REVIEW: Fangus - Emerald Dream
- Mia Gailey
- 2 hours ago
- 3 min read
There is something wonderfully disorienting about a band that feels less like a modern project and more like a strange artefact that has simply surfaced in the present day. Emerging in MMXXII, FANGUS carry that exact energy. Their debut album Emerald Dream doesn’t arrive like a carefully engineered introduction; it lurches out of the shadows fully formed, steeped in mysticism, ritualistic rock, and the hazy echoes of psychedelic history. Listening to it feels less like pressing play and more like stepping into a dimly lit chamber where ancient amplifiers hum and something slightly otherworldly is unfolding.
Rooted in the dim corridors of heavy rock and psychedelia, Emerald Dream leans into the atmosphere as much as it does riffs. Across eight tracks, the band summons a sound that feels raw and primal, yet strangely hypnotic. It’s music that wanders, searching through dust-covered sonic relics and dragging them into the present with a theatrical flourish. Opening track Howling Hammer sets the tone with immediate intent. There’s a sense of ritualistic momentum in the way the guitars grind forward, ALEX BIGRAS laying down riffs that feel thick with vintage distortion while SNAKE ST-LOUIS drumming pushes everything along with a muscular, driving pulse. It’s not polished, nor does it try to be. Instead, it thrives on that rough edge, creating something that feels alive and slightly unpredictable.
Pyre Of Love follows with a darker groove, leaning further into the band’s occult-tinged aesthetic. JIM LAFLAMME's vocals sit somewhere between incantation and classic heavy rock swagger, cutting through the smoky instrumentation with a presence that feels deliberately theatrical. Behind him, CHUB's organ work drifts like spectral fog through the mix, expanding the sound into something more hallucinatory. The album’s early centrepiece arrives with Psychoïd Telepath, a track that perfectly captures FANGUS’ ability to blur the line between heavy rock grit and psychedelic exploration. The song unfolds patiently, its groove simmering before eventually spiralling into something more hypnotic. VICK TRIGGER's basslines anchor the track with a thick, rolling weight, allowing the surrounding textures to stretch and warp around it.
By the time Quest For Fire erupts, the album begins to feel like a descent into something deeper and more primal. The track burns with a driving intensity, built around riff structures that echo classic heavy rock while still feeling uniquely FANGUS. There’s a subtle sense of danger in the way the band let the music expand and collapse, as if the songs themselves are shifting shape mid-performance. At the centre of it all sits the title track, Emerald Dream, arguably the album’s most immersive moment. Here the band fully embrace their psychedelic instincts. Layers of organ swirl around the guitars while LAFLAMME's vocals drift through the haze like fragments of a half-remembered myth. It’s less about immediate impact and more about atmosphere, drawing the listener deeper into the album’s strange internal world. Time Gambler shifts the momentum again, injecting a sharper rhythmic drive into the record’s second half. SNAKE ST-LOUIS' drumming feels particularly commanding here, locking into grooves that keep the track grounded while the guitars and synths wander into more experimental territory. The balance between structure and chaos is one of the album’s strongest qualities, and FANGUS handle it with surprising confidence for a debut.
Penultimate track Shapeshifter lives up to its name, morphing between moods and textures in a way that feels deliberately unpredictable. At times it leans heavily into the band’s psychedelic side, before snapping back into thick, fuzz-laden riffing that feels pulled straight from the depths of vintage heavy rock. Closing with Stardust Regulator, the album settles into a slow-burn finale that feels almost cosmic in scope. It’s the kind of track that lingers, stretching out into hypnotic repetition while the band gradually dissolve the song into a swirling haze of sound.
What makes Emerald Dream compelling is not simply its adherence to heavy rock and psychedelic traditions, but the way FANGUS treat those influences like living folklore rather than nostalgia. The album feels haunted by echoes of the past, yet it never collapses into imitation. Instead, it channels those sounds through something far stranger and more theatrical. For a debut, it’s an impressively cohesive vision. FANGUS aren’t interested in sounding modern or accessible; they are building a world. Emerald Dream invites you to wander through it, even if you’re not entirely sure what might be waiting in the shadows.
Score: 7/10
Emerald Dream will be released on Friday 13th March 2026 via From The Urn Records.
Words: Mia Gailey
Photos: Fangus
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