By Gruesome Greg
This album opens with a slow, Sleep-y bass groove, and my interest is piqued. Some great, laid-back stoner grooves a la Fu Manchu, mind-expanding sludge detours and a vocalist with all the bile and hatred of Mike IX Williams… It’s like three of my favourite foods on one plate!
From there, the record takes on a more aggressive, in-yer-face approach on “Nero,” with some crunch and fuzz on tap, and a garage-punk feel on“Almost a Bad Reputation,” which sounds a little like The Hellacopters with a dash of Nashville Pussy. “Morte al Guinzaglio,” meanwhile, sounds like the two previous songs thrown together in a blender.
Elsewhere, the heavy, driving, frantic rock brings Canadian bands like Monster Truck and Trigger Effect to mind, but they never really recapture the magic of that opening number. Still a pretty solid record, regardless.
(Rancore Rec0rds)
