Album Type: EP
Date Released: 04/04/2014
Label: Hibernacula
Records
‘Hobo
Chic’ CD//DD track listing:
1).
Gammy Sarah
2).
Dead Eye
3).
Kromdrom
4).
Prayer of Dust
Victorian Whore
Dogs is:
Danny
Page | Main Vox
Adam Marrelli Crawley | Guitar/vox
Andy Nuttall | Bass/vox
Steve 'Marvel' More | Drums
Adam Marrelli Crawley | Guitar/vox
Andy Nuttall | Bass/vox
Steve 'Marvel' More | Drums
Review:
Have you ever heard a vocalist make a motorboat
noise on record? No, I hadn't either until I listened to the copy of ‘Hobo Chic’,
the EP of Guildford sludge band Victorian Whore Dogs that I found in my
possession. I'm fairly open about my lack of patience with most sludge,
listening to song after tuneless song meander over 7 minutes while making my
body feel like I'm coming down with a cold does little to excite me. As much as
I like Eyehategod and Iron Monkey, I honestly never found a reason to love
them. And yes, I'm aware of the irony in writing for a blog named 'The
Sludgelord'.
What Victorian Whore Dogs do differently is not test the listeners patience with prolonged song writing that screams failed ambition, while actually having memorable riffs. That's not to say it doesn't have the characteristic nastiness so vital to the genre; indeed, it sounds like the feeling of finding yourself slowly becoming addicted to something unpleasant. In short, this is the sort of sludge that hits the spot for me.
Dynamics are there - the loud and quiet, the melody and atonality, the singing and screaming; as is an underlying groove to much of the aural bile. Vocals have enough range and variety to bring the music to life far more than a monotonous bark would, and the tones and changes in pace evinced in the writing suggest touches of noise rock being added to the mix.
I have always been a huge fan of EPs, finding their short runtime and condensed nature a great platform for bands to present a vignette of the world they create. Yet over four tracks the EP spans only 13 minutes, and due to the quality of the music and brief nature of the songs it almost feels cut short. It's rare I complain of this, with the length of a release usually far outstripping its hold over my attention, so frankly it's a criticism that comes from confidence in Victorian Whore Dog's ability to create a LP they can be proud of. Keep an eye on these guys.'
What Victorian Whore Dogs do differently is not test the listeners patience with prolonged song writing that screams failed ambition, while actually having memorable riffs. That's not to say it doesn't have the characteristic nastiness so vital to the genre; indeed, it sounds like the feeling of finding yourself slowly becoming addicted to something unpleasant. In short, this is the sort of sludge that hits the spot for me.
Dynamics are there - the loud and quiet, the melody and atonality, the singing and screaming; as is an underlying groove to much of the aural bile. Vocals have enough range and variety to bring the music to life far more than a monotonous bark would, and the tones and changes in pace evinced in the writing suggest touches of noise rock being added to the mix.
I have always been a huge fan of EPs, finding their short runtime and condensed nature a great platform for bands to present a vignette of the world they create. Yet over four tracks the EP spans only 13 minutes, and due to the quality of the music and brief nature of the songs it almost feels cut short. It's rare I complain of this, with the length of a release usually far outstripping its hold over my attention, so frankly it's a criticism that comes from confidence in Victorian Whore Dog's ability to create a LP they can be proud of. Keep an eye on these guys.'
Words
by:
Jake Mazlum
‘Hobo Chic’ is available here
For more
information:
