Chances are, if stoner rock is even remotely up your alley, Slomosa has landed on radar in recent years. The Norwegian four-piece is easily one the best bands going at the moment. And depending on where the next few years take them, they may simply end up being one of the best rock bands of their generation, period. Their future here is bright, heavy, and loud in all the right ways.
At a glance, the Slomosa catalog looks way too small to rank. Just two albums clocking in at barely eighty minutes combined. That’s it. So yeah, this is hardly a “ranking” in the traditional sense. But trust me, check back when new music arrives. I’ll be updating this as they go. For now, both of these records deserve a massive heap of praise, and if this piece nudges even a few people toward giving Slomosa the attention they’ve earned, it’s done its job.
Per usual, there are a few caveats I need to get out of the way…
*Caveat Number One: With only two fan-freaking-tastic records (and counting) to their name, this ranking is less about hierarchy and more about celebration. Something has to come in second, but that shouldn’t be mistaken for faint praise. Everything this band has released should be considered essential listening.
**Caveat Number Two: I have nothing but admiration for what Slomosa are doing. Any critique below is purely subjective and rooted in personal taste, not a reflection of objective quality.
***Caveat Number Three: Consider everything written below filed under the ever-reliable “prisoner of the moment” category. Ask me again in six months and I may waffle. Or not. Who knows?
Alright, let’s do this.
Slomosa (2020)
Slomosa’s self-titled record landing here at the bottom says way more about what’s followed than anything it lacks. As far as introductions go, this 2020 debut flat out rips, announcing the band’s arrival with an impressive mix of confidence, volume, and an intuitive grasp of dynamics.
There’s a raw, unvarnished quality here that works squarely in the album’s favor. The riffs are massive without tipping into excess, the grooves swing rather than plod, and the band shows an early understanding of restraint. Where lesser acts would simply crank the gain and let everything blur together, Slomosa leave ample space for momentum to build. This is stoner rock that favors feel over blunt force.
That said, the debut occasionally plays things a bit safe. Not in terms of heaviness, but in ambition. The songwriting is strong across the board, yet there are moments where the band seems content to operate within those familiar genre boundaries rather than pushing past them. It’s a hell of a calling card, but one that ultimately reads as a promise. A band already capable of more, even if they hadn’t quite arrived there yet.
The Desert Summit (Highlights)
If you only listened to the singles (“Horses,” “There is Nothing New Under the Sun,” “In My Mind’s Eye”), you’d still have a fairly comprehensive idea of what this band is all about. Good for playlist discovery, but I’d counter that everything (singles included) benefits from the context of a front-to-back listen.
Going Nowhere (Lowlights)
The a-side is so strong and catchy, you can’t really fault the band for wanting to stretch out a bit on the back half. While “Scavengers” officially clocks in as the album’s longest track, the somewhat blocky arrangement would probably hit that much harder if it came in a minute or two shorter.
Don’t You Know What It Is? (Best Deep Cut)
The album-closing “Psychonaut” is epic in all the right ways. Featuring some of Benjamin Berdous’ best vocal work, the song will (or should) probably close live sets from here on out.
Well On My Own (Favorite Moment)
Just about every second of “Psychonaut” (originally titled “On and Beyond” on initial pressings) is perfection, but that monster riff that carries the final two minutes or so is just all sorts of awesome.
True Are the Words (Favorite Lyric and/or Moment)
All I know is that I’ve done well on my own – “In My Mind’s Desert”
Tundra Rock (2024)
There are plenty of reasons why 2024’s Tundra Rock shouldn’t exist. Or, at the very least, why it shouldn’t exist in the form it does.
Slomosa’s self-titled debut landed in 2020, just as the world shut down. Any momentum the band might have built was immediately stalled. Touring plans evaporated. Exposure froze. And to make matters worse, the band itself was in flux, eventually undergoing a near-total lineup reset. For most records, that combination of circumstances would quietly relegate a follow-up to the “what might have been” pile.
All of which kinda makes Tundra Rock kind of feel like a small miracle.
Rather than sounding tentative or transitional, the album plays with the confidence of a band that went through a boatload of chaos and came out all the better for it. Berdous’ reworked lineup (bassist Marie Moe, drummer Jard Hole, and Tor Erik Bye on guitar) entered the studio with a ton of shared stage experience, and the undeniable chemistry resulted in some pretty locked-in performances across the board. The songwriting here is tighter, the dynamics feel way more intentional, and the band’s whole approach feels, just, solid. Most importantly, the album flows with a coherence that makes for a super satisfying cover-to-cover listen.
The Desert Summit (Highlights)
“Rice” and “Cabin Fever” were obvious singles for a reason, but the radio-ready “Battling Guns” breaks some impressive new ground for the band melodically. The song is catchy as all get out, drives hard from start to finish, and even features a jaw-dropping bass solo (showing why Marie Moe is Slomosa’s secret weapon).
Going Nowhere (Lowlights)
Not much to really say on this front, as this one is about as perfect as they come. Some might quibble with a pair of ‘sorta’ instrumentals bookending the record, but I’d counter they are a stroke of sequencing genius.
Don’t You Know What It Is? (Best Deep Cut)
Sure, it might lean heavily on the Kyuss playbook (gotta love the “It was all too easy” chorus), but “Monomann” flat out rocks from start to finish. Hole’s drumming really shines on this one.
Well On My Own (Favorite Moment)
It takes a couple of listens to fully appreciate all that’s going on within “Red Thundra.” The song’s linear arrangement might otherwise feel plodding if not for the subtle shifts and layers that build and build until everything crashes to a halt and Berdous shouts, “No! Can’t believe it.” Talk about dynamics!
True Are the Words (Favorite Lyric and/or Moment)
Can’t you see, there’s more than one way – “Rice”
Parting Thought
Hey, what can I say? Sometimes, a band has fifteen records, sometimes they have less. Either way, Slomosa are already operating at a level many bands never reach. Based on their trajectory, there’s every reason to believe their best work is still ahead of them. For now, anything by this band comes highly recommended.
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