In a continuing attempt to cover more music that would all-too-oft slip through the very large cracks, we slumbering scribes are making an effort to publish short reviews at a greater frequency, thereby shining our very small spotlight on more cool shit. Here's a mini-review of the latest single from an artist that made my 2023 EP list. Written by: The Administrator It is time, dear readers, for something completely different. che's excellent Crueger made the cut for my list of favorite 2023 EP's, largely due to a sense of overblown excess that smothered the minimalism of his breakout "euphoria." Indeed, to quote my review, Crueger proudly displayed the "maximalism of horrorcore and rage with the arguably more maximalist maximalism of Chicago drill." Given this apparent dedication to generally weird and ominous vibes, I've quite enjoyed che's sound, especially his most recent output. The two singles released this year thusfar are a little more bright, a little less obfuscated and claustrophobic, yet still notably weird. He dropped the one-off "bae" back in February, which I enjoyed, but "Miley Cyrus," released March 27th, is truly excellent in my humble opinion. The production on "Miley Cyrus," courtesy of Prettifun, is comparatively crisp and clean with moments of thickly grounded bass, giving the whole affair a certain oomph. The production is sure-assured, layered enough to feel full yet never overwhelming che's presence. It's also a small thing, but I really enjoy the track's conclusion as the components fall apart in a fun sonic de-evolution. As for che, his flow is trippy and hypnotic; he glides over the beat in a way that feels more effortlessly than past efforts. This is the epitome of smooth delivery. What the fuck is he saying? Individual words and phrases are apparent, but when you string it all together, I have no clue what meaning the lyrics impart. Does that matter? Not at all. The uncertainty of what it all means is only exemplified by the video, which features a series of seemingly random bits of footage--some mundane, some unsettling. The whole thing appears to have been edited by someone swiftly fluctuating between paranoid insomnia and hallucinatory threshold consciousness. It's groggy and delirious and oddly intoxicating. Much like the song itself, I can't see many Sleeping Village regulars vibing with the experience per se, but I wholeheartedly encourage checking out weird underground shit on mere principle. This isn't a bad place to dive in. Overexplaining seems antithetical to the music itself, so I'll shut up and let you check it out below. che - Miley Cyrus was released March 27th, 2024
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Written by: The Administrator
Horizon-gazers: assemble! Since the resurgence of this column a few weeks back, ON THE HORIZON has unintentionally been focused on doom and doom-adjacent releases. Today's entry shakes up the status quo. Let's get a little more grisly, shall we? The (forthcoming) debut album from Albuquerque's Magna Moriendi has been a long time coming. This one-man death metal project dropped a raw and raucous 3-track self-titled EP a while back, which I thought was quite impressive. Since 2020, nothing more emerged from the Magna Moriendi camp. But good things, as they say, come to those who wait. Into The Murk will be released on May 31st, and lead single "Moment of Apparitions" hit the ground running this past Wednesday. This is a damn strong track, and if it's any indication of what Magna Moriendi has been cooking up, I think we're in for a pretty delectable death metal debut. "Moment of Apparitions" takes a slightly less blistering approach than the 2020 EP. The track is a little longer than anything that came before, and while the riffage carries itself with a similar urgency, the more mire-inflicted implications of the album title and artwork are apparent in the general foreboding atmosphere. There's a rolling churn throughout that is just nauseating enough, and the riff that squirms across the current is an oddly invasive earworm. There's a solo that adds a nice level of unpredictability, and a thick low end keeps everything anchored. The vocals have seen some polish, albeit in a very comparative sense--they are still notably brutal and exceptionally muscular, but fit a little more comfortably in the overall mix. "Moment of Apparitions" represents a level up for Magna Moriendi. I've had this one on repeat today, and I'm psyched to hear what the remainder of this album has in store. May 31st. Mark yer calendars accordingly. In the meantime, check out "Moment of Apparitions" below!
Written by: The Administrator
We slumbering scribes are nothing if not considerate. In that spirit, here's a relevant public service announcement: if you choose to fire up Terror Labyrinthian, the debut album from Baltimore's Nuclear Tomb, please know that you are willingly subjecting yourself to an undiluted sonic onslaught. Real face-melting stuff. Prodding and squirmy and barbed and apocalyptic and absolutely ripping. Representing a particularly weird and wild variant of death-oriented thrash, Nuclear Tomb have perfected a brand of chaos that appears, at first blush, quite unhinged. In reality, their approach is as calculated as it is contorted. In a case of promo material feeling exceptionally accurate, Nuclear Tomb do indeed skillfully integrate an old-school blistering aggression à la Sadus alongside a more punky off-kilter Voivodian approach to dynamics. That's a win/win combination in my book. On the very occasional Friday, a wagon arrives at the Sleeping Village’s crumbling gates, stuffed to the brim with sustenance. Today is the day we must offload all this new music, and so, in the process, we thought it would be worthwhile to share some choice cuts from this veritable mass of fresh meat. This is what we’ll be--and have been--listening to today here at the Village HQ. We hope you join us in doing so! On the docket for today, April 12th, 2024 Necrot, Corvus Corone, Heavy Temple, and Exist
Written by: The Administrator
Prepare yourself, dear reader, for some stoner doom. Some lumbering stoner doom. Some lumbering mammothian stoner doom. Some lumbering mammothian psychedelic stoner doom. Some lumbering mammothian psychedelic groove-laden fuzzy megafaunic stoner doom. Some... Anyways, that's what we're dealing with here. Acid Mammoth are back for a fourth round in the ol' riff arena, Supersonic Megafauna Collision as their champion. If you're familiar with this crew's past work, you know the score. Acid Mammoth are, in my book, one of the premiere stoner doom bands active today. They are consistent, colorful, and make music that doesn't get bogged down in its own aura and atmosphere. The riffs are repetitive yet groovy and classically hooky, and the songwriting is intriguing enough to leave room for a little psych meandering without losing the thread too entirely. While I personally enjoy the vocal tone and find it to contrast nicely with the fuzzed out heft, I can see the vocals being a sticking point for some--they embrace a whining reediness. I've seen complaints that the album doesn't provide enough variation, and while the general scope of the album is pretty well established by the second track, we're not exactly here for innovation. If you're inclined to be bored by long-form psychedelic doom, this won't change your mind on the genre, particularly as the album approaches the tail end. But! Supersonic Megafauna Collision isn't about innovation--it is about the charming and quality reproduction of a formula that has been proven to work exceptionally well. I consider this the band's best work yet. If you're on the hunt for that good ol' lumbering mammothian psychedelic groove-laden fuzzy megafaunic stoner doom, Acid Mammoth will do nicely. Acid Mammoth - Supersonic Megafauna Collision was released April 5th, 2024 via Heavy Psych Sounds. Find it here!
Written by: The Administrator
No time for a superfluous introduction. Here is a collection of things I love about Principality of Mechanical Violence, the latest album from death metal duo Soulmass. Let us begin. Firstly, I love the album artwork. I am inclined to judge a book by its cover, and the case of this gorgeous piece by Samuel Nelson, I was immediately struck by the evocative palette and setting. Here, Samuel has captured a moment in time so articulately as the moon rises over a prone gundam. This is the gloaming; the moment where dusk becomes night. I generally adore heavy usage of pinks and purples, and the color of the logo is warm and wonderful, full stop. The color scheme in general feels quite unique in the world of death metal, and stands out from the crowd. It is by far one of the best covers I've seen this year.
Welcome to the second edition of DEMO(LITION) DERBY, a relatively new column dedicated solely to demos. Bolstering our underground cred since 2024!
Written by: The Administrator
Upon receiving permission to injudiciously trawl the depths of the Sleeping Village's promo pit for demo tapes, our hardworking Pit Herder caught and subsequently presented a writhing haul. A legendary catch. Turns out there's a lot of 'em, folks. It seems like demos are all we're eating these days, and so here is a brief writeup of one of my recent favorites. tethered is a quartet out of London, and this very strong 5-track demo indicates that they are intent on hitting the ground running. Leaning into an overtly emotive DIY aesthetic, tethered state that they are attempting to "bridge the gap between some of the more introspective elements of mid 90's emo and the raw energy of hardcore." In this particular scribe's opinion, they have nailed the execution, and they inherent rough-around-the-edges demo quality only exemplifies their success. This is some vehement and impassioned stuff, particularly in the case of vocalist Rose's intense delivery. Her singing reminds me of an overexposed polaroid, bringing both a sense of nostalgia and a timeless overblown emotive rawness. Take, for example, the strained and vicious "shred." The refrain of "no more patience no more peace" feels like spite incarnate, and the following verse is vengeful in a way that feels both sharply targeted and extremely real. Rose's delivery is hurried, leaving very little room for breath between words, which in turn leads to some heart-palpitating urgency. This trend of energetic emotion is displayed through the demo, and the instrumentation often matches the forward thrust of the vocals. On this note, the drums are notably present across the short breadth, a leading factor in the overall forward momentum of the tracks. On opener "torches," for example, I initially found myself following the drums more than the guitar, which almost serves more texturally. That's not to discredit the riffage, however--I particularly enjoy the jarring guitar work on the spirited "motorhinder." All told, tethered have good reason to be proud of this demo. It is well-constructed, rough and raucous without feeling over the top, and feels exceptionally heartfelt. I'm looking forward to hearing more--should they release an official debut, I'll certainly be checking it out! tethered - demo was released digitally August 19th, 2023, and saw release on cassette via strictly no capital letters. Find it here!
The Sleeping Village has been around for a few years now, and during that time, a lot of reviews have unceremoniously disappeared into the dark confines of our archives, destined to never see the light of the front page again. Music appreciation, however, is a timeless affair, and in that spirit, here is a review retrieved from the deep dark depths.
Written by: The Administrator (originally published Jan. 5th, 2020)
If medical waste is unceremoniously disposed, as I like to imagine, in a dumpster out back behind the hospital, San Jose's Aseptic is the resulting viscera stew that oozes from bio-hazard bags and pools in the bottom. Not sure what I mean? Just imbibe in the sluicing juices and slimy riffage of the intro to Cascading Fluids. If you're still having trouble painting said picture--and god help you if that's the case--it may help to take note of the irrefutable fact that this EP legitimately sounds like it was recorded in a dumpster. Hyperbole aside, this is good stuff. If you happen to be familiar with Aseptic’s stellar Senses Decay EP, just know that this is an entirely different kind of beast. Same killer riffs, but the aesthetic is stripped to the bone.
Written by: The Administrator
Let's clear this up right out of the gate: Trocar are gross. Not cutesy gross, but fundamentally and irrevocably gross. Repugnancy has been the name of the game for these (literal) organ grinders, and their debut full-length is accordingly stomach-churning. If you're unfamiliar with Trocar, just consider that the band composition consists of two members of Fluids (Jan Grotle and Walter Hale) alongside death metal connoisseur Schuler Benson, who you may know from @deathmetalradio infamy. Given the lineup, please extrapolate. The sum of the component parts is bound to be bloody, unsettling, grotesque. Anyways. The bluntly and accurately entitled Extremities was released April 5th via Selfmadegod Records, and if you've enjoyed Trocar's work thusfar across various splits and EPs, you'll enjoy this. Indeed, in my opinion, this is their best work yet. A genuine level up. It may be the sonic equivalent of a garbage bag filled with medical waste left in the sun for, oh, a couple of decades, but Extremities is the finest grind I've had pleasure of consuming in quite some time. DR. COLOSSUS feat. Chris Penney - Can't Sleep, Clowns Will Eat Me - Alice Cooper cover (Mini-Review)4/6/2024
In a continuing attempt to cover more music that would all-too-oft slip through the very large cracks, we slumbering scribes are making an effort to publish short reviews at a greater frequency, thereby shining our very small spotlight on more cool shit. Here's a mini-review of a cover track worth checking out.
Written by: The Administrator
If you're unfamiliar with Australia's wonky and wonderful Dr. Colossus, here's an elevator pitch: stoner rock overtly inspired by The Simpsons. Their excellent 2021 album I'm a Stupid Moron With an Ugly Face and A Big Butt and my Butt Smells and I Like to Kiss My Own Butt easily made my list of favorite albums of that year, and standout track "Pickabar" in particular remains in constant rotation. I love Dr. Colossus' riffcraft and hooky songwriting, I love their goofy commitment to homage, and, it should also be noted, I love the source of inspiration to a degree that everyone around me may very well consider obnoxious. In short, Dr. Colossus are a band seemingly built for my particular set of interests, and I thus follow their movements with great interest. Their latest single, "Can't Sleep, Clowns Will Eat Me," is a cover of a largely underappreciated Alice Cooper track that, in and of itself, is a Simpsons reference. Originally appearing on the Japanese edition of Brutal Planet, and then the limited special edition of Dragontown, it's not exactly a well-distributed classic. It is, however, a fun lil' banger with a simple driving riff, a catchy chorus, and some classically Cooper sing-along lines. Dr. Colossus present a faithful recreation with very little deviation, down to the nice solo towards the rear. This adherence to source material certainly isn't a bad thing--the original track is a solid rock tune and funny as hell, chock full o' the kind of batshit lyrical content that only Alice Cooper can realistically get away with. The reference to Bart in his spooky clown bed aside, this is inherently silly stuff. Night is rhymed with...night. There is mention of the titular clown's "big old floppy shoes." And the second verse contains the following, managing to wrap Ronald MacDonald into the whole affair: "And if you think this isn't real / I'll show you wounds that never heal / to them I'm just a happy meal." To me, this is poetry. This was a smart track to cover, and the result is a highly enjoyable listen. The cover doesn't add new material to the tune, but it reinvigorates and gives it a well-deserved resurrection. While I am excited for a new Dr. Colossus album, these random standalones over the past few years have been pretty damn enjoyable. 'Nuff said! Check out "Can't Sleep, Clowns Will Eat Me" below. |
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