Founded in 1996, Lodestar is a project featuring Senser members Heitham Al-Sayed (vocals) and John Morgan (drums), as well as sound engineer Alan “Haggis” Haggarty (guitars / bass). Releasing a single album, Lodestar met with success, dropping two singles and being invited to open for Tool on their Aenima tour. It was not to last, however, and the band split in 1997 – seemingly for good.
It would not be until 2018 that Heitham, John, and Haggis would discuss resurrecting the band. Ideas for a follow up were discussed, finally emerging in the form of Zonen, a gloriously expansive and engaging album, that draws from a range of influences, not least Black Sabbath, but also prog, electronica, and much more. One listen, and it’s as if the band have never been away, the vital chemistry between the three members as evident as ever. It makes for a rewarding listen, embracing heavy metal at its core, but with enough variation (courtesy of the band’s myriad influences) to be considered unique, even in these cynical times.
The album starts big and bold with Surrender To The Tide, the years melting away as Haggis’ hulking great riff brings the Sabbath. With Heitham’s psychedelic vocal somewhere between Ozzy and Lee Dorrian and a strong stoner groove, it makes for a gloriously multi-hued entrance, and the album only gets better from there. Recently released single Bring me The Head is up next. With John providing an awkward, stabbing rhythm, it has a darkly progressive feel, Heitham’s densely multitracked vocals floating between Haggis’s grinding basslines and surprisingly nimble guitar. There’s even a spacey synth passage, further drawing the listener into the band’s vibrant world.
Opting for a rather more direct approach, Be Ready positively detonates with a gritty riff reminiscent of Helmet, Heitham’s voice probing between the cracks with a feverish intensity. Yet, just as you’ve acclimatised, the band perform a deft u turn, heading into unexpectedly psych-folk territory that sees Heitham’s entwined vocals take on a gorgeous folky quality. It neatly showcases Lodestar’s versatility, and it’s easy to imagine this one stretching out in the live arena. The band slow the pace with the majestic introduction to Hyperitual, a passage that draws as much from Gabriel-era Genesis as it does from Sabbath’s sturm und drang, although a coruscating riff is not far behind. It’s a dynamic journey into another world, the band weaving blazing riffs and pastoral prog into a compelling piece that evokes ancient landscapes, a million miles from the crowded spaces of the contemporary world. It’s an album highlight and one of those pieces of music best heard with the lights turned low and any digital distractions placed firmly in another room.
The first half of the album (at present it’s only available on CD, but it really feels as if it’s made for vinyl), concludes with the slinky Flame. With Heitham opting for a lower key approach complete with hazy backing vocals, Haggis pares the guitars back to allow the dark groove of the bass to shine, and the result is a track no less dynamic than what has gone before, but with a keener seventies vibe and a strong scent of patchouli woven into its textures.
Opening the second half of the album, 1983 is the briefest of segues, built around a gorgeous, picked guitar piece and backed by Wendy Carlos-esque synths. It’s an unexpected paring that works well, right up until the point that the crash of a gong announces the unholy doom of The Stranger. A towering performance, The Stranger taps into the same potent vein of metal that drove the Dio / Sabbath Heaven and Hell collaboration, and it’s just as awesome.
Haggis delights in wrong footing the listener with a sound clash of samples and synth before driving the band into the pummelling High Sorrow, which splits its attention between heavy psyche metal and the alternative metal leanings of both Alice in Chains and Tool, the latter particularly evident in the stair-stepping guitar riff. Having drawn the listener into a more progressive realm, Lodestar unload a metallic firestorm with The Real World, which mixes an almost punkish energy with gargantuan riffs, tribal beats, and the biting line “no one suffers in the real world”. That dark energy carries over into Sigils Burning, a splenetic offering that sounds like Henry Rollins going head-to-head with Tony Iommi and Evan Seinfeld.
And, with that, we’ve reached the final track and you’re left wondering just how forty minutes has passed without you really realising it. The band wrap things up with a cover of The Sensational Alex Harvey Band’s The Harp. Bending the piece to their will, they render the first half (which is rather acoustic) faithfully, before bringing a harder edge to the track’s conclusion. Yet, even opting to add a certain weight, the original beauty of the piece remains undimmed, and it provides the album with an evocative conclusion that feels entirely fitting.
Zonen is a remarkable album that brings together traditional heavy metal, doom, prog, electronica, folk, and psychedelia over the course of forty-five minutes and eleven brilliant tracks. While there truly isn’t a weak moment, highlights include the dynamic Be Ready and the devastatingly weighty Sigils Burning, two tracks that demonstrate the scope of this remarkable band. While we can hope that another 27 years doesn’t pass until the next outing from Lodestar, we are fortunate to have this release and it’s fair to say that it’s an album to which we’ll return time and again over the years to come. 9.5/10
PS: Dear Lodestar, I am sorry not to have included the requisite abuse here, any more than I did in the interview. Perhaps when you release an album of autotuned country-pop I will be able to do better…
