With a album title like “Stoned To Doom”, is a review really necessary? The debut LP from Toronto’s Keef has all the elements that you would expect from a Stoner or a Doom album but there is a bit more to this band that the first impression gives. While they have the down-tuned Sabbath inspired riffs, the melodic vocals and the psychedelic tinged guitar solo’s, they also have a solid knowledge of how to make a catchy Hard Rock tune. The history is a little bit of a mystery, their Myspace site is not exactly bursting with information and Google searches didn’t tell me much either. One thing i do know is this disc is on the PsycheDOOMelic Records label, so that is almost a guarantee of quality right there. One element of Keef’s tunes that is clearly conspicuous is they seem to be playing it safe in some aspects of these songs. While that might sound a little negative, Keef is actually one of the few bands that the predictable approach works in the band’s favor due to the blend of styles that ranges from the 90’s desert rock sounds of Kyuss, the stoner-doom plod of Sleep to more straight-up biker metal in the vein of Orange Goblin. What you are left with is a album that covers all the bases so no chance of getting bored here.

Keef play pretty much straight from the heart especially in songs like “Evil Dread” which has anticipated riffs and vocals but the grooves of a band that obviously know what they are doing and seem to be having a killer time doing it. Stand out tracks like “Noise Bleed” and “The Green Shade” are delivered with real passion and a sense of Stoner-Doom integrity especially “The Green Shade” that is driven by some excellent drumming and accomplished guitar work. The other highpoint has to go to “Never Smile” which sounds like a long lost moment in desert rock history. Elsewhere on the “Stoned To Doom” disc, the band treads the stoner waters a little. “Animal Control” and “State Trooper” are a little too familiar in structure to get too excited about. Nothing bad about them but they both lack that essential ingredient to push the songs to the true level of greatness. Having stigmatize the disc with those comments, i must say even the worse tracks on this album still kick enough ass to be more than simply “filler”.

What makes the tunes work mostly is a laid back doomish groove similar to the mid-tempo tracks of bands like Goatsnake, its heavy, doomy but with infectious melodies. The vocals of Gregory Cochrane have a real charisma about them and the guitar work of Richard Harris is about as diverse as you can get within the framework of these songs. The bass/drum duo of John Kendrick and Ilios Steryannis are solid with the drums especially being very vigorous at times. What is also important to mention is while this band will get the Stoner/Doom tag whether they like that or not, they also have enough generic metal elements to entertained the Heavy Metal purist. The only real downside to the album is the production, its no pussy but its no beast either. Its a album that must be cranked up a notch louder than usual to fully enjoy as i found the production to be a little thin and flat. Maybe i have been listening to heavy sounds too long and its screwed my hearing but something is a little weak in the mix of this album. Putting that aside however, this is still a worthy addition to your collection of Stoner and Doom disc’s. When you have a band that is so obviously accomplished, the songs win you over pretty damn quick and “Stoned To Doom” has eight killer tunes out of ten which suits me fine. Check it out. 8/10

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1.How did the band come together and what other bands did you play in before Keef ? I posted an add for a doom metal side project. Tryg the bass player from Electric Magma (www. myspace. com/electricmagma) joined me. He also brought with him Magma’s backup drummer. I knew Greg (our singer) from previous jams, and Keef was born. I also played lead for Dipsomania for awhile as well (www. myspace. com/dipsomania13) before going with Keef full time. 2.You have a very old school approach to doom,is this a natural thing or something you had planned out when starting the band ? Defiantly natural. It is how we write, and how we play. 3.Tell us about influences,you have a 70’s feel to most of the songs. Old Pentagram, Saint Vitus, old Sabbath. Also some newer bands as well, like Electric Wizard, Goatsnake, etc. 4.What is your local scene like,is it hard for doom acts to get gigs? I don’t think the Toronto scene is too bad at all. It has something for everyone, including Keef. In fact there is a whole site to promote the Toronto Doom/Fuzz scene (www. toohightogetitright. com). 5.What is your main subject matter in your songs ? I honestly have no idea. I think it is dark though. 6.Are you sending the demo around to try and get a record deal or do you plan on releasing a album yourselves,if so when do you think it will be available ? We are pretty lazy, maybe if someone did it for us, for free, we might consider. As far as releasing these songs, I think we will just make it available for free download somewhere. A blod will be posted as soon as that is done, hopefully within a month. 7.The songs are very easy to get into,very catchy grooves.Tell us about some of the songs.Have you got a favorite track? Thanks, I tend to just start riffing right away. I don’t have the patience to start songs off with long droning tones or feedback. I guess my favourite track would be Animal Control, it is a bit longer than the rest, and has lots of heavy riffs. 8.Any plans of touring the US ? We can afford that right now. A tour is needed though, maybe this summer if we are lucky. 9.You are fans of Black Sabbath,have you got a favorite album that you always go back to ? Usually Master of Reality. 10.What has been the reaction like to the demo,everyone that i have spoken to loves the stuff. Yeh man, people seem to dig it. Lots of random people have been messaging me wondering where they can get a copy. I am also pretty satisfied with how it turned out even though it was recorded rather quickly, 1st and 2nd takes only. Tim, the guitar player from Electric Magma, recorded it for us. He did a great job. 11.Where would you like the band to be in say 2 years time ? A full length done, more shows, more doom. 12.What is the best band in Canada at the moment in your opinion? Whoever Neil Young is playing with.