Phoenix heavy rockers JUPITER CYCLOPS usher in ‘Age of the Ufonaut’
It’s getting hot all over the US right now, and no band knows it better than JUPITER CYCLOPS from Phoenix, Arizona, where it’s been inching closer and closer into 120 degree territory lately. Now there’s a band name for you to contemplate the next time you blaze up. Everything about it sounds larger than life, and their new album ‘Age of the UFOnaut’ (2024) definitely goes for it all: a heavy rock tincture of free-wheeling psychedelia with currents doom, groove metal, and NWOBHM.
Opener “UFOnaut,” dwells on extraterrestrial themes, with frazzled apocalyptic energy that lyrically may be about mind snatching, soul-stealing creatures from outer space. This song has a Prong-like blue collar beat, with appealing proto and power metal riffage.
The punchy chug-a-chug groove of “Between Worlds” pulls the listener right in like a gravitational tide. Some gnarly vocals on this one, rooted in grunge and heavy metal aesthetics. I was thinking of Deep Purple a lot during the chorus, a band that’s one of Jupiter Cyclops’ stated influences, as is Iron Maiden, and you can practically feel a melding of those two on this song.
“Sinful Ways” continues the End of the World celebration party. It’s a good, old-fashioned body shaker. I can see it being a fan favorite at shows and is surely bound for quite a few of your playlists. The soulful vocal delivery calls to mind the hashy ire of Chris Cornell. The band calls it “a classic blues style jam about a man who simply can’t control his primal urges.”
Fantastic stoner groove on this one all the way around, with some sweet riffing and a mean 'n’ skuzzy guitar solo. The drums and bass sound great on this track, particularly at 2:20, a short but effective breakdown that preludes that plaintive one-word refrain. Drummer Kyle Eades really brings the thunder and thud
The rhythm of “Doomed” is agitated and freewheeling, anchored by Aaron Peltz’s clean, but intimidating vocals. There’s a fantastic doom breakdown at 2:25 that I’ll definitely be coming back to. Dustin Lyon’s fingerwork is a buzzing celebration of electric guitar baptized in late-80’s/early-90s metal god glory. There is an unsettling outro that sounds like it belongs to the world of Fallout.
“Down From The Inside” draws upon old school stoner-doom and dons a deadly rhythmic bounce, as the plea goes out: burn it all down. The last of humanity taking its stand, raging against The Machine. There’s a Matrix reference in the lyrics, actually, but the bluesy vocal moments make me believe this is about our own concrete and asphalt hell and the technology that increasingly drains us of our essence. A good tune to soak in before a solar flare comes to wipe the slate clean.
“Chemical Voodoo” is pure southern-influenced stoner rock meted out in steady pulses with some wild chugging moments. Then bassist Jake Melius gets some spotlight, with a daydream stretch of winding notes that meets up with a blistering solo.
“Way Down Below” begins with swaggering Audioslave attack. The bittersweet vocal harmonies take us way out into lonely deserted places. You can just melt into the song’s midsection, an Alice in Wonderland acid trip (beginning at 2:02) that languishes into the dreamlike sway of the “Whale & Wasp” guitar tone. The chorus is a real bar-stomper and would be amazing to experience in a live setting.
Record closer “Lumerian Nights” is an honest to God stoner rocker, “a dark look into the world of other beings who could have had it all.” The vocal harmonies that had me thinking again of a much groovier Alice in Chains. The reverb in the return of the chorus is surreal and as the mood builds, the singing reaches for cosmic places. The guitar showmanship is incredible here, as well.
My sleep is only a gate
To bring me to another time
Oh how the moon as grown
It’s where the giants roam
Jupiter Cyclops’ Age Of The UFONaut arrives Friday, July 19th and can be gotten right here. Stick it on a playlist with The Sword, Devil To Pay, The Watchers, Goatsnake, and Holy Grove.
Give ear…
SOME BUZZ
Set to release their debut album “Age Of The UFOnaut” on July 19th, 2024 from Rockshots Records, Phoenix, AZ’s Jupiter Cyclops is an electrifying blend of energy, rockin riffs, catchy powerful vocal melodies, and contagious grooves. Featuring scene veterans Aaron Peltz (Downthesun, On a Pale Horse), guitarist Dustin Lyon (Opiate for the Masses), bassist Jake Melius (Big Wheel Stunt Show), and drummer Kyle Eades (Old Fashion Assassin), the quartet’s influences of classic rock and NWOBHM is sure to please fans of Clutch, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, and more.
“The album is a journey through our minds. What we have created was born out of our experiences and influences. It has an overall rock feel with a metal tinge, and a little acid trip mixed into it all.” adds the band.
Exploring UFO sightings, conspiracy theories, interstellar demons, and the hidden parts of your mind, this is an album full of groove sludgy riffs, and a fresh take of blending stoner rock, classic heavy, and '70s proto-metal. Fans will fall in love with tracks such as opener “Doomed,” an in-your-face fast-moving rocker fueled by conspiracy theories and paranoia to “Down From the Inside,” a classic tune about dismantling the system from within, all layered upon a sweet cake of riffs to “Chemical Voodoo,” a trippy song with a sludgy swinging guitar about the classic woes of drug experimentation to album closer “Way Down Below,” featuring a booming guitar riff followed by thundering drums and bass, capped off with lyrics about the consequences of bad decisions.