Damian Coward - Drums
Brent Stegeman - Guitar
Laura Bradfield - Bass
Ian Jackson - Guitar
Influences
Drugs. Sex. Pain. Noise. A love of animals. A hatred of humans.
Sounds Like
Heirs is the marriage of dark and light. The pain and hopelessness of addiction vs the elation of freedom.
The name Heirs originates from an ideal of "hunting and gathering" musical ideas, and formulating these ideas into an improved version. To write music, without paying some sort of tribute to the artists you are influenced by, seems to feel like a dishonest practice. The name stands as a metaphor, to be the Heirs of a musical history and to expand on this, becoming a part of this history.
Heirs began as a solo project by Damian Coward in late 2006, founded by a importunity to create a personal sound and direction. Four tracks were recorded and mixed by Coward himself, and received praise from peers due to its dark, brooding nature and lengthy bouts of density. Heirs expanded it's lineup during 2008 and currently consists of Brent Stegeman and Ian Jackson on guitars, Laura Bradfield on bass and Coward on drums.
Drawing influence from Michael Gira and his Swans legacy, the sledgehammer riffs and industrial pummel of Godflesh, and continuing Stegeman's incense shrouded low-end incantations from his work with doom dealers Whitehorse, Heirs debut album strips bare the needless excesses of post-rock and heavy metal in favour of something much more concise and affecting. A lurching drugged-out specter - holding solace in one hand, and vengeance in the other.
"Vengeance is mine, ... saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink; for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head."
Heirs debut album ‘Alchera’ is released 18 May 2009 on Denovali Records (Europe/US - CD/LP) and EXO Records (Australia - CD)
Heirs Alchera CD/LP
1. Plague Asphyx
2. Mockery
3. Cabal
4. Mandril
5. The White Swell
6. Russia
CRUCIAL BLAST REVIEW
This Australian band shares some members of Whitehorse, who some of you might know from their double cd that came out on 20 Buck Spin a few years ago. With that in mind, you'd probably expect Heirs to traffic in a similiar brand of excruciating sludge, but they're actually quite different, playing a brand of dark soaring instrumental rock mixed up with some Godflesh/Swans influences.
The first track "Plague Asphyx" opens with a wheezing industrial noise loop like rhythmic blasts of steam, as a pounding drumbeat kicks in alongside a massive droning bassline, soon joined by a queasy, trebly guitar lead and sheets of caustic noise. We're talking total Godflesh territory here, a hypnotic industrial dirge with that booming heavy drumbeat repeated again and again, the tension slowly becoming cranked as more noise is fed in, and additional guitars are piled on top, no release in sight, until finally in the last minute a fucking devestating sludge riff drops in, immense and crushing, appearing for only a brief minute until the song closes out on another loop of static bursts. No vocals, no verse/chorus song structure, just a vicious machine-groove pummeling you for five minutes. Killer! But the next track switches gears completely. Opening with a delicate guitar melody, "Mockery" unfurls softly layered post-rock prettiness over a slow, throbbing drumbeat, while streaks of distorted and delayed guitar fly overhead. Sounds a lot like Red Sparowes with its cinematic grandeur and evocative guitars and motorik drums, but after a while the guitars begin to become more distorted, and heavier, and swirling electronic fx and noise begins to envelop the song, and halfway in it morphs abruptly into plodding sludge for a minute or two before returning to the epic layered guitars, before once again sliding into total doom at the end, a super-heavy sludge riff surrounded by the ever-present textured noise and pyres of smoldering amp feedback.
"Cabal" starts off similiarly to the previous track with more moody, somber guitar melody woven into gorgeous counterpoint effect, and when the rhythm section enter this time, their playing is definitley heavier, the bass thick and distorted, the drums loud and pounding. The song winds slowly over the course of the track, building to a climactic finale where the guitars erupt into a wall of sound, finally flaring out and leaving just a single acoustic strummed guitar.
"Mandril" takes on a darker hue, with simple, repetitive drums and looping, Slinty guitars locked in an angular groove over billowing synth drones, then kicks into a huge droning riff with almost mechanical drums throbbing underneath it, like a fast-paced Neurosis riff looped over and over and blanketed with ominous industrial drones, or a more tribal Godflesh. That's followed by "The White Swell", one of the prettiest tracks on here. Again, the band creates a dark, mysterious vibe out of slow moving instrumental post rock, though this one is slower and more languid than the rest, with some beautiful melodic playing and an almost folky feel that reminds me of Neil Young, especially when one of the guitarists comes in with a moving emotive solo halfway in. Kinda feels like some of the newer Earth stuff too, I suppose, but with a jazzier, heavier feel.
And then the last song, "Russia", opening weirdly with the bleeping melody of some electronic toy and the tinkling of a door chime before the band blasts in with a super catchy, wall-of-guitar melody, that plays out for a minute before fading off into space, replaced by whispers and murky guitar notes stretched out over crackling feedback and rumbling drones, an abstract dronescape building in volume and thickness while the guitar slowly gets more distorted, eventually turning into a massive jet-engine roar of distortion and guitar noise.
This stuff is beautiful and weighty, a cool fusion of contempo cinematic rock and industrial dirge and metallic ambience collected together into an ambitious whole that's highly recommended to fans of Red Sparowes, Hand Of Fatima, Disappearer, Windmills By The Ocean, etc. Comes in a cool looking gatefold jacket with spot varnish printing and a full color insert.
happy to know that you are soon to your home. You must be so tired ! Europe keep a great remember of your presence! Your 2 shows in Lille were so amazing and have time with you was really cool! Hope to see you the next year! hugs ;)
Hey guys! how's everything? remember me? that filipino guy who came to your show here in rome, italy?? just passed by to tell you how fucking awesome your show was. it's like getting high on drugs and i'm still carrying the effect 'til now. the day that followed i was at work and was still hearing your noises that was left blasting inside my head. i really love your band and your music. you said you're planning to comeback in 9 or 10 months time. can't wait to see you again and get high with your mind-blowing, ground-breaking motherfucking sound. take care!
i hope so :) do you have any days off between going back to germnay for returning the van and backline and your flight to japan? so we can hang out before you leave
![[P.U.T]](http://c2.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images02/67/s_91b31ad7e6df47af8974eb4651a8b5b5.jpg)
