Faering Ring tip their hand right away in the first song on 2019’s “The Clearing.” This is big, fuzzy, distortion-drenched, dreamy, space traveling, bong-bubbling, green-leafed, rocking, rolling, rollicking, groovy, Doomy, Elvish, faerie-dusted, sludgy, Sabbathy, torn-knuckled, beard-sweaty, tattooed, torn-shirt, retro, tube-amped, fat-bassed, tasty, analog-tape-sounding, gritty, grimy, ballsy, oil-stained, under-the-fingernails, beer-soaked, bar-blazing, bloodthirsty Doom Metal. With roots clearly snaked through the soils of Black Sabbath, Sleep, Monster Magnet, Conan, Cathedral, et al, this is a masterful tentpole in the modern Doom renaissance.

The drums are big and open-mouthed, the vocals are sung in a caustically one-D bellow with almost no displays of range, and and the guitars are Doom perfection. This album is a masterclass in juxtaposition of power chords and electric single note riffage. These songs sound like they’re fun to play on guitar.
It punches out after only 7 songs, all ranging in length from 4 minutes to six and a half, so while there’s a strong link to something like Sleep’s “Dopesmoker” - - and while there’s definitely some time for trippiness - - there are very few meandering or “whoa, dude” moments. Each of the songs gets in there, takes care of business, and hits the clock on its way out. “Somnium,” “Heavy Trip,” “Bite the Ash,” “Lost Wind” are all deeply satisfying.