Black Moth – Condemned to Hope

Alternative Doom

Black Moth are a Leeds, United Kingdom quintet who play an accessible but engaging brand of heavy stoner/doom rock. Not to be confused with Pittsburgh’s Black Moth Super Rainbow, Black Moth are relatively new on the scene. With the release of Condemned to Hope—the band’s second full-length album—Black Moth take a big stride toward carving out a niche in the crowded stoner/doom field.

Despite the dissonant chords that announce opener “Tumbleweave,” it quickly becomes apparent that Condemned to Hope is more groove and bounce than doom and gloom. Heavy riffs crunch, but they don’t linger. Singer Harriet Bevan immediately makes an impression with her charismatic presence and stately delivery. Bevan’s decorous singing and the rest of Black Moth’s lumbering riffs combine to create a sort of hybrid gothic—part Victorian, part Southern—that underpins the vast majority of the album.

It’s not all bodices and beaver hats, however. “Your eyes say rock and roll, / but your breath says pepperoni, / baby you’re the one for me,” sings Bevan on “Tumbleweave,” displaying a sly, earthy wit that resurfaces time and again on Condemned to Hope. Bevan uses a number of singerly approaches on the album, becoming, for example, imperious and naughty on “Looner,” spunky and cynical on “White Lies,” and shamanistic and looming on “Condemned to Hope.” Whatever the song’s needs, Bevan provides, her command recalling such great singers as Debbie Harry, Shirley Manson, and even Sonja Kristina.

Genrewise, Black Moth play around quite a bit within their chosen framework. The aforementioned “Looner” and “White Lies” sound uncannily like alternative grunge from the heyday of 1990s radio—albeit with a blues metal base. Meanwhile, songs like “The Undead King of Rock ‘N’ Roll,” “The Last Maze,” and “Condemned to Hope” use slower tempos and more patient riffs to mine distinctively sludgier, doomier, more psychedelic territory. There are also surprises, like the unexpected passages of surf rock and black metal that appear on “Slumber with the Worm.”

In the end, Black Moth trade a bit of depth for accessibility. There is little of the skin-crawling immersion that elevates the music of an Uncle Acid & the deadbeats, nor is there the sense of all-in thematic commitment that makes an album like L’ Autrichienne so remarkable. Bevan does not do harsh vocals, which may be a bummer to metal purists and those with fond memories of Live Through This. However, the above bargain generally serves Black Moth very well. Condemned to Hope is appealing on many levels. It is energetic, well-sequenced, possesses good variety, and lags very little. Surrounded by strong songwriting and a good sense of atmosphere, Bevan’s voice and charisma readily carry the day.