Monolith on the Mesa
FOLLOW THE SMOKE toward the rifffilled land” – those are lyrics from famed stoner doom metal band Sleep off their seminal album Dopesmoker. Like the album’s weed priests caravanning across a Jodorowsky-esque desertscape; travelers need only to follow the smoke to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains this weekend to hear some sludge-filled, heavy riffs that other bands like Sleep – Sabbath, Acid King and others have explored.
Monolith on the Mesa is back after a two-year hiatus with 35 bands listed to play from across metal sub-genres of stoner rock, heavy psych, doom, sludge, drone and retro rock. Starting Friday (Sept. 16) and rolling through Sunday (Sept. 18) in El Prado will be three days of alchemy at the newly resurrected Taos Mesa Brewing Mothership.
“We at Blues Funeral began our journey in the music industry almost 25 years ago, and it all began with the desert,” said Blues Funeral Records, a heavy/stoner/doom/psych label, founder Jadd Shickler in a press release. “We were inspired by the heavy sounds of California wide spaces, but the New Mexico desert is different, with a distinctly mystical character that has always infused and inspired what we do.”
The concert’s promoters make the claim that the desert of Taos and its clear starry night sky make listening to such music an “antidote to bright lights and big cities.”
The festival features heavy acts like Mars Red Sky, Yawning Man, Eyehategod & The Obsessed, and more. Accompanying the music will be art installations and “projected visuals around the compound.” There is also the option for camping near and at the campgrounds of Hotel Luna Mystica, 25 Mesa Road in El Prado. The tickets cap at 1,500 people according to the website.
Monolith on the Mesa was put on a hiatus after a fire that destroyed most of the Mothership in 2020, and construction delays from the COVID19 pandemic. The Monolith festival also marks the return of the popular local “earthship” amphitheater. The festival will also pay homage to former Monolith organizer and tatooist Daniel “Dano” Sanchez who died in September last year.
“Dano’s vision was an inspiration to me and those around him,” said Jayson Wylie, owner of Taos Mesa Brewery in a Sept. 2021 article after the passing of Sanchez.
In a press release Monolith cofounder Roman Barham said a shrine for Dano will be assembled at the Taos Mesa Brewery venue grounds “to pay homage to our sorely missed friend.”