It was always clear Stone Sea were open for change. As a band they are principled across the contrasts in chemistry that life offers. Their choice of ideas and compositions seems almost too organic. They make rock feel like it was written for people again. Their latest EP shows us why they’ll be heard for longer than a chipset speaking to you. This one is called Ad Astra.
Stone Sea are revelling in a groove that wants to extend itself more than when you’re listening to it. Listen to Stain, the opening number. They deliver a charge with a riff that seems obvious, but it’s about how you play it. You’re almost instantly absorbed into the song; it makes you headbang to the tempo.
Charge with an intense opening
Like a stoner rock number, it alternates between half-time and double-time tempos to deliver that punch straight to your doorstep. It’s nice how Time to Change comes immediately after. The texture of the song is retained through longer guitar elements rather than cut-throat riffs that attack. Vocals have a different range, almost showing the dynamic thrill of a band exploring their chemistry and love for making music.
I’m really enjoying that space rock is globally in right now. With gatekeeping out the door, there are bands exploring every kind of possibility while always expressing themselves through live instruments and music. This is the thrill the audience demands, the passion they want to feel from the ones who make the music. With Time to Change, it’s time for change.
A performance to endure
Stone Sea go ballad and mysterious with Age of Tears. I was reminded of openings of Panthera tracks, where Dime would divide the waters with this kind of tone and give us a relentless riff. This one plays out the same way, with an acid doom rock riff coming through as acerbic and abrasive as it could. This is a pure headbanging recipe, with the verse riff being heavier than ever. In each song,
Stone Sea show us that their love for rock and composition is wide-ranging, while having a signature touch in every song. Alien really brings out the tone of their instruments and vocals. Harmonics are angelic, contrasted with the heavy chugging of the guitar. Each song releases a surprising element of their compositional skill, band chemistry or appreciation of the genre. Who said we aren’t alive at the best time to be?
Left to Be and Ad Astra close this album. They might be different songs holistically but represent something about this band’s promise to perform and make rock that resonates. Stone Sea are a rock band that want to stretch the limits of what is possible while making music that doesn’t rely on an algorithm of success. Ad Astra will remain a hallmark in EPs and their own catalogue, which they’ll return to as a baseline to progress from. Onwards and upwards, gentlemen:
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