Top 5 On Friday – Small Stone Records: 5 Favorite Albums From 2024
Welcome to the last installment for my five favorite albums of 2024 from five of my favorite record labels. This series started in late December when I posted about five of my favorite current underground record labels (here). From there I reviewed Blues Funeral Recordings (here), Heavy Psych Sounds (here), Magnetic Eye Records (here), and Ripple Music (here). This brings me to Small Stone Records to end the series with. Small Stone Records was one of my biggest followed label two decades ago. It was them, Meteor City, Tee Pee Records, Southern Lord, and Fuzzorama Records back then. Let’s also not forget the true pioneers for stoner rock music, Man’s Ruin. Anyways, Small Stone Records used to release tons of stuff every year and a lot of the most classic bands have released albums on the prestigious label. They are still a fantastic label but the volume of releases has dropped to about half a dozen a year currently. Here are my favorites from 2024.
5. THE ELECTRIC MUD – ASHES AND BONE
The Electric Mud from Florida released an excellent album called Ashes And Bone, on October 4th, 2024. The heavy rocking band created a lot of dense songs filled with progressive twists and some bluesy tones also. The heavy riffing and excellent leads really satisfied my interest in the band and Ashes And Bone (review here) was a fantastic introduction to their music.
https://smallstone.bandcamp.com/album/ashes-and-bone
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4. IOTA – PENTASOMNIA
Iota returned after a fifteen year hiatus from their landmark debut album. Pentasomnia (review here), released on March 22nd, 2024, was a huge comeback album and the band delivered a great set of five new songs. I was excited upon hearing about their return and Pentasomnia definitely lived up to the hype. The Utah band explores heavy psychedelic rock and crafts exceptional and very interesting music that really grabs the listener.
https://smallstone.bandcamp.com/album/tales
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3. SHUN – DISMANTLE
The Carolina heavy rockers Shun delivered their sophomore album on July 19th, 2024. Led by the guitarist/ vocalist of one of my favorite bands Throttlerod, Shun are definitely their own thing. They explored a little more musical elements with Dismantle (review here) compared to the debut and it took a little bit to fully sink in. However, with every listen I was digging it more and more, and I really enjoy it a lot. I find the best and lasting albums are slow growers and Dismantle is no exception. It’s fantastic through and through!
https://shuntheband.bandcamp.com
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2. BLACK ELEPHANT – THE FALL OF THE GODS
Italy’s Black Elephant was a new discovery for me this past year and I think they are excellent. The Fall Of The Gods (review here) was released on October 18th, 2024. The band has a great heavy psych rock sound that is very captivating. The songs are very interesting and will get buried into your head. I was very impressed with this band as a whole and welcomed The Fall Of The Gods with open arms and ears. It’s an amazing album and made it onto my top twenty list at lucky number thirteen.
https://smallstone.bandcamp.com/album/the-fall-of-the-gods
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1. FREE RIDE – ACIDO Y PUTO
The biggest surprise for me from Small Stone Records was Free Ride. The band from Spain released Acido Y Puto (review here) on August 9th, 2024. This album is amazing! I was totally impressed with their heavy stoner/ psychedelic rock sound! It reminds me of old Nebula but more cerebral. Free Ride was my number four pick on my top twenty favorite albums of the year. I can’t wait to hear what these guys do next.
https://freerideband.bandcamp.com
