A Fresh Interview with DOOM STONED

If you are not yet too familiar with the sounds of Doom Stoned, them let us be among the first to introduce you as they have some new singles out that are ally invasive opuses of sludgy, doom metal and rock along with these semi-progressive undertones and live performance aesthetics and energy.

"Bong Ripper" is a blistering single and right off the bat, you get this insane distortion that sort of shreds. This is a fierce sound, and it reminds me of elements of alternative rock, but with a sort of looser and harder-hitting drive, along with a closed-fisted and addictingly fun approach.

The riffs here are awesome and sort of widespread, mostly because it's a slower-paced song in terms of its tempo, with drumming that just crushes everything.

The drummer on this piece is just brutal. He slams those crash cymbals and gives this very particular kind of punch, which feels almost like the rest of the band pushes off of.

Part of why this works so well is because of the bass guitar and how deep toned it is. The riffs are awesome on their own, but with the bass guitar following suit, you get that depth and deep-pocketed tonality that lets everything come through with a heavier feel.

You can clearly hear that these guys are influenced by a slew of different stuff. From the 90s alternative rock to classic stoner and doom metal, they can sort of combine their influences into one song here, and this gives you a lot to chew on.

One of my favorite aspects of this track in particular is the vocals. The singer is super animated here, giving the whole thing an almost theatrical underbelly.

You get elements of classic hardcore and metal throughout the veins of this track, and the vocalist pulls a lot of that off and pushes those boundaries.

Everyone's performance on this track is super intense. It almost feels like the whole thing was recorded live on the floor, and everyone was just feeding off of each other's energies the entire time.

Of course, I wasn't there, so I'm not sure how they actually did it, but listening to this track makes you want to go see them perform live, simply because if they can pull off this kind of static and energy on record, then seeing them in a live performance setting would be a face-melter.

This is exactly what I would expect from a band like this. I want to have my face melted when seeing them perform a show.

One of the things that would make this work is that guitar tone alone. The guitars have a gigantic but sort of sharp tonality. It reminds me of a blend of Pantera and Type O Negative.

The guitar tone is sort of robust but has that sharp edginess that you just can't ignore.

I can also hear those kinds of metal bands in terms of some of the guitar performances as well.

There are some great guitar parts that bring in classic metal bends, vibratos, and almost pitch harmonics that make me think of bands like Pantera.

The whole thing has a sort of gloomy overtone and a dark edginess that comes through the layers of what I would consider a sort of sludge rock and metal soundscape.

I love those big, wide, fat riffs and how everyone is on the same level in terms of that intensity and energy.

Another track that was recently released, "Roshambo" has a bit of a different feel but with some of the same tonalities.

This one is also really fierce but has a faster pace and serves to metal a little bit more.

It's a bit more trudging, in your face, and aggressive.

I can certainly hear some of the West Coast hardcore influence coming through on this one, whereas "Bong Ripper" was a little bit more experimental and influenced by classic doom rock and metal.

The guitar work and vocals on "Roshambo" are nuts.

In my opinion, they sort of take it to a new level in terms of that aggressive overtone, and I dig how the singer is throwing in different lyrical phrasing and making things faster.

I think this is a catchier track, but I love them both on the same level, to be honest.

"Roshambo" also gives you some layered and overlapping guitar lead solos that are just so much fun, and the fact that they are actually overlapping on top of each other at the same time just makes it more intense.

Both of these tracks are sort of in your face and showcase a lot of those different influences the band holds close to their hearts.

You rarely come across a band you hear on record and immediately know that they're going to crush things in a live setting.

This is one of those exceptions.

You'll have to listen to both of these songs to see exactly what I'm talking about, which is what you should already be doing right now.

Now, upon listening to these tracks, I had to talk with the band to find out exactly where the stuff comes from, how they write their stuff, and what's coming up next for them.

So, while you listen to these songs, have a read through of our interview with the band below.

Remember where you heard this first.

Let’s talk about “Bong Ripper”! This was a sludgy feeling doom opus of sorts! Sickest guitar tone! Where did this song come from?

“Bong Ripper” goes right back to the very beginning of Doom Stoned. It was one of the first riffs Dan wrote for the project, before the band had fully taken shape. At the time, the guitar was still freshly set up and even tuned higher than where we are now — it was raw and unfiltered.

The riff came out during a jam session at a rehearsal space where the idea of Doom Stoned was first being explored. After stepping out for a smoke break and coming back in, the riff just poured out naturally and the song formed almost instantly. Dan has kept long lists of song titles over the years, and “Bong Ripper” immediately felt like the right name for the energy of the track.

Conceptually, the song can be heard two ways: smoking with intention as a way to balance the machinations of day-to-day life, or quite literally ripping the bong to shreds. We like that both interpretations coexist — whether you smoke or not, the groove still hits.

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I’m hearing a few different approaches to this single! Who are some of your biggest musical influences?

At the core, Black Sabbath is always the foundation. From there it branches out wide — Kyuss, EyeHateGod, Crowbar, Pantera, Slipknot, Korn, and Zakk Wylde were big influences early on, especially when “Bong Ripper” was written.

As the band has evolved, so have the influences: Gojira, Cynic, Lamb of God, Dissection, 200 Stab Wounds, and many others have worked their way into the DNA. We love sludgy, groovy, heavy music, but we also like stretching space — letting riffs breathe — and then snapping things back with sudden shifts to create momentum and propulsion.

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Did you record this at a home setup, or at a big studio?

It was a mix of both. Drums were tracked at Grant Avenue Studio, guitars and bass were recorded at a rehearsal space using our own gear, and vocals were done at Boom Recording Studio as well as at home and Grant Avenue. The bulk of the mixing was handled at Dan’s personal studio, Psychedelic Steak Studios.

We love larger studios for room sound and gear, but we also value the flexibility of home setups for editing, experimentation, and subtle overdubs.

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How did this all start for you as a band?

Dan has always been driven to create music and record it — the two passions naturally snowballed over time. During COVID, things really clicked, and after a personal turning point, the drive to form something meaningful with a band became undeniable.

Dan and Ren met while working as stagehands at Budweiser Stage in July 2022. Ren was humming Kanye West’s “Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1” to warm up vocals when Dan asked if he was a singer. What started as vocals turned into deeper collaboration, and eventually Ren tapped back into his past bass experience to fill out the low end for Doom Stoned.

Kazik joined after connecting online, and once the lineup locked in, the chemistry developed quickly. We’ve grown together as musicians, friends, and a unit ever since.

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Are you performing live right now?

Yes — we play live regularly, usually around Toronto once a month or every other month, with trips to Hamilton already under our belt and plans to branch out to places like Oshawa and Montreal. We love going all out live, especially when the crowd sings the chorus of “Roshambo” with us.

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Roshambo was also a killer track! Now that these are out, what’s next for you?

We’re currently recording and mixing four new tracks, each with its own character: Art of Anger, Investment in Genocide, Amber, and Phantom Pulse. We’re always writing, tightening up, and evolving, and our goal is for the recordings to capture the same intensity and feel as our live performances.

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Who’s in all your headphones right now?

When winding down, Ren gravitates toward Sunn O))) and Boris — intentional noise that functions almost like a healing drone. For more energized listening, Carcass (Heartwork) and Cynic (Focus) have been on repeat.

There’s also a strong love for Jamaican dancehall — artists like Tommy Lee Sparta and Blak Ryno — especially for how they shape vocal textures and shift timbre within a single bar. On Dan’s end, bands like Sanguisugabogg, 200 Stab Wounds, Dissection, and Frozen Soul have been heavy in rotation.

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What would you tell people they can expect on this release?

Heavy doom grooves are always at the core, but we’ve also been exploring our own version of ballads. It’s been exciting developing those ideas within the Doom Stoned sound and pushing ourselves into new emotional and dynamic territory.

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Before we go, what would you like to express to fans of the music?

We’re incredibly grateful. Sharing space with people who channel their own raw, barbaric energy alongside us is genuinely therapeutic. The support, encouragement, and feedback push us to go harder and deeper every time.

We love what we do, and it means everything to us to create and share something real. We invite everyone to be part of it — welcome to the Doom Stoned Army.

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