Review: Tualatin “s/t” CD

Here's the second demo from this relatively new act, dropping three more tracks of damn fine 'n' sludgy stoner rock styled material. It's not terribly original, but the songwriting is very strong, and I enjoy the vocals, which aren't quite sung nor screamed, but are indeed effective. It's not too doomy, though such influences are flirted with, but there's no generic 70's junk either, so it's just a killer slab of dark, heavy rock. Opener "Gone So Wrong" is a straightforward track with a moderate tempo and a classic framework, "Exactly What They Want" brings in a little bit of an Entombed sort of heavy death rock vibe for a catchier and more powerful track at a mere 2:48 in length, and the six-and-a-half-minute "Owner Operator" gets sparser at times but the persistent drive of the rhythm is highly effective for its duration - closing with a nice passage of drones and feedback over a slow drum pattern. For an effort that was recorded in one day in a basement for $200 on an eight-track this fucker sounds god damn great as well. It's nice and warm, and the mix has no gaps at all, so I have no complaints. The tones are fine, you can hear all of the instruments, etc. It could be clearer, but I don't think I'd want it to be. That thick density really works here, and the gritty textures of the distortion and filtered vocals all have enough space. The CD-R comes in a slim jewel case with a dark layout that uses mostly black space with some faint and strangely arranged photography that's almost abstract, despite being able to make out people or pieces of machinery and such here and there. Not bad. Very nice, in fact. Significantly better than their last demo, which I was starting to like as well. The sound is better, the songs stronger, the packaging more involved and interesting, etc. These guys should absolutely be signed. I'm not sure what their status is there, but this is a great demo, and anyone who's into Southern Lord styled bands should be all fucking over this. Give me a full-length!