Miami · sludge metal · stoner rock

Torche

1 upcoming festival

Miami's masters of 'thunder-pop' — crushing, downtuned riffs that somehow float on major-key hooks. The heaviest, most physical set on the bill.

Torche formed in Miami in 2004, founded by guitarist and vocalist Steve Brooks after the end of his previous band Floor. The group pairs very heavy, downtuned guitar and thick low end with bright, major-key melodies and pop song structures, a combination often described as pop-inflected sludge metal.

Their material tends toward short songs and forward momentum rather than the slow tempos usually associated with doom and sludge, and Brooks's clean singing sits above the distortion rather than fighting it. The band has recorded for labels including Hydra Head and Relapse.

sludge metalstoner rock