Luna Sol is a high-mountain stoner-rock band fronted by veteran singer and lead guitarist David Angstrom (Hermano, Supafuzz). Angstrom moved to the mountains just north of Denver in 2012 and started soaking in the strange but relaxed mountain communities around him. Inspired by the local news and folklore, Angstrom started writing the songs that would become Blood Moon (out 4/20 on Slush Fund Recordings), and put together Luna Sol with local Denver musicians—drummer Pat Gill (The Feds, ’76 Pinto), guitarist and vocalist Shanda Kolberg (The Swanks), and bassist/vocalist Shannon Fahnestock (The Swindlers).
A drive into the mountains with Angstrom shows that Blood Moon captures the removed-from-society lifestyle of the Rockies. Songs “Leadville,” “Standley Lake,” and “Death Mountain” all come with stories from Angstrom that seem like bizarre mountain folklore, like cautionary tales read to children from books with colorful drawings. Angstrom clearly loves the morbid strangeness of his new homeland and shares it with us on Blood Moon.
The album was recorded at Sierra Estates in Colorado, and the album artwork was designed by celebrated Denver tattoo artist Christel Perkins of Sol Tribe. The basic tracks were finished in a week, and in keeping with the long-standing tradition of the stoner and desert-rock communities, members of the Luna Sol extended family tree contributed additional elements to the recording. John Garcia (Kyuss, Hermano, Vista Chino) adds vocals on “December,” Dandy Brown (Hermano, Orquestra del Desierto) plays bass on “Death Mountain,” Nick Oliveri (Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age) plays bass on “Pretty Rotten,” Greg Martin (The Kentucky Headhunters) contributes slide guitar on “Death Mountain,” Dean Smith (Supafuzz) plays bass on “Bridges,” Jason Groves (Supafuzz, Asylum on the Hill) bass on “In the Shadows,” and Dizzy Reed (Guns N’ Roses) delivers a Hammond B3 performance on “Your War.”
The album is bleak, heavy and filled with monster hooks. John Garcia calls Blood Moon “a dark twisted ride down the mountain.” One you’ll be compelled to ride out ’til the final track.
