Dunes – Land Of The Blind

by Mark 'Yeti' Richard · January 22, 2025

Dunes are a heavy stoner rock trio based in New Castle, in the United Kingdom. The lineup includes John Davies on guitars and vocals, Ade Huggins on bass and vocals, and Nikky Watson on drums. The band’s recordings consist of: 2017’s Dune EP and Dune EP 2, 2019’s Take Me To The Nasties, 2022’s Gargoyle, and their latest 2025’s Land Of The Blind. Land Of The Blind contains nine tracks in forty four minutes and is the band’s first release on Ripple Music. The album came out on January 17th 2025.

“Cactus” opens up the album with a nice blend of fuzz rock with catchy vocal melodies. The song fades in with drums that begin the arrangement of heavy desert riffs and then mellow guitar dynamics, just before the vocals start. The music has a very elaborate flow throughout the song and the vocals are great with excellent backing harmonies too. When John Davies and Ade Huggins integrate the chorus “keep holding on” repeated, it’s nearly impossible not to get it stuck in your head. Another great facet of the song is when the music pauses except for the high accentuated guitar and vocals which sing “through the fire of a million suns, they see right through, through the fire of a million suns, they see through me”. Dunes does a fantastic job portraying equal amounts of fuzz and melody with the nearly six and a half minute opener.

“Tides” kicks right in next with the stoner groove being so contagious, it’s sounds so effortless and natural for Dunes to deliver. The chorus boasts another memorable line of “Can’t tell where the waters come from, anymore.” Davis and Huggins really work well together and the music keeps generating a fluid drive that services the song perfectly. The third track “One Eyed Dog” exaggerates the classic desert rock sound and amplifies its strength and structure. Dunes are really in tune with their quest for crafting infectious and zestful songs that are very memorable.

“Northern Scar” is just under seven minutes and is a masterful number that has a magnetic and potent allure to it. The song has a Kyussy flavor about it with a progressive build up into nebulous rhythms. Around the 4:45 mark, the song makes use of a spoken intense passage from Nick Carter from Crane. It’s a very involved and alluring ending to the song which stretches their sound into new territory. “Riding The Low” cranks in next with the straight up attack of classic stoner glory amplified with fuzz rocking intensity. This was the first single released from Land Of The Blind and really did capture the spirit of which the album was derived from. Dunes are in full throttle mode with this song and placing the track snap dab in the middle of the record is a great choice, in my opinion.

The sixth song “How Real Is Real” begins with the guitar and then kicks into a distinguished stoner riff. The song is very complimentary to the rest of the album and is magnified with excellent harmonized vocals. “Voodoo” plays next and has a slamming riff to start which is also the chorus. Ryan Garney of High Desert Queen lends backing vocals on this track and it’s a banger. The chugging rhythm towards the end is a nice added section to the song and keeps the rocking groove alive as it drifts back into the chorus. “Fields Of Grey” is the final jubilant and upbeat song on Land Of The Blind. Dunes dish out a rocking whirlwind of tempo transitioning from the bass and drum rhythm verses to the heightened guitar emphasizing. The duo vocal harmonies are fantastic on this song and really connects the music together in a melodious unit. It’s a sanctified sound structure that works meticulously throughout Land Of The Blind.

Dunes are not trying to overplay their songs with unwarranted additives of notes. Instead they drive in simplicity which is expertly executed for the most impactful listening experience. The dynamic exploration of sounds and melodies are balanced with heaviness, for any given song. The final track entitled “Riding The Slow” caps off the recording with a nice psychedelic doom outro. The closure is an unhurried instrumental of creeping musical seduction. It expresses another side of Dunes and further enhances my interest with this album and band. I am really digging this a lot and will surely revisit it regularly, throughout the year. I am gonna predict that Land Of The Blind will be a favorite among 2025 albums, even though the year has just begun.