An Incomplete Stoner Rock Haven

With an expected amount of sleaze and sludge, Mr. Plow return to the rock and metal scene with Maintain Radio Silence. The Houston quartet breeds 12 tracks of straight up stoner rock on their first full length release in 12 years, which picks up right where they left off.

Maintain Radio Silence is comparatively faster and more hard hitting than their previous album Asteroid 25399, which took more of a grungy, doom metal direction. However, their 2018 effort is quick, direct and groovy with punchy rhythms and heavy guitar riffs. The first song on the LP, “Sigil 44,” starts with a few hi-hat hits and a classic stoner metal guitar tone. The crunch on the music is palpable and the heaviness in its delivery rings through almost every track after.

“Sigil 44” ends in a chaotic guitar solo and the band quickly transitions into the slow thrash tune of “Samizdat.” Along with tracks like “Shaolin Cowboy” and “Memento,” Mr. Plow succeeds in providing a solid first half of material on the album. The opening of “Shaolin Cowboy” is  possibly the catchiest 20 seconds on all of Maintain Radio Silence and the album’s title track is the tasty slow burn that all fans of stoner rock will salivate over.

However, the later stages of the LP aren’t nearly as strong. If listened to in order, the final few songs sound like uninspired recycled filler material from the first half of the work. For example, “Spark Arrester” is a bit lazy in delivery much like other songs on the album, but it lacks the style and passion of tracks like “Matchbox” and “Maintain Radio Silence.”

In addition, “Southbound” ends the LP in a disappointing fashion. The work starts off promising, but eventually breaks down into almost incoherent instrumentation and odd vocal placement. The guitar solos though are consistently soulful and impressive in each song, no matter how copy/paste the song itself may be.

Mr. Plow presents a spectacular sludge rock environment on Maintain Radio Silence, but the atmosphere becomes dull halfway through the LP. Stoner rock devouts may rejoice over some parts of this album, but the work as a whole does not evoke that same passion everywhere. Nonetheless, Mr. Plow put on an impressive display with this album and they proved that they are well equipped to occupy this niche genre.