Sauntering low within slow-wrought passage from portal to portal Fasano, Italy-based psychedelic doom metal trio KING POTENAZ transgress ancient rituals and cosmic quandary within occult dark fantasy realms on this snarling, buzz-heavy third full-length album. The groaning n’ gnashing mouth of possession which introduces ‘Arcane Desert Rituals Vol. II‘ eventually releases its shoulders into jammed and searching depiction, further expansion of the band’s ouevre within the unholy glut produced within these sessions. Though all actions are yet informed by a host of classic inspiration the more exploratory psychedelic doom they’ve brought here is yet appreciably moody, bleak yet stoney to a point of admirable characterization.

King Potenaz formed circa 2019 via jammed exploration ’til finding focus within raw, fuzz driven occult doom and stoner metal style their work is primarily inspired by the most obvious fundaments of said sub-genre. Shades of Sleep‘s sense of progression and ‘Dopethrone‘-era Electric Wizard‘s scuzzy lean have since appeared in their work alongside the desert-bound impetus of Kyuss per their evolution but don’t appear as worship outright. The first spark of thier undertaking, the ‘King Potenaz‘ (2022) demo, had been a stoney creeper that’d easily met the general mark for slow-slung psychedelic doom b/w some stoney bumping along the way, effectively pre-loading what they’d accomplish on the well-received ‘Goat Rider‘ (2023) a year later. The most compelling part of that first record was probably “Pyramids Planet” where the patient dark psychedelia of their work was minimally interrupted by their swinging loose stoner metal jog otherwise. This was a sort of premonition of how their approach would evolve a couple of years later per their second album, the first part of their ‘Arcane Desert Rituals‘ exploration.

Excising most but not all of the mid-paced stoner bop from their approach and honing in on longer, droning psychedelic doom pieces King Potenaz turned a formidable corner in presenting ‘Arcane Desert Rituals Vol I‘ which I’d described as a “sometimes snarling, pleasantly surreal form of slow roaming stoner-doom comfort food.” at the time per its warmed over consistency and slow burnt droning step. “Ariadne, The Serpent Witch” in particular suggested the band were capable of curating far more expansive vision than expected. It was a compelling step into differentiation, characterization beyond a predictable stoner gloom-bound feat which’d run admirably fresh gamut and that’d built high expectations for this direct follow-up a year later. In fact ‘Arcane Desert Rituals Vol II‘ is less a follow-up to the previous volume and essentially the second half of those same sessions recorded back in early 2024.

If you’d enjoyed the growling bite of “Sabbatum Sanctum” on the previous album opener “Sumerian Nights” peers longer and deeper into that same abysm, shaking the dust loose with its Geiger counter pinging guitar tone and synth/cello accompaniment to start. The darker and more distraught King Potenaz reach into their ceremonial depiction the more compelling their stoner/sludge moodiness proves to be as this downtrodden first gasp did some major work pulling me into their realm. That level of heaviness yet translates into the uptempo smoke of “Lord of the Rust” to start, a mid-paced jog which showcases their iron-girded machinery is yet heaving even within a bop of a song.

The shape of ‘Arcane Desert Rituals Vol II‘ resembles that of the first volume pretty squarely, splitting each side between two pieces and bookending the entire thing with longer songs. Side B navigates the flip with a well-drowned, watery psychedelic doom piece via “The Nothingness” which culminates with a double-bass drummed ramp beyond its heady, slow built advance. This is arguably where the album shifts more readily in tune with the jammed impetus of King Potenaz, particularly the mushy soloing they play around with before the final minute of the song. Closer “A Crack In The Void (The Empty Hand pt. 2)” extends that thought within its first several minutes, bringing a pretty decent main riff and slow oscillating synth into the heat of the song’s otherwise ranting headspace. When taken piecemeal I’d not been a fan of the simpler arrangement but as a finale it’d made sense in the overall progression beyond Side A.

With my own serpent-tongued taste for miserable doom considered this second half of ‘Arcane Desert Rituals‘ might be King Potenaz‘ best release to date. When paired with the first volume their work consolidates into a monolith of a double LP from a band that’d appeared pretty damned typical four years ago, a fine example of a promising sound finding its own voice. Whether you’re out for dark meditative introspection or a broad-minded course through psychedelic doom this is a pretty solid choice and a decent landmark set halfway through the year. A high recommendation.

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