In tackling a second purely sensorial experience Florence, Italy-based heavy psych/stoner-doom metal trio LORD ELEPHANT approach with gusto rather than cerebral remission, carrying heavier and busier action into this pro-level sophomore full-length album. Better braced by heavy blues tangent and the groan of ornately voiced stoner metal tinge ‘Ultra Soul‘ crafts its voice via thoughtfully channeled flow between myriad related sub-genre and does so expertly without vocal performances to direct said movement. Though this is a remarkable step beyond the band’s debut album into undeniably presence it is yet am act of implied connectivity, relying on familiar tropes to generate voice without necessarily achieving singularity beyond high quality, vibe-oozing concoct.

Lord Elephant have been around for a decade at this point, initially forming as Random n’ Roll circa 2016, but their ship hadn’t landed upon anything public and concrete ’til their debut LP, ‘Cosmic Awakening‘, released to modest acclaim circa 2022. Praised for their psychedelic/stoner rock fueled and jammed-out style fed a light diet of groove-heavy sludge their work combined contemporary stoner music niche with something like neo-psychedelia, plenty of noisome guitar wrangling and heavier tangents. I’d given brief review of that album upon release suggesting limited shelf life but mild appeal for my own tastes: “There is little chance an instrumental stoner record is going to stick around in my collection for long before it just eats space ’til the next thing, so I’m not blown away by this in terms of knowing how it’ll road test with me, but I do greatly appreciate the vibrancy of ‘Cosmic Awakening‘ and the places these folks take their sound” and that comment generally carries over to this new album.

‘Ultra Soul‘ offers a no-less entertaining rush of instrumental heavy rock, retaining Lord Elephant‘s general combination of stoney, bluesy and heavy sensibilities while altering the tone and presentation of their action. The riffs are girded by more layers, the pedal board only expands, and all of their work is more actively stated compared to the sedated wandering found on the band’s first LP; Voiceless or primarily instrumental and jam-built music generally becomes backgrounded generica for most ears without a centralized voicing and in this case the illustrative pen of the trio flits between the prog-rock and blues-broken snaking of their lead guitar work and riffcraft bolstered by psychedelic doom and sludge metal informed heft. “Smoke Tower” is a particularly representative example of how all of these pieces fit together.

Lord Elephant‘s development beyond their first album is otherwise exactly what one’d expect from a touring group: More time spent on the road amidst bigger venues signals a shift in the way they present what are essentially jammed-through compositions built, or, honed for malleable performance. Opener/key single “Gigantia” conveys this most directly as an opener with an extended lead-in (“Electric Dunes”) which finds the band sourcing a big opening moment alongside the album’s heaviest doom quotient and probably attracting many ears with tones and temperament fans of everything from 90’s stoner/desert rock to psych doom and Mastodon-era prog-sludge would appreciate in passing motion. The experience gained beyond a very relaxed debut album should be obviate from the first listen, this is a well-readied, extremely lush yet present experience by comparison. That tonality carries through the first three tracks in general an anchor which is probably going to serve as the most memorable chunk of ‘Ultra Soul‘ for most listeners.

Beyond the band’s admirable ode to cheap-ass whiskey (“Black River Blues“) the actual depth of experience here is found on Side B where we find three ~8-9 minute songs extend Lord Elephant‘s voice back into the psychedelic doom inspired jam most fans of ‘Cosmic Awakening‘ should appreciated as a bigger, better deal. While I’d found “Astral” comparatively dry for the most part “MindNight” and its heavier focus on spaced and ominous doomed motioning was -the- clear standout within this seeming glut of extended pieces nearby the tail end of the album. While I’d suggest doom metal as a piece of this song’s reach this is only a launching point for the prog-tinged jam the song becomes in its middle third, creating a mountain to climb and descend on the way through. It isn’t the most complex or flow-readied piece on the album but it hits the best traits of the band’s gig while serving something likely worth hearing in a live setting, probably with at least one more guitarist fleshing out their sound. Otherwise it all gloms together nicely, an inoffensive and pro-level instrumental rock record.

An album like ‘Ultra Soul‘ thrives within its ability to not only create a glistening moment for the listener but sustain it in an entertaining (re: immersive) way and while successful Lord Elephant are yet a bit too straight-faced, plain in their authorship to the point that the “vibe” is there but sub-genre mulling and glossed-up sound design do not necessarily generate repeatable profundity. That is to say that I like this album as an above-average, pleasurable listening experience but also that it does not summon a wholly unique voice, rather a glom of reagents which puzzle together neatly in solution when prompted with the right energy. A moderately high recommendation.

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