The very breadth and vigor that’s to be found throughout the absolute entirety of the current landscape that forms the realms of stoner rock, doom metal, and everything in between simply cannot be understated. For some time now, we have been absolutely spoiled by being truly inundated by throngs of new names that come around to perpetuate the style and continue its glory to such a degree that I don’t think the sound will ever truly die until the music itself fades from the world. The power of the riff is impressive, but there is so much more that can be done with this template. Void King has been showing us just how that’s able to be done for eight years now since their debut EP, and it’s here with their newest creation that they continue to do naught but raise the bar.

Already with their two previous albums, Void King proved themselves to be a cohesive act that was more than just another name that manages to bring together doom and stoner tendencies in a competent form with time only seeming to further their greatness. It’s been a solid four years since their last outing, “Barren Dominion”, and it is more than clear from any one of the six tracks from “The Hidden Hymnal” that those four years were well-spent as Void King has never sounded better! “The Hidden Hymnal” is but the first of a two-part release, and it is in every form that this is the best possible step forward that Void King could have possibly taken to start such a combination. Wildly dynamic from one track to the next with the vocals, in particular, offering us grand insight into just how talented and unyielding Void King has become, this is an absolute ripper of an album that holds nothing back whether it be in terms of heaviness, raw intoxication, or undeniably riffage that seems to permeate every facet of the album even in its smallest moments. It takes pieces from all that Void King has accomplished before this and brings it all together in a magnificent, bombastic performance that knows precisely how to keep the listener absolutely committed to every second of “The Hidden Hymnal” with it being downright captivating every turn no matter what with the very prospect of a follow-up in the near future truly mouth-watering. This is what it means to be the real deal, and Void King has never once been caught lacking in their pursuit of excellence.

Whatever may come in the second entry of this brief series, there’s no way to ignore the awesome start that we have here! Jam-packed with everything that many bands across the realms of stoner and doom metal seek to bring together in a meaningful capacity seemingly without breaking so much as a single sweat, “The Hidden Hymnal” is the return that we all knew Void King was more than capable of even if the end result is sweeter than what we could’ve asked for. This is a band that has never once disappointed with every bit of soul and power that goes into these creations nigh on exhilarating to experience with this brand new outing precisely the sort of glory that will only further the growing phenomenon that is Void King.

LISTEN to “The Hidden Hymnal” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Void King on Facebook here.