Review: The Obsessed Deliver Great American Doom on Gilded Sorrow

The latest full-length effort from doom metal outfit The Obsessed proves that while he has truly been through the wringer, Scott “Wino” Weinrich still has the capacity to define the sound of doom. Out tomorrow on Ripple Music, Gilded Sorrow is the band’s first full album in nearly seven years and their follow-up to 2017’s Sacred.

For those not familiar, Weinrich initially formed The Obsessed in the ’70s before going on to make a bigger name for himself with Saint Vitus and Spirit Caravan. During that time he was well-known in the early doom scene and the local DMV (D.C., Maryland, Virginia) area music scene on the East Coast.

Although The Obsessed were off to a solid and doomy start, they were cut short when Weinrich moved to California to join Saint Vitus. They’ve broken up a few times in their career, but they’ve always reformed and continued to pick up right where they left off, releasing some solid music along the way. And while their sound is considered classic today, they were initially pioneers of the heavier, grittier, sludge-fueled, modern American doom sound.

The record starts off strong with “Daughter of an Echo” which is an instant old-school doom classic with Sabbath-level riffing and some really solid guitar solos right off the bat (Ozzy pun intended). Meanwhile, the title track is among the album’s heaviest cuts, especially thanks to its insanely strong riffs.

Elsewhere on the album, “Realize a Dream” strays a bit from their usual sound by pulling in more melodic elements. It’s different, but in this case it still really works. The brilliantly titled “Stoned Back To The Bomb Age” reminds me of old Motörhead with a modern twist to it. There’s something to love on absolutely every track of this album.

Doom is having a bit of a moment in Europe right now, but it’s not popping off quite so hard in the U.S. That’s more of a cultural observation than anything else, though, because doom fans are loyal and there will definitely be an audience for this record.

The solidness of Gilded Sorrow further proves that The Obsessed — and Weinrich, by extension — still have it. Weinrich has worked hard in his life to overcome addiction and trauma, and despite all that hardship, he’s managed to release a very solid body of work. While there are the ebbs and flows in quality that one would expect from a singer this prolific, almost all the albums he has worked on are solid bangers, and Gilded Sorrow is no exception.