SEER's "Vol. 1 and 2" is a Sludge Metal boulder wrapped up in a tiny package. Containing only six tracks, it would be a mistake to judge "Vol. 1 & 2" as anything other than a dense and infectious collection of overdriven battle cries. Please don't confuse this SEER with the band of the same name from Pennsylvania. Firstly, this SEER hails from Canada and secondly, this SEER maintains much more sonic presence and musical prowess than the aforementioned band. SEER's music has the deep fuzz of NEUROSIS or CROWBAR but still possesses extremely powerful, soaring clean vocals that juxtapose the throat-shredding screams that litter each composition.

The first four tracks of this album come from the first volume of this record, which was released as a separate EP at the very first day of the first month of 2015. One of the songs that really sticks out is the track "Glimmervoid". This song has a great, chunky, Southern groove at the end accompanied by bassist Josh Campbell on the harmonica. This song made think of SEER performing this song inside a boxcar and having the harmonica solo provided by some random traveler on that train car with the band. "Glimmervoid" and the following song "Hive Mind" are songs that have so much testosterone pumped into their Blues-Rock foundation that each and every note carries the weight of several anvils.

The second volume contains songs that aren't necessarily as memorable as the two tracks off of "Vol. 1". Most of the songs on "Vol. 2" are much moodier and darker without a lot of energy driving them along. "Cosmic Ghost" is a mostly acoustic interlude with nothing but clean vocals that sound similar to DANZIG. The song is accompanied with a fiddle solo as well, which gives it a stronger folk atmosphere. But the extreme wattage returns on the song "Haunter", a song that takes the clean vocals from "Cosmic Ghost" and pushes them through an effect filter that makes them nearly indecipherable through the reverb and resonance.

Any fan of MASTODON should be able to get behind "Cosmic Ghost". I think the song overextends its welcome as it stumbled into its sixth minute mark. It can't seem to find a way to end itself unlike the song "Antibody" which is a great little death trip that is wrapped up in a short, easy-to-digest package and has a better idea of when it finishes. The album closes with the lengthy song "Aeons" full of even more droning sluggishness but "Aeons" turns out to be a very atmospheric post-rock composition instead of having the power and groove of a song like "Glimmervoid" is.

Both volumes on this release have a monstrous Sludge Metal force with some Stoner Metal, traditional Heavy Metal and Psychedelic flavors tossed into the mix. If you are a fan of RWAKE, MASTODON and THE SWORD, you have got to check SEER out whenever you get the chance. I've heard someone say before how writing about music is like dancing about architecture. I feel like writing any more about SEER just undercuts the music itself. There is only so much to be said about their music other than just go out and listen to it!