ALBUM REVIEW: Vision Quest – High Leaf

Hailing from The City of Brotherly Love, the Philadelphia natives that make up HIGH LEAF all share a love of big riffs, stoner grooves and rumbling bass riffs that you can blissfully trip out to. Influenced by the usual suspects of BLACK SABBATH, KYUSS and CLUTCH, the band also indulge in the grungier elements of rock, taking inspiration from the likes of SOUNDGARDEN and ALICE IN CHAINS. Their debut album Vision Quest channels these diverse musical influences and morphs them into a hulking slab of ardent stoner rock. Despite only forming in 2022, they have become one of the Philadelphia area’s most promising up and coming bands. With an intoxicating chemistry and raw power, HIGH LEAF have put a gritty and grungy heart into the chest of stoner rock.

The grunge influence is instantly apparent on Vision Quest, from Corey Presner’s Chris Cornell inspired vocals to certain guitar effects that are reminiscent of the seminal Dirt album by ALICE IN CHAINS. This is a unique selling point, as it offers up a different perspective on the forever changing and adapting stoner rock world. HIGH LEAF have certainly seized the opportunity to fill a gap within the stoner rock spectrum, with an emphasis on catchy melodies and driving guitars underpinned with a melancholy that is commonly found in the songs of Seattle’s finest. With that in mind, Vision Quest is a trippy album, but it feels darker and more intense than the work of their contemporaries.

As a whole Vision Quest is an immersive album; its steady grooves lull you into an easy trance so when the anthemic choruses of the tracks further on in the album kick they hit with a visceral power. It’s one of those albums that you sink into, you begin to feel at home with it quite quickly and before you know it the 40 minutes have flown by. HIGH LEAF’s chemistry and cohesion stands out too; considering this is their debut they show a maturity in their songwriting craftsmanship that is way beyond their years. The versatility in Patrick Fiore‘s (lead guitar) playing alongside the rhythmic stability of Brian Schmidt (bass) and Dean Welsh (drums) allows for subtle dynamic shifts, cohesive melodies that effortlessly transition alongside the riffs to move the song forward with locked in behind the beat grooves.

HIGH LEAF have struck an equal balance of all out grungy rock riffs and hypnotic stoner psychedelia, alongside this is a bucketful of soul. Presner’s vocals are passionate and moving, a mixture of grungy and bluesy soul. This is best experienced on Subversive, where Presner seems to let loose and put out all of his emotions with a charismatic performance. There is a soulful presence throughout the album, which you feel invested in instantly. Vision Quest is bursting with a gritty pride; every ounce of blood, sweat and tears that has been put into this album has been put to good use to make it a powerful debut.

The suitable four-minute and twenty-second track Green Rider opens up the album with a bong hit and a hulking BLACK SABBATH-esque riff. The song then proceeds with mammoth riffs and hypnotic guitar licks. Eight-minute monolith and title track Vision Quest starts off slow, with a beautifully earthy acoustic guitar, before erupting into a head-bobbing groove that shows the band’s psychedelic and heavy blues influences as Fiore’s guitar channels some JIMI HENDRIX-style magic with a wah solo that feeds your soul. Ultimately a more psychedelic song, HIGH LEAF still manage to ramp up the energy with some solid stoner riffs. Dead Eye carries on the punchy energy, fading in before hitting you with a sledgehammer of a riff imbued with grungy, ALICE IN CHAINS sensibilities as Presner carries on his gritty, impassioned vocal performance.

Hard To Find reintroduces the slower, drenched in fuzz stoner riffs and push/pull grooves. Painted Desert is similar to Vision Quest in that it focuses on the more psychedelic vibe, which compliments the ebb and flow of the album and Presner once again unleashes an impassioned, soulful vocal performance. March To The Grave is spectacularly grungy with a hint of heavy blues and a lot more swagger in this song too, which ultimately transcends the album but comes to a climax here. Momentum continually builds and is paid off with and explosive ending that fades into the original riff. The Rot closes the album with a flourish, bringing all the grungy, psych and stoner elements together to make a scintillating finale in memorable fashion.

HIGH LEAF have set out to become a force to be reckoned with. Vision Quest is a strong debut and its grunge influences give it a distinct edge that is fresh and punchy. This Philadelphia quartet are a wrecking crew looking to demolish the confines of stoner and fearlessly branch the genre out into new territory.

Rating: 8/10

Vision Quest is set for release on May 5th via Riffslayer Records.

Like HIGH LEAF on Facebook.