Artist description Hailing from Toronto, Ontario Canada, Sons of OTIS are a trio that create an experience all unto their own. Their unique musical blend of heavy rock, blues and drone acts like a vessel that takes the listener into the depth of space straight from the couch. Their ultra-low-end turbulence of heaviness and psychedelic experimentations provide the necessary power to jettison one to new uncharted realms of sound.

Music Style Heavy Crushing Psychedelic Sludge Space Blues

Musical Influences Jimi Hendrix, Monster Magnet, Chris Duarte, Earth, St. Vitus, Fudge Tunnel, Black Sabbath, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Robin Trower, Gov't Mule, Melvins, Albert King, Kyuss

Similar Artists Melvins, Robin Trower, Jimi Hendrix, Electric Wizard, Sleep, Earth, Monster Magnet

Artist History OTIS first embarked on their voyage of sonic pummeling from Toronto, Ontario, Canada during the fall of 1992. Shortly after they independently released Paid To Suffer, an EP cassette/CD that sold well over one thousand copies just off the stage alone. After playing an extensive amount of live shows throughout the southern Ontario region, the band entered the studio to record their first full-length critically acclaimed disc entitled SpaceJumboFudge (1996) which was released on a small Canadian label with distribution by Universal and Rough Trade in Europe. (Just prior to it's release the band had to add the 'sons of' prefix to their name due to a conflict with another band of the same name). It was reported that the album had sold 10 000+ copies in Germany despite very little support from the label and quickly it became a must-have for fans of the genre worldwide due to it's mythical status. Soon after, problems ensued, as well as the loss of their original drummer. The band then went through a semi-reclusive hiatus as well as a large number of drummers, playing only a handful of select shows. It was not until 1998 when the infamous Frank Kozik of Man's Ruin records from San Francisco got hold of SpaceJumboFudge that set things in motion again for the band. Enthusiastically, Kozik demanded that he wanted to release anything the band wanted to, and thus in October of 1999, the band's highly anticipated comeback CD Templeball surfaced. Once again, the band sent their seismic signals across the globe and received feedback with the likes of being dubbed as "The Heaviest". August 2000 saw SpaceJumboFudge finally shaking off it's scarcity status via a re-release (with new packaging and remastering treatment) courtesy of Man's Ruin. In early 2001, The Music Cartel record label decided to take on the responsibility of making sure the population-at-large would stay sedated by the band's music. In September, they will release SONGS FOR WORSHIP, the long-awaited follow-up to TEMPLEBALL. Reports of mass hysteria have already begun...

Group Members Ken: Guitar + Vox = Trips || Frank: chest cavity Bass || Ryan Aubin (Crover Jr.): Drum bashing & miscellaneous low-meter maintenance.

Instruments Thick Guitar and Bass, drums, Space Vocals and Trips

Albums Paid To Suffer (EP) [Independent, 1993], SpaceJumboFudge (REMASTERED) [Man's Ruin Records, 1996/2000], Templeball [Man's Ruin Records, 1999], self-titled 10" vinyl EP [Monster Zero Records, 2001], Songs For Worship [The Music Cartel, 2001]

Press Reviews "Sons of Otis are masters of the natural phenomenon of sublimation whereby gases are converted directly into solids. Their ultra-heavy Space Rock can turn mere air into walls of noise (or make the walls around you crumble into thin air). " - Chad Driscoll, LISTEN.COM || "A wall of sound pushes through your speakers like the Blob, slowly consuming everything in its path. Tripped-out chugging riffs, slow jams, psychedelic effects and space noises make this the perfect record to relax with. Sit back and turn it up waaaay loud and you'll feel like you're in a sensory deprivation tank. It gets right inside your head." - Matthew Wesley, EYE (Toronto, Ontario) || "Be prepared to get hit sideways by some of the craziest music around -and if you have any sense of adventure, that is an experience worth risking." ? Malcolm Dome, METAL HAMMER (UK) || "Toronto's Sons of Otis rub shoulders with the bowel-emptying heaviosity of Sleep, The Melvins, Saint Vitus, Shallow N.D. and Earth. But it's the use of antique equipment and sub-low notes that differentiates Sons of Otis from the others. If Lee Scratch Perry were a white, teenage stoner living in a basement, then this is probably what he would've come up with. If you like your heaviosity as thick as molasses and you're on the stoner tip, then flame up a bat and set the controls to the heart of the sun. Your band has arrived." ? Jonathan Cummins, MIRROR (Montreal, Quebec) || "There?s heavy, and then there's Sons of Otis. Think of Electric Wizard covering early Monster Magnet using Sleep's gear, with vocals that sound like doom godfather Wino after a night of hellish bong-abuse, and you're close to the slow-crawling menace of 'Temple Ball'. Greasy, lurching and gloriously lo-fi, all 10 tracks on 'Temple Ball' sound as if they were recorded through a dense forest of cotton wool, adding to the air of heaviness which hangs over the whole affair." ? Phil Alexander, KERRANG! (UK) || "If you like Electric Wizard, Sleep, Monster Magnet, the Melvins or even the Butthole Surfers I think you'll love Sons of Otis. This is heavy in the most extreme sense. Rumbling, bass heavy, swirling metal sludge rock will tug you along through space and make you feel all light-headed (yeah, it's that kind of music... LSD not included). Simple yet gut churning riffage plods at you like a giant hallucinogenic rhino. Guaranteed to be the soundtrack of your next "freak out." ? YAHTZEEN (Fargo, North Dakota)

Location Toronto, Ontario - Canada

Copyright notice. All material on MP3.com is protected by copyright law and by international treaties. You may download this material and make reasonable number of copies of this material only for your own personal use. You may not otherwise reproduce, distribute, publicly perform, publicly display, or create derivative works of this material, unless authorized by the appropriate copyright owner(s).