Muhr – Shepherd/Blood

Creeping very violently out of the corners of Amsterdam comes a band with an EP release that is shaking my world and turning it upside town. With “Shepherd/Blood” only being a 2 track, exclusive vinyl-only record, I can see why the vinyl collectors are digging deep to get a hold of this record. Muhr is one of those bands that love to use initials instead of their full name in roll call, that being said, ZA (bass, vocals), IJV (guitar), GW (guitar) and HH (drums), seem to get the job done very well on this debut EP. Technically, Muhr is only here to reign havoc on those little kids that can’t do what they want because their parents are over-bearing dicks who wanna protect them instead of letting them learn life as it’s thrown at them. Muhr is also a project that came together after certain bands split-up, took breaks or just died off. Bands such as Saelors, Rose Kemp, Aderlating, Dragged into Sunlight, and even Holland’s own, Toner Low. Now, let’s get to this album, shall we?

How in the hell are you suppose to review an EP, any record for that matter, that only has 2 tracks? Simple, you cover each track because it only has 2 fucking tracks. Starting off the album in a huge way is the song “Shepherd”, a roaring thunderstorm of downpour that will literally wash you away if you don’t get to safe ground. Clean vocals that will ease your mind, soul and inner-self is exactly what Muhr brings to the forefront of this track. “Shepherd” is an outstanding little piece of art that lasts 12 minutes and 28 seconds but with the roller coaster they put you on, it doesn’t seem nearly that long. Just imagine this, being stuck inside a cave while being chased by holy priests that are chanting wicked spells at you, this is pretty much what it feels like when you listen to “Shepherd”. The track has bass lines for days, plus the soaring vocals/guitar riffs, those alone will have you very pleased that you spend the 10 Euros on this EP.

Next, say hello to “Blood”, the second track on this glorious EP but also, my favorite track out of the two. I’ll make it easy and simple for you, if “Shepherd” is the calm before the storm, “Blood” is, in fact, the storm that is about to kill everything in it’s path. The split second this track starts it has nothing but waves of bass and psychedelic guitar riffs that will have you blind for hours because of how clear and perfect they go with the track. Any track that can have my chest hurting because my subs woofers are connected to my laptop is blasting at level 11, that track is goddamn worth every second of the pumping and beating of my chest/heart. Another great thing about “Blood” is that it never really lets up at all. They just keep pounding and pounding at you until you wanna beg for mercy or throw up the white flag before you retreat. Best part though, you don’t wanna retreat because “Blood” will have you searching for the next best thing, sad part is that you won’t find it…..anywhere…..ever!

So, what have we learned from this review? Well, never judge a book by it’s cover because even though the cover of this EP is something I could stare at for days, what’s inside of that vinyl is impressive, addictive and influential in many ways. I just hope these guys keep spitting out music because I’d love to hear what they can do next. Even though we get great Doom/Psychedelic stuff from all over the world, some bands/countries could step it up a bit. The Netherlands on the other hand is growing quickly with bands that are learning what to do and that movement is growing fast as hell. Check out these dudes, support what they do and love this EP. As always, check out the links below for everything and anything Muhr. Have a great day and I hope this review didn’t bore the living hell out of you guys.

Official Facebook. Official Myspace. You can download it here.