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This is 'Liberation through Amplification.'
In
a year of conflict and uncertainty, one thing came out clear as anything:
legendary Ohio
sludge crew Fistula
did not piss away the end of 2017 binge watching garbage on Netflix. Nope. In
fact, the band dove headfirst into creating new music. It is featured as part
of a new seven-inch series, where the band is paired up with other veteran acts
– Maine four-piece Come to Grief and Los Angeles long-timers -(16)-
for sonic adventures aplenty.
The
pair of singles begins with Come to Grief's entry, a dense and dangerous
cut built around Jonathan Hébert's searing vocals and the brawny guitar of
Terry Savastano. "Take Me In My
Sleep" is deceptively powerful. From the slow climb of its opening, Come to Grief maintains a thick and
ominous rhythm throughout this song. As fans may recall, the quartet arose from
the ashes of the 1990s group Grief, reconstituting to some range the songs
for that group written by Savastano, and which include former Grief
drummer Chuck Conlon. However, it was evident even early on that the new
incarnation is not a tribute band, but an altogether intriguing evolution of
the progenitor's classic sound. Much credit for this growth is to some degree
owed to the presence of Hébert behind the microphone. His voice demands your
attention and obedience, with a wiry snarl and dexterous attack. With a
foundation ballasted by Conlon and bassist Tim Simpson, "Take Me In My Sleep" is a lethal selection for this
seven-inch.
Speaking
of veteran experience, -(16)- makes their presence felt on the second
seven-inch, employing its renowned sludge prowess with slicing riffs, grave
soil dark bass and vocals that rattle you like kicking a pile of spent bullet
shells across a concrete floor. In the hands of -(16)-, a song by iconic
post-punk clan Killing
Joke is not just a particularly savage cover, but a fearless
reimagining of some of the English band's best work. The showcase player here
is Bobby Ferry, whose guitar plows through this originally brisk paced song
with a hint of speed yet still faithful to what -(16)- does best. Similarly Cris
Jerue's singing takes a page from Jaz Coleman, yet blows open the doors to put
his band's stamp on this rendition. With Barney Firks on bass and Dion Thurman at
the drum kit, -(16)-
shows new and stalwart fans just how effectively the group is able to
rejuvenate this material.
These
tracks – and the sheer quality of the performers – taken in, it is evident that
Fistula
has quite a high bar to meet on what is a marquee placement for the band.
If
you are familiar with the Devo song Fistula covers on that split with -(16)-,
the 1994 track is one of those sublime post-rock/electronic hybrids that made
the band innovators so visionary, as well as one of the best known Rock &
Roll Hall of Fame snubs. It is a bold choice; its early-math rock guitar and
slinky synths could be hard to pull off for a band loved for its sludge. Where
it works best is when Fistula are faithful to the original, with
just that hint of vacant eyed stare that made them such a musical terror. With
a similarly terse beginning, it's into a straight-ahead mashing of guitars and
boiling-over vocals. Fistula are wildly accurate with their strikes
– a driving rhythm section is met at flourishes by effects, growls punctuate
the mood with urgency, and, in less than three-and-a-half minutes, the squad
owns the song.
It
is its original music, however, where Fistula delivers its real coup de grace.
"Contusion" is its
selection from the split with Come to Grief, and it delivers a delicious mix
of sludge, with a hint of hardcore and doom. A pulsing bass courtesy of Greg
Peel undergirds the impenetrable riffs, while Dan Harrington's anguished vocals
command your focus. As a quintet, the group uses all its instruments to their
fullest potential; dual guitars, drums and bass stretch out across the nearly
six-minute track and set a pensive mood, only to recoil with fury again and
again as the song cranks up and finally down. You have a lot to look forward to
in the next release from one of sludge's best.
They serve up a king size slice of skull crushing, heavy Sludge that
feels like being hit with a sledgehammer repeatedly. Job extremely well done
and then some
"To Fathom Hell” DD//LP track listing:
01. Crack (08:28)
02. To Fathom Hell (12:37)
03. The One (13:58)
04. Underdog Basement Jam (08:10)
The Review:
With so much great music at moment it can be a bit
overwhelming knowing where to start when looking for new music. Some bands may
slip your attention. Some great records may slip by unnoticed. Every now and
then you stumble by sheer luck across a gold nugget. Dusteroid is that band. Hailing
from London they
have been creating music since 2004. They took a hiatus in 2013 but came back
this year not only to play at Desert Fest in Camden
but also release second album “To Fathom
Hell” which they recorded live in the basement of the UnderdogArtGallery,
and what a corker it is! Consisting of four tracks spread over forty-four
minutes it delivers on all levels. You want heavy? You got it. You want a raw
sound? You got it. You want songs that will stick with you? You got it in
spades.
“Crack” opens
the album with an abrasive guitar tone by Blaine,
before kicking into a doom style vibe. TJ on bass and Sammy on drums lay down a groovethat both
swings and loosens your teeth. The sparse vocals have a similar attack to Jaz
Coleman showing the influence of Killing Joke which is an alternative to the
usual cookie monster vocals associated with music this heavy. A breakdown is
followed by short vocal and bass interlude with mantra type lyrics. Krautrock
repeated music motifs are abundant and just when the claustrophobic weight of
groove threatens to crush itself, it opens up into a chorus and takes off like
a greyhound out of a trap, albeit a very noisy one before masterfully jumping
back into a mid paced stagger. A jangly guitar and delicate bass line sees the
song over the finish line.
Next up is the title track “To Fathom Hell” A fat toned Bass line kick starts the song as
melodic guitar warms up in the background. When the whole band kicks in it’s a
mid-pace stomp following the bass line. A guitar riff with thrash tones is the
intro to the main body of the song, which again delivers heavy with a capital
H. The vocals have just enough gravel to match the stop start feel. It settles
down into a syncopated march but doesn’t compromise the ragged quality of the
song. Another mantra style lyric overlays this before the song opens up in to
trashy middle section with a Crowbar like feel to. A wah drenched guitar
solo and then it speeds up even more, hitting a wall of noise and feedback
before a staccato guitar riff summons a landslide of crashing volume that the
rhythm section crawls out of almost unscathed to allow a Iommi flavoured solo
to birth a son of “Iron Man” stomp
and then back into the original groove to wind up the whole affair.
“The One” opens
with a long reverbing echo guitar with a trippy space rock flavour. A pulsating
bass line and cymbals similar to Pink Floyd trickle up to the surface under
this. The tension in this build up expands into a marching riff before another
riff moves it along, nicely building all the time. Nice loud ride cymbal work
adds an almost Kyuss
feel. It drops away to leave a riff playing, again building tension, before
kicking back in, to great effect. The forward motion of the song is driven by
some excellent drumming. At over the five-minute point with musical power
firing on all cylinders’ the voice kicks in. The lost child of Jaz Coleman
vocal adds even more tension and dynamics driving the song to even higher peaks.
This leads to a chorus that pounds you into submission. The repeating motif
rhythm does have elements of drone metal but without the quieter passages. The
dam breaks and a short guitar solo escapes before being steamrolled by the
forward propulsion of the song. A longer solo abuses the wah pedal to great
effect. The longest and heaviest track on album which is really saying
something.
The final track is self-explanatory. “Underdog Basement Jam“is the shortest track on the album and does
what it says on tin. It fades in with the band playing a laid back psych
groove. A discordant solo plays over a driving rhythm with the wah pedal in the
forefront. This feels like Earthless, with added occasional chorus. It
also conjures up eastern scales and Hawkwind grooves. A staccato guitar and tribal
rhythm, break up the song before the chorus comes back around. An extremely
quiet (by Dusteroid
standards) outro see us to finish line andit feels like it has left leaving me wanting more.
Overall Dusteroid wear many influences, particularly Killing Joke
on their sleeve, but rather than doing an impression they take these and form them
into a sound that is theirs alone. Considering this was recorded live in a
world where mainstream metal bands use pro-tools as a fix it all, the
complexity and dynamics of the songs is extremely impressive. They serve up a
king size slice of skull crushing, heavy Sludge that feels like being hit with
a sledgehammer repeatedly. Job extremely well done and then some
What works really well with this new album is the aggression of the guitar and the drums throughout its entirety. The riffs are stellar and keep my interest at all times. You can here the subtle keyboard in the background which adds to Jaz Coleman's vocals and doesn't overkill the rest of their sound.Overall, “Pylon” is a masterpiece.
‘Pylon’ CD//DD// LP track listing:
01 Autonomous Zone 02 Dawn Of The Hive 03 New Cold War 04 Euphoria 05 New Jerusalem 06 War On Freedom 07 Big Buzz 08 Delete 09 I Am The Virus 10 Into The Unknown
Killing Joke is
Jaz Coleman | lead vocals, keyboards
Kevin "Geordie" Walker | guitars
Martin "Youth" Glover | bass guitar
Paul Ferguson | drums, vocals
Reza Uhdin | keyboards
The Review:
I got late in the game with this band as only a few years ago a friend of mine turned me on to the mighty Killing Joke. I started off by listening to their 2003 self titled album which to me was mind blowing. From then on I've been floored by their ability to keep their writing fresh since the 80's up until this brand new album, “Pylon”. Their discography is pretty impressive. And let me get this across to anyone who doubts this band, they are heavy as fuck and deserve your full
attention.
What works really well with this new album is the aggression of the guitar and the drums throughout its entirety. The riffs are stellar and keep my interest at all times. You can here the subtle keyboard in the background which adds to Jaz Coleman's vocals and doesn't overkill the rest of their sound. There is an effective amount of reverb to Coleman's vocals which is his standard trademark for those familiar with most of their work.
Right off the bat the song “Autonomous Zone” crushes. The bass breaks will put a smile on your face as its borderline funk in the mix with thick guitars, punishing drums and some background noise thrown in for good measure. The pace never really slows down throughout the rest of the album.“Big Buzz” stands out as a potentially good single for “Pylon” as the chorus has a repetitive line that sticks out and makes me want to sing along.... However, talking about singles, “I Am the Virus” is a song that will make you want to bang your head. They took The Beatle's, “I Am the Walrus” and just fucking destroy. It's brilliant and don't try to tell me different asshole.
Overall, “Pylon” is a masterpiece. You need to get your hands on this whether you're into punk rock, doom, stoner rock, metal, or whatever. Too bad you'll never hear this on the radio because I'd like to think that Killing Joke would blow Muse right out of the water. This album will be on steady rotation on my stereo for sure.
