10/07/2026
Wisconsin’s heavy hitting three piece, Cold Black River, are a hometown favorite. From playing alongside their madison , Wisconsin bretheren Bongzilla, to playing with bands like mothership and the well, the band has sculpted a career in heaviness and fuzz drenched riffs that has spanned almost two decades.
Known through the state, CBR has recorded four albums and played countless shows across the Midwest. Few Wisconsin bands In the genre have amassed the diverse following they have, with fans ranging from the Jean vest wearing metal head to the silver haired classic rock fan and even attracting blues fans to the fold. While the band obviously bears resemblances to artists like Clutch, Black Sabbath and the usual doom and stoner rock icons, they also can feel at times like a dark heavy blues band in the vein of Johnny Winter or Cream with undertones of Robert Johnson sprinkled in like a spicy concoction of heaviness with a blues aftertaste.
When one thinks of heavy music in Wisconsin, it’s impossible to start a conversation without mentioning Cold black river. Loud, slow, low and heavy, their sound is unique and their energy on stage will have you sweating and nodding your head as the pulsing rhythm coerces you further into a hypnotic trance.
Like an aged bourbon, cold black river is smooth and subtle, with all the fight of a rabid mongoose.
Come
See them at Wisconsin Doomed and stoned this year at The Razz.
