Here's a solid EP from these sludge monsters that sees the band heading in a few new directions. Of course there's plenty of thick and nasty distortion, southern fried riffing, and nods to everyone from Black Sabbath to Eyehategod to Alabama Thunderpussy, but "CLE" is more rocked out and melodic than anything I've ever heard from the band, breaking out some nice guitar harmonies and some straight up 70's rock influences, of course made more aggressive through lots of distortion and the sick vocal screams. There's a nice calm break too, layering more guitar harmonies over pulsing bass and slick drumming. They even drop the instrumental "Blues Couch" - complete with acoustic slide guitar and organ! The recording is pretty damn good. The drums sound nice, the bass is thick as shit, the guitars are clear and have a good level of distortion on 'em without getting muddy or losing their texture, and the vocals are slightly distorted - adding more grit to their sound. Everything's thick and warm, but nothing gets lost. I definitely think this is the best these guys have ever sounded. I really like the visual presentation here, it keeps things fairly minimal, but consistent, and it looks great. The only color used is brown really, and the imagery is all collaged images of women and torn newspaper clippings with scratches, dirt, and ink splotches around them. It looks pretty sinister and definitely catches the eye. The inner spread is straight brown with white text, but it's easily legible and actually looks nice. The lyrics are pretty bitter, and I like 'em. "My particles continue to race through the depths of time and outer space. Abiding by the scientific laws, may particles know not of supernatural. Been doing time on this planet from which we ride. Don't head for the light. Think I'd rather be left behind." Man, I hope their next full-length is this good. I've been pretty tired of this genre for awhile, but this is a great EP.
[At a Loss]
Running time - 21:20, Tracks: 4
[Notable tracks: CLE, Burn the Fields]
At a Loss Recordings - http://www.atalossrecordings.com
