort the band put into it shows.

Matador is extremely psychedelic with the echoing guitar solos and the droning riffs. Songs such as "D.N.R.", "Odyssey", "Ancient Ones", and "Trident" all have their guitar playing that works wonders on your mind. When listening to this album I sometimes would doze off into weird trances without the aid of any psychedelics. The solos are reminiscent of old psychedelic rock, while the rhythm keeps the heavy pace going. The bass and drums set a great tempo for all the songs and never falter in delivering the good stoner/sludge tempo necessary to keep everything flowing nicely. Some of the songs can seem very mellow, but the band is able to keep a heavy sound despite this.

I find the vocals that are put forth by Brent Anderson and Will Fiore to be quite amazing. In songs like "D.N.R." and "Old World" they sound like a group of Buddhist monks chanting in prayer. While in other songs they keep up a good rasp to accompany their faster paced songs such as "Black Hole".

Overall, I highly recommend this album to anyone who is a fan of psychedelic stoner/sludge. Matador will definitely take your mind on a great trip that you might just not want to return from for a while. I predict a good future for this band.