EMBR is: Justin- Bass | Mark - Guitar | Crystal – Vocals | Eric - Drums
CONTACT EMBR HERE OR VISIT THE EMBR FACEBOOK PAGE
EMBR have many solid releases under their belt. In 2016 they released 261 which was an onslaught of heavy riffs and angelic vocals. In 2017 the band released 271, This release maintained a level of heaviness but they also managed to reign back on the onslaught and displayed their softer side.
On 326:Spiritual Dialysis (early 2019) the massive sound was turned up, slowed down and was an absolutely defining and deafening assault. All of EMBR’s EP’s have been received very well and have had a wide array of sound while staying true to the mission.
EMBR released their debut full-length album 1823 on the UK label New Heavy Sounds in 2020 to critical acclaim. After 1823 they released a an EP named IDOLATRY and also released a single for MARY DID YOU KNOW in December 2020. Reviews are linked below.
In late 2020 EMBR released a 4 song EP titled IDOLATRY in which they covered Soundgarden, Nirvana, Alice in Chains and Stone Temple Pilots.
In 2021 they recorded a new 3 song EP (1021) to commemorate NEW HEAVY SOUNDS 10 year anniversary which started to define a new chapter for the band. EMBR also recorded a cover of the DOWN classic BURY ME IN SMOKE with Dayglo Mourning.
Through the years EMBR have performed in many states in the southeast and traveled north to Iowa and Minnesota. They have had the honor of opening for THE SWORD and are working to expand their reach.
In late 2023 EMBR released their sophomore effort on Black Doomba Records.
S/T (2023) NEWS / REVIEWS:
THE SLEEPING SHAMAN REVIEW S/T
"I could go on forever about this band, but I won’t. What I will say is that if you don’t already know them, you should look them up."
THE DOOM CHARTS S/T #9
"Absolute love, for an album that binds itself in its edgy, sludge-heavy, doomy aggressiveness with fairy-like beauty. An album in which musical skills have been audibly developed and courageously used for a completely unique, (unconventional) path!"
OUTLAWS OF THE SUN REVIEW S/T
"EMBR have delivered the goods with this album and perhaps be considered a much stronger effort compared to their acclaimed debut release. This is an album that delivers on all fronts with EMBR blending pure MAYHEM with a foreboding sense of DOOM that demands your full undivided attention."
CLEAN AND SOBER STONER DEC. 2023 #1 ALBUM
"vocal performance of Crystal Bigelow that steals the show. And when I say performance, I mean she wields her vocal cords like they’re an over amplified instrument not happy unless it’s in overdrive. ."
VIKING IN THE WILDERNESS REVIEW S/T
"Big arrangements with rich but dirty guitar riffs is the order of the day here, with a majestic and vibrant edge being a big part of just about all the regular songs here, with a little bit of a stoner-tinged side step.."
1021 NEWS / REVIEWS:
"this is the heavy experimental doom that people need in their lives, and Embr are taking on the genre and starting to make waves.."
"1021 can only be judged as a success. That’s the math of it. As to the listening experience? This sounds like a band who are not fucking around. "
THE SLEEPING SHAMAN REVIEWS 1021
"even in a genre of tried and tested sensibilities, rules are meant to be broken, and that’s exactly what EMBR are here to do."
IDOLATRY NEWS / REVIEWS:
DISTORTED SOUND REVIEWS IDOLATRY
"In lesser hands, a four-track cover EP would be little more than a cash grab masquerading as hero worship. With Idolatry, EMBR have paid tribute to four of the most influential bands in the last thirty years, while also showing a huge amount of growth in the few months since their debut 1823."
THE SLEEPING SHAMAN REVIEWS IDOLATRY
"this EP is beyond a homage, feeling like an evolution of Embr’s sound, forming something more organic and actually less genre specific. The pairing of grunge, and Embr’s synonymous doom styling’s, really feels like the start of something new"
"As a small insight into influences and idols (assuming that’s what they were going for), EMBR have dropped a savvy collection of carefully crafted tributes chosen with care, highlighting their clear strengths, affinity with the grunge genre and, arguably, one of the best covers EPs from a modern band in a minute."
"Idolatry is every bit as well crafted as 1823."
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1823 NEWS / REVIEWS:
REVOLVER PREMIERES EMBR VIDEO/SONG YOUR BURDEN
"a Sabbathian dirge swirling with Southern Gothic vibes and lifted above the fog by Crystal's soaring vocals" - REVOLVER
CVLT NATION PREMIERES EMBR SONG EYES LIKE KNIVES
"It’s music that makes me close my eyes and sail off on whatever weird tangents my imagination wants to follow." - CVLT NATION
"As 1823 ends its run, it characterizes EMBR somewhere between doom and ambient sludge or post-metal, but one of the most encouraging aspects of the album is that it’s less about conforming to style than it is about offering its own take through largesse and range alike, the changes in structure and arrangement adding to the focus on craft that is so prevalent throughout. "
EMBR IN GUITAR WORLD
"With its drop-tuned humbucking intro, Embr might lull you into a false sense of doom-metal security, but as Your Burden attests, there’s more to these Birmingham, AL metallers than pure sonic annihilation."
METAL-RULES REVIEWS 1823
"1823 is the debut album of U.S. quartet Embr, and shows us a flavoursome, and often downright stunning take on doom metal and heavy music in general. "
THE SLEEPING SHAMAN REVIEWS 1823
"These elements come together to form something truly inspiring, and to come in at ground level with a new band such as Embr is an added bonus, as I believe that they’re going to rise and rise, so it will be interesting to see where they go from here. This is definitely the start of something special…"
ECH(((10)))ES AND DUST REVIEWS 1823
"It is with great satisfaction then to announce Embr are another fine addition to the welcoming expansion of bands in recent years bringing a freshness to metal’s dark and doomy tradition. "
"The follow up to impressive EPs 261 and 271, EMBR‘s debut full-length, 1823, finds the Birmingham, Alabama band hitting the ground running with their ambitious take on the doom genre and indeed all things heavy metal in general. "
"dropping a Black Sabbath-like Doom-laden thick and heavy backdrop to the reverb-soaked female vocals of Crystal Bigelow"
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261 REVIEWS
RIFF RELEVANT
[EMBR] have crafted an emotionally fueled offering driven by fantastic guitar fueling, fluid rhythms, and cohesive drumming."
DESERT PSYCHLIST
"excursions into areas of heavy psyched doom and occult rock, shifting through a myriad of differing dynamics and subtle time changes with Bigelow's vocals swooping and soaring majestically overhead."
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271 REVIEWS
"271 is a very dramatic and emotionally charged EP "
"what a superb item of U.S. doom we have here."
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326: SPIRITUAL DIALYSIS REVIEWS
"Punishingly heavy with sedated slowness on a level different than most Doom out there, EMBER could give SUNN O))) a run for their money."
RIFF RELEVANT
"If you liked the earlier output from EMBER, then I dare say that you are going to find yourself utterly enthralled by this latest aural adventure!"
"Crystal and Erik Bigelow are a couple on fire, united by the riff and crowned by the power and glory of fuzz for time and eternity. "
