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Sleep > Dopesmoker > Reviews
Sleep - Dopesmoker

Supper's Ready - 64%

Forever Underground, August 24th, 2023

Dopersmoker is a fascinating work, on the one hand it is a record that represents the struggle between artists and corporations because of its complicated release history, on the other hand, it is the most significant work and summit of the evolution of Sleep's sound as stoner metal percussionists, and on top of that it has the merit of being a significantly popular title for the standards of what is metal and even more so for an album that has a song of enormous dimensions, I would dare to say that it must be one of the most popular hour-long songs of all time. And on top of that we have to take into account that this popularity is based on its own merits since Sleep, at the time this version was released (the purest version of the original song according to Al Cisneros) didn't exist as such since they were separated for several years.

So with all that in mind, one would think that this is a great masterpiece of the sub-genre, is that true? Well, the truth is that the answer is neither a yes nor a no, but a whole bunch of useless rambling that won't solve anything until you listen to the album on your own and judge based on your own taste. I personally have my pluses and minuses with Dopesmoker, so I will try to express what this titanic work generates in me, both good and bad.

One of the things I like most about Dopesmoker is how it uses repetition as a mean and not an effect, of course it is one of the most characteristic elements of the work and a specific one, where the strength of the music is reinforced, however the song progresses, even if it is at a slow pace, and by the time you realise it, there have been several riffs and leads that the song has gone through. This repetition makes the riffs totally hypnotic, they may not be the most memorable or the crunchiest but the way the song is composed makes the guitar sound the main driving force all the way through, leaving the listener totally mesmerised by the repetition of the simplistic notes. The occasional guitar solos, besides being executed with absolute mastery, are a change of dynamic that can feel like an oasis in the desert.

The drums are also quite spectacular, an unstoppable rhythmic force that serves as the basis of the song and at the same time has enough autonomy of its own to be totally remarkable, just as the guitar does not do it for its virtuosity, but for its cadence and its ability to merge into the repetitive scheme without sounding like a simple accompaniment to the rhythm and more like a necessary element of its own in the journey. There is no moment where the drums sound and are not a notable force in their own right.

And last but not least, the vocal performance of Al Cisneros, is for me the best thing on the album, his style is deep and cavernous, uttering an almost religious marching chant with a timbre and intonation close to what could be a wind instrument preceding a marching campaign. And the cover inspired by Dune (probably the most famous version of this work) fits perfectly to what this album transmits, a human caravan through the desert making a long, long journey through the desert, being the music the representation of this journey and the voice of Al Cisneros the guide of it ("Follooow the Smooooookeeeeeeee").

So fitting together as all the instrumental pieces do, the atmosphere of the song being powerful and dense as it is intended to be, I find it quite incredible to have to admit that Dopesmoker doesn't quite satisfy me, it ends up being less than the sum of its parts because it fails, despite its many attempts, to make the song feel enjoyable, it's true that the music is hypnotic and its aim is more about trying to make you go on a trip, but at the end of the song one can hardly remember anything except an intangible mass of heavy sounds crashing into each other that has ended almost in the same way it started, as if the caravan trip had been in a circle and for nothing. Every time I listen to Dopesmoker I can't help but remember the song "They Used Dark Forces / Teutonic Witch" by Reverend Bizarre, a half hour powerhouse also performed by a musical trio with a superb musical performance in each of the instruments and a prodigious vocal performance, and when it ends you do have the sensation of having listened to a song that has managed to transmit all its components from the beginning to the end in a logical and memorable way despite its long duration, to the point where you easily feel like listening to it again, and with Dopesmoker that sensation for me at least is unknown.

Also, Sonic Titan is cool, it's a song that follows the tone of From Beyond or Holy Mountain and reaffirms once again the mystic heaviness of the band, it feels dynamic and the riffs are simply great and ends with a great solo by Matt Pike in his usual guitar tone, but the truth is that it doesn't add anything to the main work, as if it were a concert (ironic too because the song is recorded live) people have come only to listen to Dopesmoker, everything else feels like filler of something that stands out for being too lengthy.

I don't think I'm being unfair with this album, I value all its good aspects, and yes, it has many, but it can't hide its defects, and despite its importance, the truth is that I never feel like returning to this work except on occasions where I try to convince myself to give it another chance, although the result is always the same, and each time it will take me longer and longer to return, until I change my mind or give up on the trip that is Dopesmoker forever.

Let me drop out of life with a bong in hand! - 90%

Slater922, July 10th, 2021
Written based on this version: 2012, CD, Southern Lord Recordings (Digipak, Remastered)

So here we are. The supposed be-all-end-all of stoner metal. Sleep has been a popular band in the stoner/doom scene since the early 90s with their albums "Volume One" and "Sleep's Holy Mountain" having plenty of heavy riffs and themes of drugs and the Bible. In 1998, however, Sleep released "Jerusalem", an experimental album that contained just one song, and that one song lasted 52 minutes. However, the band members though there was more potential for "Jerusalem", so 5 years later, they come out with "Dopesmoker". This version of the song now lasts over an hour, and has a lot more going for it than the previous version.

Let's start off with the instruments. The song "Dopesmoker" begins with a heavy riff that slowly gets louder before playing a very slow riff. In fact, this slowness reflects well with the other instruments. Not only does the guitars go slower than a snail, but the drums plays some very sparse beat patterns, and the bass lays down a thick and heavy foundation. While it does have a similar style to "Jerusalem", the slower tempo emphasizes the heaviness of the instruments more, so when Matt Pike plays a note in the guitar, you feel the distortion and heaviness of each note. I also liked the occasional guitar solo that plays, since they add in a more chaotic tone in the doomy atmosphere. One grudge I have with the instrumentals though is the lack of variation. While I do like the few riffs it plays, I wished they included a bit more variation in the instruments, like include a couple more solos or even an entirely new main riff that plays in the middle of the track. Otherwise, the psychedelic riffs and slow tempo are a great recipe for a stoner track.

And then there's the vocals. Al Cisneros's vocals in "Jerusalem" were okay, but here, they've been improved a lot. Cisneros adds in more power in his vocals, and his dragging of the words emphasizes the lyrics more. This is especially apparent in the first verse, where his saying of "Drop out of life with bong in hand" makes him sound like he's making a proclamation to get out of the physical life and enter a whole new world with marijuana. But just like the instruments, the vocals do feel monotonous at times. Now yes, the vocals still flow well to the instruments, but Al's heavy dragging of the words can feel a bit unnecessary at times, and even forced on rare occasions. Despite this tedious delivery, his vocals still maintain enough power to flow with the slow instruments.

But that's not the only song on the album. The CD I got also included a bonus track, which is a live version for the song "Holy Mountain". "Holy Mountain" is one of my favorite songs from Sleep, and listening to this live version was pretty interesting. The production on this track does sound poor, so the instruments and vocals sound distorted and weak. The vocals in particular is even buried in the mix at times. But while it sounds bad on paper, the poor production actually works exceptionally for the guitar riffs. There's something about the rougher production that gives the riffs a more distorted and uneasy sound. This gives the overall atmosphere of the track a more tense tone, and it works well. Even Al's vocals are still okay despite the track's poor mixing, as he has this might in his voice that gives him a doomful personality. While far from being the best live track ever, it does has enough change that makes it unique from the original.

Even after almost 20 years later, "Dopesmoker" still holds up to this day. The instruments sound heavier with its slower tempo, and Al's dragging of the words makes him more vigorous in his flow and delivery. And the Holy Mountain live track is still just as good as the original, despite the weak production. I don't necessary consider this the best stoner metal album like many people do, but it's easy to see why many enjoy this album. If you're looking for a good stoner album to get high to, "Dopesmoker" is an album you need to check out.

a pretty good long song - 90%

caspian, January 21st, 2021
Written based on this version: 2003, CD, Tee Pee Records (Digipak)

Been listening to this a lot lately. "the CD in the car stereo" kinda thing, you know how it is. It's not quite the transcendent album I thought it was 10 yaers ago, but it is still very very good, and you can see why people rave about it.

The first 10 or so minutes tells you all you need to know really. The riffs spend a lot of time droning on an open string, often coming in with the other notes, these ultra-sabbathian progressions, when you least expect it; it isn't at all technical but I think nailing this song on guitar would take a very large amount of playthroughs. Less an exercise in musical technique and moreso an exercise in memorising decimal places in pi. The drums and the bass- and this is probably where Sleep are so much better than their million clones- are pretty busy and spend a lot of time noodlng around. The vooooooooooocaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllllllllllls sooooooooooooooooound like thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis. For an hour long epic, it's very easy to succinctly describe.

It works though, that's the thing, you put it on, wonder when they're gonna play a different note and BANG one hour later you're rubbing your eyes and cricking your neck, thoroughly discombobulated by it all. Weed helps but it isn't necessary, it's an extremely immersive album, it is big and womb-warm and enveloping, it's has a thicker atmosphere than Venus, it's more cavernous than your mum's gine. It's hard to review this at any sort of reasonable volume because you end up getting sucked back into this wonderfully rich atmosphere of ancient deserts and mystical seers and shit. It is a really fun ride.

There are criticisms, I guess? It stays at one tempo the whole time, which is a long time. The riffs could maybe be a bit more interesting. Overall though I think critiquing the songwriting kinda misses the point, for one, there are a lot of different sections, and I mean.. It's an hour long stoner doom tune called Dopesmoker. It's like being annoyed at Napalm Death not attempting to write any epics, yknow? Pick your battles.

Worth getting. Follow the smoke my dudes.

Monolithic Stoner Opus - 100%

BlueDream, January 31st, 2020
Written based on this version: 2015, 2 12" vinyls, Southern Lord Recordings (Reissue, Remastered)

This song/album is the Holy Grail of stoner-doom, Sleep's Magnum Opus Jerusalem has been taken to the highest peaks of distortion with distinctly named oceanic riff sections, remarkable solos and basslines that will make you shiver. The crashing of drums and Al's vocals add to the overall "heavy" sensation. The guitar tone on this release smells like some dank grass and listening to this album on dissociatives or psychoactives Like weed or DXM is absolutely wonderful. Matt Pike is a master of riffs and distortion who has mastered the ways of Iommi and taken Sabbath to a whole new level of Doom and added a thicker cloud of Marijuana haze to their stylistic design. This album makes you feel like you are stoned as you journey through the blistering desert carrying the largest (and first) shipment of cannabis to the sacred city of Nazareth. The story makes this song and album even more interesting and adds a conceptual feel to it, so those who say it is boring are idiotic. I can listen to this album literally everyday, day or night, sober or high. Jerusalem may be heavier or have a muddier guitar tone, but I love the bass heavy feel of Dopesmoker. If you say this album is not heavy, you really need to get your ears checked. $75,000 was spent on this track all on Orange amplifiers and ganja when asked to make a more mainstream release. Sleep are stoner-doom gods and have been here since the late 80s.

The album is broken up into parts which all have individual riff sections, titles and are all linked to the journey across the desert, every part was said to be recorded on spools of tape as claimed by Matt Pike. The song took years to perfect and release as DOPESMOKER. This is widely considered Sleep's #1 Masterpiece aside from Sleep's Holy Mountain. I honestly like this more than Holy Mountain all because of the conceptual storyline balanced with the heavy riffage and thick swampy production and bass. The vocals transition from growling like sludge type vocalizations that Al has done before to cleans drowned out by massive walls of distortion, crashing drums and monstrous riffage. I first heard this album when I was in middle school and I loved it. Even as someone with ADHD I can sit through the entirety of the album and love every minute, Intro to final solo. The efforts of all the members is at its peak on this release and it is beautiful. The musicianship of this band is amazing, 3 guys and copius amounts of Marijuana plus LSD created Sabbathian masterpieces that will stand the test of all time (and space).

This album is close to my heart and I can zone out of whatever bullshit I'm in and enjoy being in the world of Sleep's wacky weed lore. Al is an amazing songwriter too, well to stoners at least. A lot of people view the lyrics as corny but really they are full of originality and creativity, it describes a long, hazy, smoke filled trek that only the most open of minds can handle. It is definitely not for everyone, but if you love stoner metal/rock, doom metal, drone or sludge this is a wonderful album for you. It is sheer heaviness and genius beyond belief. Iommi is the riffgod and Pike is his Messiah of Heavy Riffs pounding your eardrums. Al Cisneros has vocals that will ascend your fucking soul to the cannabian heavens. In the 90s these motherfuckers were smoking between 2 and 4 oz of pot every day and wrote masterpieces influenced by the Doom gods themselves Black fucking Sabbath. I'd pay hundreds of dollars just to see this entire version of Dopesmoker be played live, it is worth it.

To finalize the review, I'd like to say I recommend the album to everyone and anyone. It is a masterpiece, it is art and it is a monolith. The album is slow, heavy and takes patience for those not acquainted with the Doom Metal genre. If you want to get acquainted with lengthy Stoner Doom tracks, this is the way. My final verdict for this album is a 10/10 100% Masterpiece. Worthy of your top shelf records. Anyone who listens should consider themselves blessed, so raise a bong and enjoy Dopesmoker.

Came back six years later to listen to it high. it's still bad. - 36%

Insin, April 3rd, 2015

In 2015, I wrote this:

“Maybe I have to be high to understand and enjoy this 63-minute, one-song stoner metal album. I’ve never tried listening to it on drugs, but here’s what I got from it anyway.”

I reviewed it as a long song, not as a stoner metal song, scathingly condemning the lack of variation and saying things like, “Skip to pretty much any part of the song. Listen for a minute. Now you’ve got the gist of the entire album,” and “Dopesmoker is long purely for the novelty of having an hour+ song, in essence a glorified jam session.”

I blasted the instrumentation and lyrics: “the [guitar] tone is reminiscent of a lawnmower,” “The vocalist sounds like he is struggling to take a massive dump,” “Note: allusions to the Bible don’t make you a lyrical genius,” and “it’s mind-numbingly boring as a song, and in terms of sound it’s bad but not unlistenable.”

Six years later in 2021, I am listening to it high.

And wouldn’t you know it. It still sucks.

I have come to appreciate stoner metal only recently, and there’s one factor above all else, in my opinion, that influences its quality: riffs. Sleep has boring riffs. Hitting an open note is not a good riff. Yet I would estimate half the album is that precisely. Does repeatedly striking the lowest string on your guitar count as musical expression? I find myself questioning what can be considered art. At what point does doom metal become drone metal? When the drums, the real glue holding this song together, drop out?

Any real rhythm and musicality to most of these so-called riffs is lost in the space between notes. There are some that use multiple notes, but they are sparse and forgettable. The guitar tone could’ve been put to good use elsewhere, but here it just drones.

All this goes to say that not much really happens in this song. I understand how it's supposed to put its listeners in a trance, but I’d rather be put in a trance by something with good riffs, like how other, better stoner metal bands do it.

The vocals and lyrics are still cringy. I feel like these guys are the type to make weed their whole personality — in person as well as in their music. I still do like the raw production style. It makes it feel like I’m standing in on one of Sleep’s rehearsal sessions. The solos are still pretty good and bring some life into the music.

To sum it up: boring. Boring riffs. Boring use of runtime. Don’t bother with it, sober or high. There are better stoner metal bands.

Drop out of life with bong in hand... - 100%

TheCureIsDeath, August 27th, 2013

Listening to Dopesmoker is like ripping bong hits during a slow motion sandstorm. It's the best parts of Sabbath, except with cranked Metamps and three guys being strung out on some serious conceptual shit. Dopesmoker is a pilgrimage, an hour-long journey to the heart of the sand sea. It works too, the percussion perfectly in time with the guitars, the bass high in the mix, and the vocals booming over everything. Sleep has never been better.

Everyone who's anyone who likes anything genre with the prefix “stoner” knows Sleep. They are the flag-bearers of the stoner metal genre, taking Sabbathean doom and Iommi worshiping riffs and melding them into three amazing albums. Holy Mountain is good, like really fucking good, with a bunch of classic songs. But Dopesmoker is where Sleep really went off the deep end; an hour long song chronicling the journey of the weedians across the sand sea. That's fucking hype. It takes a special kind of stoner to appreciate all the biblical stuff allusions in the lyrics, the kind of stoner that went to Sunday school as a kid and things just sort of stuck. Sleep, as a band, are also at their tightest on this album, making Dopesmoker that much more awesome.

Al Cisneros is God. A bass wielding, chanting God. His bass on this album doesn't have the effects on it that it did on Holy Mountain, but that's kind of a good thing. His bass is quite deafening, and is very much as big a part of the music as the guitar is, and his playing is superb as always. His vocals are also different from Holy Mountain, being less of a relaxed chant, and more of a booming howl. It fits the colossal tone of Dopesmoker just fine, but I prefer his more relaxed vocals.

Matt Pike is the new Tony Iommi. No joke, once Iommi kicks the bucket, Matt Pike will be heralded as the new guitar God. His riffs on Dopesmoker are colossal, gargantuan affairs. His solos are less frantic and schizophrenic than those on Holy Mountain, but they still kick ass. In my opinion, these are some of the best riffs and solos he's ever created. High on Fire is good, but this is his magnum opus.

Chris Hakius is the backbeat, he's the guy behind Matt and Al, pounding away at the drums with the primal force of a thousand stoned cavemen. He truly is underrated in my opinion. His work on all of Sleep's albums, especially this one, are testaments to stamina and skill, and he's damn good at what he does. Not to mention his work on Om's first few albums. He keeps things simple on this album, veering off into something different, but always returning with the main riff to add the correct accent to the music. It's truly a shame he retired from music.

I can't say more good things about Dopesmoker. This is one of the best stoner metal albums out there. All the performers are at their best here, except Al who ascended into something greater when he formed Om, and the song is expertly crafted. Light some incense, turn the lights down, get some food, burn one up, and listen to Dopesmoker; it'll rock your world.

Stoner doom's Holy Mountain - 100%

mad_submarine, September 3rd, 2012

Why did someone have to create something so meaningful, yet absolutely unexplicable and formless? Sleep are a band totally unlike any other and even if bearing some similar traits to other bands, their music is comepletely different. To be honest, this is the only band that in my opinion can be classified as pure stoner doom. Anyway, who needs genres when you got Sleep?

Dopesmoker as a song and as a record is one and only. This record is an example of music made only for the chosen few. If you're not into stoner doom or have not listened to Sleep before I doubt that you will enjoy this. On the contrary, you will find it dull and monotonous. However, if you pay some hours listening to it, it slowly starts to reveal its sonic magic to you. Dopesmoker is more of a moving picture, a religious experience rather than just a song. I have found out that time has no meaning when I start spinning it. Then, suddenly, when it ends I wake up. A fucking time machine.

It starts off with a massive riffage. Slow and heavy, not being eager to lead you to anywhere quickly as if the riff itself is a guide that knows that he has all the time in the universe. And indeed he has, because the song is longer than an hour. For a few minutes the riff is only building the base for the carriage that will take you higher and further into the trip. After minute three it becomes really roaring and smashing and honestly, if I was to hear it spontaneously while passing around some random place, I would have thought that it is a collapsing mountain. The main theme of Dopesmoker itself sounds like massive walls of fire and ice collapsing into each other, but only with elegant and epic roar.

The vocals sound as heavy as the riffs and of course, really stoned. Truth is, I have never heard someone sounding more stoned than Al Cisneros. The lyrics of the whole journey are what really complements the experience. The whole idea of the unearthy caravan walking towards the riff filled land is more than extraordinary and awesome. If you manage to absorb yourself into the whole idea, I bet you will enjoy the experience more. It would be funny to say that Dopesmoker is not a conceptual album since its whole idea is to achieve one goal.

My favourite part of the song is on side C. Here it gets really religious. I don't know the exact minute that the guitar breaks into an endless solo, because I'm listening it on my record player, but this is where it really becomes GODLY. I don't think it was the exact purpose, but the last part of Dopesmoker is undoubtedly the most magical one. It's every time that Pike's guitar does it and it's every time that I cannot believe it. This is Moses talking to God on Sinai. It's like the sound of the baby universe being born. The priests have gathered to chant spells for the growth of the Earth. The Sun is rising. Marijuanaut escapes earth to cultivate.

Dopesmoker ends softly and rather unexpectedly. Then you wake up.

I think I kind of planted the idea in your head. Now go play that record, lying somewhere while your soul flyies with the stoner caravan.

Leading us via Dao of Doom to enlightenment - 90%

NausikaDalazBlindaz, June 17th, 2012

Another very long recording with a bonus live track of "Sonic Titan" attached, "Dopesmoker" follows on from "Jerusalem" with similarly styled lyrics combining both a Biblical theme and an exhortation to listeners to know redemption and achieve oneness with the divine through the Dao of Marijuana. As with "Jerusalem", this is a deeply immersive work that relentlessly sinks you into its intensely focussed world: the first 10 or so minutes build up the deep driving bass-heavy grind and the solemn, gravel-edged yet intense and slightly aggressive robot vocals (suggestive of iron rimmed with rust) and it's only about the 15th minute that lead guitar breaks away for a brief hurried solo. After that, Sleep return to business as usual, concentrating on pushing that pulsing deep rhythm ever onwards, wherever it may lead, with emphasis on long extended bass drones, a steady time-keeping drumbeat and chanting vocals.

Listeners not attuned to Sleep's style will find this track monotonous but this is beside the point: "Dopesmoker" isn't intended to be music in the conventional sense of having a varied series of melodies and riffs that follows an upward direction to a climax and then either a quick or prolonged exit. It's the soundtrack to an extended ritual of worship. It's as if a cosmic force has infiltrated the musicians and imbued them with a mission to lead us to a Promised Land, as suggested in the lyrics, and that mission has its own liturgy that Sleep must teach or channel to us and we should follow if we seek enlightenment or redemption from sin.

At the level Sleep operate on, the patient and persistent (or completely mesmerised) listener will note every small change and variation in what's basically an ongoing sound / rhythm texture piece and the most significant difference comes at about the 40th minute (more than halfway into the piece) where reverbed lead guitar launches into a near-hellish roar and for a while the track simulates a retro-1960s ambience with delicate guitar teardrops tracing a lonely repeating melody in a dark space. Deep bass riffs reassert their authority over the track and push listeners ever onward to the goal.

Surprisingly the track does have a conclusion and a very calm, matter-of-fact one at that. I had expected it would go off on another level and the musicians (and any remaining listeners, like me) would be raptured into another universe and none of us ever return to report back to MA.

For what I think it aims to do, "Dopesmoker" is a very business-like and minimal track, journeying through a particular narrative of a sonic ritual, fulfilling all necessary steps and requirements, and bringing the audience through anticipation, climax and a gentle exit.

"Sonic Titan" as performed live is a slightly faster track with a more rocky and hardened feel. The slow repetitive doom style is still in evidence but the music conforms to a more traditional song format with definite riffs. The vocal is more naturally human and the music follows the singing almost note for note, injecting a jagged and very hard, almost brutal mood.

Warning- Will Induce Bowel Evacuation - 96%

Gothus, August 2nd, 2009

Oh man, Sleep’s Dopesmoker, this album is amazing. Just one look at the album makes it irresistible. I mean a goddamn hour long song with an extra song for kicks just screams to be heard. This album is the pinnacle of stoner metal. I’ll admit that this is a bit of a grower, folks; when I first bought it, the first couple times I heard Dopesmoker didn’t really do much for me. But a couple months later, I decide to give this a try and it absolutely DESTROYED MY BOWELS. I shat myself in its heaviness and awesomeness.

The very beginning of Dopesmoker starts with a weird reverb which fades into the most heavy and sinister riff. Not to mention SLOW (what were you expecting; it is a FUCKING HOUR LONG). The drums also make a great show in the beginning, complementing the guitar in its task of creating a crescendo. And the bass is absolutely wonderful, blending in with the guitar tone well and adding to the general atmosphere of HEAVY.

But the real fun doesn’t start until we get those UNEARTLY ROARS by Al Cisneros. Aww man, these have got to be some of the best vocals I’ve ever heard. In addition, the lyrics are ridiculously ambiguous. Are they about weed, or Judaism, or both? He’s got to be absolutely stoned when recording these vocals, no doubt about that. This album gives off a…gospel-like vibe when I listen to it, and Al just sounds like a God with his general bellowing of his lines. But his vocals are sporadic in this song, which seems to very amorphous structure.

And the song continues to be absolutely crushing for the listener. Each riff is amazingly heavy and slow and sinister, and the cymbals are just like steak sauce on this (I know this word has been used many times before on other reviews, but it just fits) MONOLITHIC piece of music, if this song were a steak. Everything just seems to blend so well, and the all too familiar fuzzy tone of the instruments just adds to the stoner feel. You just hear one riff, think that one is amazing, then much later, you hear another one, completely forget the one you just heard and just fucking climax on that and the cycle continues. Now that’s not to say that there are no highlights in this fucking leviathan of a song. For example, one great part I remember is just the awesome bass lines in around the 43-44 minute mark of the song, and absolutely powerful vocal part of “ARISE, ARISE, ARISE….” somewhere I’d say is in the mid-20 (maybe a bit later) minute line.

There are also solos that are spread out throughout this musical treasure chest. They’re actually quite jazzy, and don’t seem out of place at all throughout this song. They’ll just crush you into a bloody pulp and then the riffs afterwards will continue to beat you senseless. If you didn’t get the heavy imagery, I’ll just state it for you- IT’S FUCKING HEAVY. You’ll decapitate yourself headbanging to this. It is indeed quite hypnotic, but at times it’ll just grab you and destroy you.

The general heaviness continues to hold out until the end, where we are greeted out a riff that seems very similar to the one in the beginning. The song is admittedly very hard to take in one sitting, but once you finally click with it, you’ll fall in love with it.

But WAIT! We still have Sonic Titan (live). This song has a strong Black Sabbath felling (I mean come on, 4:14 is just total N.I.B. worship) to it, but it doesn’t exactly flow well on this album considering the gargantuan that just followed it. It’s like having some chocolate milk to down that enormous steak you just devoured. That’s not to say that it’s bad, though. This song would actually be perfect on Sleep’s Holy Mountain, as it has the more generally “upbeat” stoner vibe to it. Sid’s vocal performance on this is also completely different from his bellows on Dopesmoker. They sound more like traditional stoner/doom vocals. The guitar lines are still pretty good, but definitely not as heavy as Dopesmoker. It’ll still have you headbanging though, as it is a pretty damn catchy song.

Dopesmoker is a masterpiece in my book. Sure some people may find this boring or too long, but that’s probably because just contains so much material that it may be just a bit too much for people to take. Essential album for all fans of metal, stoner metal or not.

P.S.- Dope+Dopesmoker=absolute aural orgasm (bring tissues and condoms).

Highlights- Specifically, 43 minute mark to the end.

A journey through the sandsea - 98%

why, July 3rd, 2008

This album is basically a concept album, in the musical sense. It contains one sixty-three minute long song and one nearly ten minute long bonus song which was recorded live in the studio. The latter isn't really part of the album in my opinion and should just be seen as a bonus. It's a pretty simple but effective Doom song with vocals that remind me of Ozzy Osbourne and songwriting that is similar to Sleep's "Holy Mountain". It sounds almost completely different compared to the main track on the album and it obviously has a different production value too, because it was recorded live.

Now, the main song is something rather out of line. Prepare for a totally new listening experience because this album sounds unlike anything you have ever heard before. It starts of with a little looped guitar noise that slowly increases in volume and leads the listener to the first riff. This first riff is like the beginning of a journey, a slow and at first appearance painful ride through the desert. The riff drones through your ears for two and a half minutes or so. Then the drums and the bass kick in and everything seems to fit perfectly. The riff that seemed agonizing at first, now builds a mighty wall of sound accompanied by the other instruments. For the next few minutes the listener could think the riff never changes but actually there are minor differences in the constant repetition of the theme. A little bass tone more here, a little rhythm change there....

At about eight minutes the curtain rises for the singer, from now on referred to as "Weed priest" because this is exactly what his voice in combination with the mystic lyrics sounds like. You can find this style of vocals in NO other band, it's a weird mixture of growling, monk chanting and Sleep's vocals on earlier albums. It crawls under your skin and fills every cell of your body with the slowness and heat you feel under the desert sun.

The first real change in guitar work occurs at about 14 minutes when the riff stops and an epic solo starts which sounds (like the rest of the solos on the album) like a classic Doom Metal solo and a really awesome one too.

Immediately after the solo the Weed Priest chants a line which surprisingly turns out to be a quite "catchy" one. "Proceeds the Weedian, Nazareth". I don't know what it means or if there is any thought behind those lyrics at all but it just fits so perfectly that you once again have a picture in your head. In the desert a big caravan searching appears, they seem to be searching for their god, probably some kind of "Weed God", who knows?

Somewhere around this point you don't even know anymore if the band still play the riff from the beginning. It sounds familiar but has it already changed? The changes on this album happen so inconsiderable that you just can't be sure, and we're only halfway through the song.

The best thing about the song is: it never seems to end. There are a few parts between the 40th - 60th minute where the song seems to fade out but it always comes back in a VERY crushing way to drone on through the loneliness of the sand. The album lives and breathes through it's repetitions and minor changes and I couldn't think of another way to create this kind of monolithic atmosphere.

The lyrics are very mystic and I don't think they have a real meaning but they fit the atmosphere of the album perfectly. Sleep play with words that just sound epic and kind of dark sometimes and also here and there use references to some magic green plant. There are also lots of mentions of important biblical places, but I think these are only there to an even clearer picture in your head.

I think I don't even need to add how you can boost the awesomeness of the album even further. The album without any "additives" gets a really good 98 % rating, with some green tea the rating scale from 1-100 would not be enough.

This is it. The definitive Stoner Doom album. What we have here is so mighty, monolithic and breathtaking that no explanation could do this album justice. You simply have to listen to it at least once in your life. I just tried to do my best explaining to you why this album is so damn good but the last step is up to you, so just get it.

Highlights:
The singer/chanter, the crushing guitar tone, the "wall-like" bass, the relentlessly pounding drums, the solos... everything.

overrated - 25%

The_Ghoul, March 27th, 2008

I was introduced to Sleep (and Dopesmoker) by a friend of mine by the name of Bill. He said it was the most hypnotic piece of doom metal ever recorded. I took his word for it, and...

If "narcolepsy inducing" is "hypnotic", then indeed, Dopesmoker is hypnotic. As far as inducing alternate states of mind and leaving an impression on me... Dopesmoker doesn't.

Long songs are good... they give you more time to appreciate the inherent properties of the song you're listening to, and give the composer more time to evolve ideas into dramatic themes that sweep the listener away with their majesty and terrible might. Such songs could be strikingly minimal (like Sunn 0)))'s "Decay (symptoms of Kali Yuga)" which featured Attila Csihar) or complex (like Symphony X's Divine Wings of Tragedy) or a little of both (like Burzum's long titled song from Filosofem who's title I do not care to remember), but the common thread is evolution over time. Whether the evolution is profound and striking in the case of the complex, or beautifully subtle, in the case of the minimal, there is always evolution.

Dopesmoker is long for the sake of being long.

See the difference?

I most certainly do. I detect no evolution in the sound of Dopesmoker, being stuck on the same riffs for large amounts of time. It is not monolithic, unless you call plucking the lowest strings on your guitar and bass and letting them ring monolithic. Skepticism are monolithic, so are Mael Mordha. There is an inherent majesty implied in monolithic, which Dopesmoker thoroughly lacks.

I would write a longer review, as this song is longer than most whole albums. The problem is, Sleep wrote Dopesmoker with the same mindset as most sludge/doom/funeral doom bands do when they write songs that are significantly shorter, around the 10-20 minute mark. The result? 60 minutes that should've been 15 minutes, a tome that is elongated, prolonged, and stretched out, but with no new material, no new inspiration, which makes it more of an excercise in torment than hypnotic meditation. There is honestly only enough material here for 15 minutes, not 60.

While I admire the idea of creating a song that is more of an experience than a song, so long it traverses many moods and feelings, Dopesmoker failed before it even got out of the metaphorical hangar, being a good idea on paper but failing to translate to audio. I don't know how Dopesmoker relates to what Sleep "normally" does, since this is the only material by them I've heard, but judging by what I hear, I'll lead a happy life without exploring the wide wonderful world of Sleep.

I Just Don't Know About This - 50%

brocashelm, April 17th, 2006

I really love Sleep. I picked up their debut album upon it's release and truly dug the sloth and overwhelming depressive power it had. But for my taste, their sophomore effort SLEEP's HOLY MOUNTAIN was far better, being more diverse as far as tempos go, and revealing the band as being truly intuitive and strong improvisational players. But when I heard underground rumblings about Jerusalem and it's proposed 60 minute single song running time, I got a bit skeptical.

See, I also enjoy the Melvins, a band who's voyages into slow-motion trance doom have always tripped me out (especially the LYSOL EP, which is everything DOPESMOKER is not). But some difference between the two bands is thus: the Melvins have put out a huge clump of work over the years, and their experimental work is easily accepted, ignored or forgotten as they always get back to the business of turning out high quality material in their signature style. Sleep took forever to get their shit together, and after waiting a long time for a new album, a single hour long cut was just not what I was hoping for. Long story short, I missed out on JERUSALEM's seemingly limited release and was forced to wonder for years what it sounded like. And in the wake of HIGH ON FIRE and their terrifying rumble I became more and more curious about what I'd missed out on.

Well I finally got hold of DOPESMOKER and found out. It's pretty much what I expected, only a bit worse. I understand that this is an elongated and slightly different take on JERUSALEM, but having heard this version my desire to hear the original is a bit lessened. First off, it's boring. Yes it's very heavy and very monolithic in it's approach, but it's also dynamically dull and almost bereft of variation and sonic alteration. I hear some fans of the album screaming: "That's not the point! It's supposed to be trance inducing and hypnotic." I guess on some level it is those things, but I'd rather be hypnotized by interesting and multi-faceted music than by dull, monomanical music. Early recordings by Earth have the same semi-trancy effect on me, but as they usualy exist in 10 to 20 minute doses, they're a bit easier to swallow and digest.

I really don't feel strongly about this release in any way, which is really too bad considering how much I enjoy Sleep's earlier work and Matt Pike's music with HIGH ON FIRE. DOPESMOKER isn't really a bad or good thing, it's just kind of "there" which doesn't inspire much love from me. I guess this means I shouldn't get too excited about SUNN 00)), huh?

.................................................. - 90%

the_navy_blue_vicar, April 21st, 2005

Listening to Sleep makes you realize what a stupidly over-detailed language English is. I'm trying to collect my thoughts as I'm listening and all I can muster are shouted newspaper headlines like "BACKWARDS ECHO SQUELCH GUITAR INTRO OCCURS". Sleep take English and strip it down and streamline it into a form of pure meaning, perhaps only rivaled by Ramglish (if you know what I'm talkin about then you know what I'm talkin about).

This album kicks off with said squelchy-backwards-echo-guitar before a ridiculously long (which is probably the perfect length) guitar intro, in which the guitarist manages to repeat 2 cycles of the riff in over 2 and a half minutes. (Even though their names are on the front of this page I’ve made no attempt to learn them, incase they’ve got shitty normal-bloke sounding names like Steve, instead of righteous-superhuman-mystikal-Zen-motherfucker names of which I can’t think of right now) After this intro, you could be forgiven for forgetting what drums and bass actually sound like, which is great, because the rhythm section soon crunches in, and shave my knees and call me Mary if they aren’t the all time-greatest rhythm section you’ve ever heard. The band churn on, slowly fucking with this monolithic-fuckin-enormo-riff until 8mins 30, at which point, in the most ridiculously sub-human, drawn out voice you’ll ever hear, SLEEP-GLISH IS BORN, MOTHERFUCKERS.

“DROP OUT OF LIFE
WITH BONG IN HAND”

Is this the fucking greatest opening line to any song/album/anything ever or what? I mean seriously, stop and read that again. There isn’t a fuckin syllable wasted on this whole album. It takes him a whole 16 second to sing that one line, and it’s a further 17 before he launches himself into the even more ridiculous second line;

“FOLLOW THE SMOKE
TO THE RIFF FILLED LAND”

Then, just to emphasize the no-frills-attached no-bells-and-whistles form of pure meaning he’s just unleashed, he sings both lines again. After which, it’s heads down for another 5 or 6 minutes of outrageous stoner-rock (hahahhaha, this HAS to be about the only band on earth that probably wouldn’t mind the “Stoner-Rock” label) before OH JESUS, BENDY BASS LICK INTO 3 MINUTE FUCKING VOLCANIC META-SOLO. This is the first absolute stone-cold genius moment on this beast. This is the point when you realize they’re not “sub-humans” like I said back there, they’re super-human-7-foot-tall superior beings, fucking with our feeble minds and preconceptions. Honestly, most men would kill for this solo and they way they built it up.

I think the entire album up to this point was designed to knock to you the fuck out so that they could ram your shell-shocked mind with further pure meaning, mostly about weed, but (I like to think) also about a million other things that, if we keep listening, we’ll slowly start to understand. The band churns on for a fucking aeon, while the singer delivers his absolute-knowledge directly into your helpless brain. Your mind is outwardly thinking “WHAT THE FUCK” and in doing so, takes in absolutely everything.

The band stumble on, pausing now and again as if to say “yeah, we might finish here”, but of course they don’t, they career headlong into the next stupidly simple but effective riff, the singer’s wisdom forever delivered in this agonizing 1-note melody. At about the half hour mark the band start to jam on what’s effectively a 1-note riff until you’re begging for something, anything to remind you what you thought music was until 30 minutes ago. The band, amazingly, relents, fuck, I’m listening right now and all I can say is

FUCKING MOLTEN GUITAR SEEPS FORTH PURE BOILING WISDOM
SURGING SOLO PINES INTO ABSOLUTE
BUBBLING GUITAR EXCURSION TAPS TO UNDERCURRENT OF TIME, PERHAPS

Before this all subsides into the calmest, fuck, maybe even most MELODIC piece on the whole album. The chorus-ed up guitar picks a weird semi-melody over some of the most restrained and down-fucking-right TASTEFULL drumming and bass playing I’ve ever heard. This bit is fuckin unreal, honestly. The bass and drums are absolutely perfect, they’re hardly even there. I wish I was there the day they made up this part, just so I could soak up the genius. QUITE GOOD, IT IS.
The next part, no shit, is EVEN FUCKING BETTER. The band launch them selves headlong into the BIGGEST, INSANEST, GOODEST riff maybe in the universe, the bass actually lets the guitar play the bass while it does this relentless 2 note lick, just so that when he decides to join in the riff it pummels you 2-fold. Goddamn, this is the best bit. This album is the tits. I just listened to that whole section, the solo up until now, 4 times while writing this.

Then, they decide to prove that they’ve taken this whole Black Sabbath-stoner thing to its logical conclusion by blatantly ripping off the Iron Man riff, fucking with it for a few minutes, then discarding it and pummeling you until just after the hour mark, when they FINALLY stop. When you hear the end of this album it’s weird remembering that there was a reality when this music wasn’t playing. No wonder the band never did anything again after this. It could never be topped. It’s THAT intense.
And long, of course.
VERY, VERY LONG.

The Perfect Companion For Herb - 98%

Raumien, December 31st, 2004

The first review does a good job describing this album. Thick, bass-heavy sounds that are definately marijuana inspired, rolling on for an hour straight. The vocals are deep and drawn-out sounding, a really trippy voice. The drumming is similar to a lot of Doom Metal, using the crash to carry the beat a lot of the time, usually nothing ridiculously complex etc. There are some nice tom rolls and other fills scattered throughout, it's not a boring ride through this song when it comes to percussion.

The lyrics are an amusing mix of marijuana references of God. They got me thinking onetime when I was smokin, marijuana users are kind of like Christians in the old times. They practice something that isn't harming anyone, something that can give you new experiences and open new meanings to your life, and both marijuana users and christians are persecuted for what they do, christians moreso in older times than right now of course. Maybe they were trying to say something like this with their music, or maybe these are just some stoner ramblings of mine.....but it remains an interesting thought about hteir album to me.

Dopesmoker is definately an experience anyone with a remote liking for Doom should take part in. It's fucking epic, it's 60 minutes long dammit, it has to be epic. It's got less riffs and variations than an average Thrash song, the variations you do get are taking out certain instruments at times, going with a different drum beat, putting in more double bass or one of the many solos. There are also a lot of hidden noises you can pick up. Weird, trippy effects, odd sounds at certain places....it seems like everytime I listen to it I hear something new.

This album is damn heavy. It crushes. You can put this album on when you're buzzed and just hearing it will make gravity seem to double it's so heavy. Letting the thick, bassy riffs flow through your head will feel amazing. I also can't stress enough how trippy the vocals can seem, they make it even mor eof a unique experience.

One thing I definately recommend is getting the real CD, because the actual CD and the case cover both have some really awsome artwork on them. The skulltree on the CD and the flying 3 headed misty horse on the CD case are so fun to sit and stare at when you're listneing to this song. The best way to experience Dopesmoker is along, in a darkr oom, with no other sounds. Close you eyes and concentrate on the music, let it guide your thoughts and let your mind explor eplaces you don't normally go. Let the song take you places, it's an amazing experience

Motherfucking heavy - 96%

Spawnhorde, July 8th, 2004

God...fucking...damn. This is the heaviest fucking album I've ever heard. I know, it is a remake of Jerusalem, but I had already heared the original version and I wanted to try this. The same score stands for both, maybe plus one point here for the good extra song.

I'm at about 16 minutes right NOW, and this is the most fuzzed-out, weed-induced holy motherfucking explosive album I've heard in a while. There are like a handful riffs on the album, they all weigh about 500000 pounds, and they drag on FOREVER. The drumming is slow and is more of a time-keeping instrument (not in the musical way, really) than a percussive assault.

Now I'm at about 18 minutes. Everything's stopped and the bass is dragging on. Then an explosive riff, with the 3rd or so uttering of the lyrics "PROCEEDS THA WEED-EE-UHN...NAZ-UH-RETTTTH" and it's said with such a thick voice that it's trance inducing, along with the completely bass-driven composure.

Now I'm at 21 minutes. Everything is exactly the same as it was before, but I LOVE IT! This kind of thing may turn off some people who want fast fucking thrash, or some pure aural death assault. Oh wait, there goes the bass! Where did it go? Now there's a sludgy little chord with NOTHING else. Drums come in eventually, and so does the bass. And some more lyrics. I'm not going to update you every 3 minutes. Just get this damn album and LISTEN YOURSELF. Or get the equally awesome Jerusalem, which is the same thing, essentially, mind you.

If you like stoner, sludge, doom, drone, ambient, noise, or ANYTHING, or just want something downright heavy, evil, thick, and epic as all fuck, GET THIS!!!!

Heaviest song ever? - 90%

Shred1921, August 18th, 2003

I will completely concur with the author of the review of "Jerusalem," who said that this song (heard here as Dopesmoker, in all its 63 minute glory) is certainly a love-it-or-hate-it affair. Most people would hear this and immediately dismiss it as noise. Others would find the intricate sounds buried throughout, and appreciate this piece for its sheer genius.

Most metalheads know the story of Sleep, the band who only made two albums and this song, all of it containing less riffs than one of your typical thrash songs. They were contracted to a big record deal, and recorded this song. Needless to say, the record company didn't approve of what Sleep had layed down: a little more than an hour's worth of stoned jamming. The contract fell through, and Sleep disbanded. Years later, the song was released in a 52 minute incarnation known as "Jerusalem." Now, we finally get to hear and experience the entire song, along with an unreleased track.

First, the opus itself. This is an hour's worth of sludged out riffs, mind numbing bass, disjointed drumming, and haunting, chanted lyrics. I tried counting the riffs once, there's not even 10 discernable riffs in this entire thing. Once and a while, Matt Pike rips into a Sabbathy-solo.

When there is a defined riff going on, they ride on it for about 10 minutes at a time, hypnotically pounding it into the listener's brain until the ears are numb. Everything about this song is so BIG, it's just non-stop, hypnotic, rolling metal.

It's no secret that Sleep smoked a hell of a lot of marjiuana, and the lyrics certainly reflect that. The subject matter here is sort of a cross between something from the bible, and stoned ramblings. The lyrics appear to be stories about Jerusalem, travelling over the desert, and other biblical fare, but the characters are replaced with people like "Weedian," "Marijuanaut," and "Hasheeshian."

All three instruments mesh together to make one big, ugly, fuzzed-out rhythm. The bass rolls out on its own for small bits, adding nice accentuations here and there. The drumming is very much like Bill Ward's style, and is very hypnotic in nature; the crash cymbal is used to keep time for 90% of the song. The guitarwork is very rhythmical, following along with the rest of the band, giving a very unified sound. The solos, while there are only a few, are definitely patterned after Tony Iommi, and seem to fit fairly well where they're used.

This certainly isn't a record for everyone. Thrash-heads would find this very boring. If there was a 63 minute long thrash song, there'd be probably about 80 million riffs in it. This has, like I said, probably less than 10.

But, if you're a fan of heavy stuff, this is most definitely heavy. It's the heaviest thing I've ever heard in my life. And it is, just that, a thing. It's an entity. You'll hear different things in it every time, and every time, it'll leave you needing painkillers because you *will* have a headache after listening to this all the way through, I guarantee it. That makes it METAL.

AND... as an added bonus, for those of you who survived that 63 minute onslaught, we have "Sonic Titan."

This one starts alot like a "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" era Black Sabbath song, with some mid-paced riffage, but that doesn't last long, before turning into a fuzz-bomb at about 50 bpm. They ride on that riff for about 5 minutes, then we drop into a break, and what? a riff change? weird. In comes some very, very distorted vocals. After a little piddling around, we lay back into a stoner mind-crushing riff. A little bit of fuzzed out soloing happens somewhere under the smoke, and they ride a nice little heavy riff to a close, nearly 10 minutes later.

And that's this "album" in a nutshell. Does your brain hurt yet? I thought so. Get this, if you can find it. It's the heaviest stuff ever put on record.