Savannah sludge trio One Lonely Goat release debut EP, 'A Cure For Self Worship'
Savannah has long been internationally known for its swampy southern sludge metal sound. Bands like Baroness, Kylesa, and Black Tusk may have put Savannah on the metal map, but new bands continue to spring up to keep the growing scene alive.
One promising new trio is One Lonely Goat, which features Tanner Hamilton (of Holy Ghost Tabernacle Choir) on guitar and vocals, Adam Crews on bass and vocals, and Tim Payne on drums and vocals. One Lonely Goat play riff-centric doom, sludge and noise rock that is heavily indebted to the southern metal of their forbears.
Besides playing drums in HGTC (which many consider to be one of the best metal bands currently throwing it down in Savannah) Hamilton has also played in the solo project with Laura Pleasants of Kylesa. Crews and Payne have been playing music together for about 15 to 20 years with artists like Daniel Stevens of Forest Evil and Damned to Earth, as well as in Bluffton’s My First Circus.”
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One Lonely Goat grew out of a shared love of metal, and a shared practice space.
“They were doing a duo thing for a while, but we were practicing in the same space,” said Hamilton of teaming up with Crews and Payne. “We learned that we jived well together and started writing music, and that was it.”
For Hamilton, making southern sludge metal in Savannah has been a dream come true, albeit a dream he didn’t even know he had before moving here.
“I wasn’t aware that a lot of it came from Savannah when I moved here about five years ago, but Adam and Tim are old heads (in region scene),” said Hamilton. “They grew up with the music that came out of Savannah like Baroness and Black Tusk and Damad, classic Jinx stuff. It’s funny because I was already a fan of Black Tusk when I was still living in West Virginia back before 2018. Being able to move to Savannah and discovering that all the stuff you grew up listening to as a kid, you just happen to be living in the place that it was birthed, it was kind of surreal.”
One Lonely Goat’s debut EP, “A Cure For Self Worship,” is the first release from the newly minted record label Heavy Element Records, which is working in partnership with Graveface Records. For the EP, the band got to work with some of Hamilton’s heroes from the Southern metal scene. Chris “Scary” Adams of Black Tusk produced the EP at his Hidden Audio Studio, and Jonathan Nuñezof Torche is mastering it at Sound Artillery Studios. Hamilton had previous worked Scary and Nuñez on Holy Ghost Tabernacle Choir’s “Slow Murder” album.
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“You can imagine I’m already a Torche fanatic,” said Hamilton. “I built my main guitar based off of a custom guitar that Jon has. I’m already a huge fan of what Torche is, but also what Jon brings to the table as far as tonality. He builds all their amps and records and masters all their stuff, so having that wall of sound that fits every crack and crevice in a room, I’ve never heard something like that from a band whether it’s stoner sludge or not.”
“Being able to have two guys work on the record like that, I was ecstatic.”
One Lonely Goat are releasing “A Cure For Self Worship” on Bandcamp on Friday, the same day they open up for Southern metal legends Weedeater at AURA Fest Underground Weekend 2.
“When I asked Adam and Tim if they would be free to open up for Weedeater, they were both like, ‘Are you and idiot? Of course we’re going to open up for Weedeater.’,” Hamilton said with a laugh.
One Lonely Goat may be just getting started, but Hamilton believes that they will find the same magic he has found with HGTC.
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“I’ve never been in a band like that,” said Hamilton of HGTC. “Just having everyone on the same page working for each other and working for what we love. It’s been a wonderful experience so far and that’s what I want to have with One Lonely Goat. I love those guys very much and have a lot of respect for them. I think with this EP we’ll really be able to push some grounds, as well.”
One Lonely Goat’s “A Cure for Self Worship” will be available at heavyelementrecords.bandcamp.com.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah GA concerts: One Lonely Goat debuts at AURA Fest with new EP
