"Earth 2: Special Low Frequency Edition" by Earth

Favorite track: Seven Angels

As an apocalypse enjoyer, I'd like to think I've always had a reasonable appreciation of doom metal. I didn't know the genre existed for a while, but I'd enjoy the doom-laced tracks of bands like Dystopia and Melvins for a while. However it's safe to say I didn't understand what true doom was until I stumbled across Earth 2.

What can one little freak say about Earth 2 that hasn't been said by a billion other doom metal weirdos? Nothing to intellectually explain what makes it such a masterpiece, that's for sure. I do not understand HOW this album was conceived. The idea to make an album of nothing but repetitive, droning metal riffs that gradually slows to a crawl over the course of an hour and 15 minutes... If that's not crazy enough, then it's even crazier when you listen to it and try to figure out how they did it. How in the name of God do you sustain a single note for 30 minutes straight? It's a true technical marvel.

Fuzz is eternal. The fuzz creeps through the spaces between the atoms that make up everything in the universe. The fuzz is the voice of God reverberating throughout all living beings. This album is nothing but fuzz — heavy, all-encompassing fuzz that creates a multi-layered atmosphere of dread, doom, and tranquility. When you listen to Earth 2, you have no choice but to be swallowed up by the empty, deep blue void of the sky until it spits you back out 75 minutes later. You do this album a disservice by not allowing it to consume you entirely. You will not listen to this album passively. You will give it the respect it deserves and play it over quality audio equipment, whether that be top-quality headphones or a surround sound speaker setup. If you can't feel your chest buzzing, then you're not doing it right.

This album is a hard sell for alot of people for obvious reasons. I'll defend it 'til the end of days, because I've never had an album feel like it changed me on a cellular level before. Each listen of this is extremely meditative and has me finally understanding what all that mindfulness crap is all about — and I am not a person who likes to take things slow. Despite the overwhelming embrace of doom, its droning beauty somehow brings a deep sense of comfort. It's an abyss with profound catharsis waiting for you at the bottom.

There is nothing else like Earth 2.