Floating Widget hail from the great north of Montreal, Canada. The band first made waves in 2004 with their debut ‘Praises To The Riff Monolith’. The debut was a tribute to the early days of riff heavy stoner rock. Even the title conjures up religious symbolism revolving around the beauty of the riff. By now I think you can grasp that Floating Widget truly are riff’tastic. The band has just dropped their sophomore release in the form of a 5 track EP titled ‘The Sounds Of Earth’. Yes, you heard that right, this EP is the first release from the band in 13 years. The album released March 2, 2017. ‘The Sounds Of Earth’ was recorded, mixed & mastered by Jef Fortin (Anonymus) at Bad Ass Studio. There is also a special treat on this album as well. The concluding track “Spiderzilla” features guest vocals from none other than Voivod’s Snake. Floating Widget is also playing the prestigious Montebello Rockfest alongside veteran acts like Queens Of The Stone Age, Rammstein, Iggy Pop, Megadeth, A.F.I. and a ton more. If you have the opportunity to catch this show make sure not to miss the heavy stoner riffs of Floating Widget.
Thing get going and the going gets good with “Rock & Roll Jubilee”. This song is one hell of an ass kicker. The rough gravely voice of bassist/vocalist Vincent Peake really brings a rawness to the bands sound. Like we mentioned before as well there is ample amounts of riffs. On this song the riffs come from every direction and almost surrounding you in the delicate picking of the strings. The fast paced track is over before you know it. But in that 2:52 you get so much sound and the song winds down like an old school rock track. “Psy Walker” comes up next and this song has a lot more fuzz than the opening track. The vocal tone still has that roughness but it seems to encompass a lot more harmony. These momentary break downs of guitar work show off the amazing talents of guitarists Alex Leclerc and Stéphane Vigeant. “Albatross” is where the groove really shines. Vincent Peake’s bass lead into the song creeps you into the heart of the song. The song comes across as a love song of sorts with lyrics like “She’s the healer, the druggie and the dealer”. How can you not love words of wisdom like that? The constant beat by drummer Matt Demon is the glue that really holds everything together. The constant precision pounding of the drums really keeps the time and rhythm in sync. Now for the “Spiderzilla” featuring Snake from Voivod. By far the heaviest track on the EP just after the first few moments. Snake’s voice rings out and takes the song to a whole new level. His haunting vocal pitch lurks through the track right up until the chorus and then he holds nothing back and relentlessly belts out “SPIDERZILLA”. His voice is so fitting to Floating Widget’s sound, and especially this track. This album is 16 minutes of the purest form of riffs. 13 years between releases and there is no rust whatsoever to their sound. Let’s just hope their next record comes sooner than later, we need more Floating Widget.
