Electric Wizard - “Dopethrone” Album Deep Focus

posted April 11, 2022 in Arts & Entertainment by Jon Mead.

The artwork on the front cover is as outrageous as the music inside the record.
What hooks you in is the crudely drawn, black and white depiction of the devil himself taking a bong hit.

The listener won’t be able to handle it when they take a listen to one of the most seminal sludge metal albums of the early 2000s.

“Dopethrone” by Electric Wizard is considered by many — both critics and casual listeners — to be one of the most important albums to emerge from both the sludge metal and stoner rock scenes.
 
The band takes its name from two Black Sabbath songs, taking that same atmosphere of cruelty, darkness and disgust, and dumping it right into the 21st century. The introduction of this album is a phenomenal build-up.

That first song to hit the ears is “Vinum Sabbathi” and it’s one of the most impactful and best doom tracks out there, as the lead singer and guitarist Jus Oborn talks of “forbidden sorcery” and awakening on a “planet black,” alluding to the band’s obsession with the occult and witchcraft.

Waves of guitar sounds crash together as themes of vengeance and hatred greet the listener throughout, not just in that first track but throughout the entire album.

A lot of Electric Wizard’s previous works like “Come My Fanatics...” and “Let Us Prey” are both amazing, but “Dopethrone” is where the band really developed their own sound and grew into their own.

Although it may seem like the band takes a lot of influence from Black Sabbath, the band has created its own unique sound, even compared to other stoner rock bands like Acid King or Kyuss.

“Funeralopolis” is another great track that shows off Tim Bagshaw’s thick and groovy bass licks, while Oborn shells out bluesy guitar riffs in the background. 

The epitome of sludge metal, each song is slow and muddy, but at the same time powerful, screaming of rebellious and wild energy.


The reign and terror of each song has a certain effect on the human mind, making one completely forget about other doom metal bands like Saint Vitus or Cathedral, maybe even Black Sabbath.

It takes these two genres- three if you count stoner rock- and fuses them together, creating a truly fascinating listening experience.

Whether one is leaving their crappy 9-to-5 job or screaming at the face of God, Electric Wizard is there to tell you one thing and one thing only with their 2006 LP Dopethrone: “do it.”

Jon Mead is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email jkm6040@psu.edu.