It would have been understandable if Rotherham’s Swamp Coffin had collapsed under the weight of their recent tribulations. Instead, following deaths in the family and an attempted suicide within their own ranks, they set about writing Drowning Glory, and ended up proving how powerful abject misery can be. These seven slabs of sludge, exploring topics of mental health, grief and disenchantment, are gut-rumblingly heavy and packed to the rafters with riffs. The tortured guitar lines of opener Know You’re Worthless and the apocalyptic drums of Hypocritical Mass are undeniably sludge, while Jon Rhodes’ vocals take cues from the likes of Cancer Bats’ Liam Cormier and Obituary’s John Tardy to flex their wider influences. As Cold As Blood caps the record at a hulking zenith, colossal in its destructive prowess. ■■■■■■■■
FOR FANS OF: Conan, Crowbar, Tuskar