Warcoe – Upon Tall Thrones
Warcoe is a three-piece band based in Pesaro, Italy. Formed in 2021, the heavy doom trio has released 2021’s Warcoe EP, 2022’s The Giant’s Dream, 2023’s A Place For Demons, and their latest, 2025’s Upon Tall Thrones. The lineup consists of Carlo on bass, Francesco on drums, and Stefano Fiorelli on guitar and vocals. Upon Tall Thrones is the band’s third album and debut for Ripple Music. It was released on September 26th and contains nine tracks at thirty seven minutes.
“Octagon” starts off the album with a classic sounding doom riff executed with perfection. The Sabbath-esc riffs are simple but remembered in every execution. The riffs strike hard and direct with melodic Ozzy influenced vocals accompanying, like on “The Wanderer”. Warcoe has an excellent handle on traditional doom metal but they are laying down a stoner groove in a song like “I’ve Sat Upon Thrones (But I’ll Never Learn)”. The next track is an acoustic interlude called “Gather In The Woods”. The beautiful guitar composition leads us into “Flame In Your Hand”. The heavy doom-centric opening riff is intoxicating! The instrumental monster has classic metal riffing that flows along leveling through everything in its path.
“Spheres” strikes next and it is a solid chunk of catchy doom. The devastating riffs are backed with vibrant vocals that hook you. The almost “Planet Caravan” effect on the vocals sounds really good. “Deepest Grave” exemplifies heavy bull-dozing rhythms to lead you off into war. It’s a heavy riffer with solid drumming hammering away. The end build up is epic and savage sounding with nice drum fills sprinkled in there too.
The eighth track is a beast called “Brown Witch”. It begins with the drums and a demolishing bass riff that jams into the groove. The heavy fuzz crunching guitars join in as the song soars along. The guitar leads are grand on this one too and the vocals are commanding with their emotive tone and delivery. The final song on Upon Tall Thrones is called “Dark Into Light.” It’s a fantastic closer with dense doom riffs overlayed with soaring vocals. The heavy funk groove riff is awesome, as is the bombastic drumming and scorching guitar leads. Warcoe has created an exceptional album with Upon Tall Thrones. It was deservingly number one on the doom charts for the month of September. I am very impressed with their sound and straightforward approach to the heavy stoner doom music.
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