Various

Here it is, 16 tracks by the heaviest underground rock'n'rollers out there, dipping into such "genres" as stoner rock, doom metal, doom blues and punk rock. This collection features bands as diverse as Philadelphia's post-rock head-bangers Stinking Lizaveta, Swedish doom/blues golems Grand Magus, and heavy-lidded Toronto crushers Sons Of Otis. Marquee names include North Carolina's white trash punks Antiseen, the UK's "heaviest" doom metal act Electric Wizard (with the uncharacteristically high-energy "We, The Undead"), New York's Electric Frankenstein and Brazil's living punk legends Ratos De Parao, not to mention the Sabians, who rose from the ashes of the legendary Sleep. What do all of these bands have in common? They're heavy enough to defy the mainstream, yet they groove enough to appeal to fans of the heavy-assed rock'n'roll championed by labels like Man's Ruin, Meteor City and, of course, the Music Cartel. Rebirth Of The Heavy is an excellent overview, props to the compilation's producer, Bully magazine's Ken Wohlrob.