MOLASSESS - Through The Hollow

Is it just me being out of touch or is there really not nearly enough hype surrounding the debut album of Molassess? (Now with one S more in the name.) 

Maybe it's too occult for parts of the krautrock crowd, yet still too psych for many metal fans?

Maybe it's just the involuntary lack of promotion through live shows?

I mean, with the involvement of Farida Lemouchi this band is by far the closest and most rightful heir to the legacy of The Devil's Blood.

MOLASSESS - Through The Hollow (purple and red mixed vinyl 2LP) (2020)

Originally commissioned on initiative of Walter Houijmakers for an exclusive Roadburn Festival performance, this project soon became much more and gave an intriguing glimpse of its ambitions on the first EP "Mourning Haze / Drops Of Sunlight".

"Through The Hollow" now successfully builds on the promise of that release with nine tracks of magnetic, hypnotic and psychedelic hard rock, which doesn't hide that it sets off where the last recordings of The Devil's Blood and even more so Selim Lemouchi & His Enemies left.
The guitar chord sounds, the layered leads biting themselves in the tail, the unmistakable midtempo grooves, it's all there.

And it's not just the pure stylistic influence. With "The Devil Lives" Molassess actually found themselves in a confident enough place to take an unfinished song from Fardida's late brother and bring it into glorious  fruition.

Speaking of Farida: It's crystal clear that despite all its fantastic instrumental performances, this album stands and falls with her unique charismatic voice. And since you can feel her passion for singing in a band again at every given moment, she constantly outdoes herself at sending welcome chills down the listener's spine. This means that "Through The Hollow" neither stands or falls at all, but flies from start to finish - and beyond.

Of course there are also elements which don't scream Selim. Especially the ridiculously good lead guitars and the keyboards bring their own original flavor. 

It's close to futile to single out any highlights of this double album, because each and every song is absolutely on fire and distinct enough from the rest of the bunch to justify its existence. In the end these are just around sixty-five minutes of pure earwormy bliss by seasoned artists bringing their creative A-game.


The artwork of the gatefold sleeve (I got the exclusice Ván Records edition) surprised me by being more interesting than expected, mostly by the strange concept of printing the lyrics on circular sheets. The red/purple vinyl colour is also quite beautiful.

Conclusion: I love everything about this masterpiece. And it's a shame that it took me so lang to find the time to praise it here.