This is not a split. Rather this EP is a collaborative effort between the voluminous Portland duo The Body and the caustic NOLA sludgesters Thou, with all members of both bands playing on each track. Y’know, kinda like that thing Lion’s Daughter did a little while back…minus the neo-folk leanings, I presume.
Side A opens with the tongue-twisting “The Wheel Weaves as the Wheel Wills,” every bit the slow-pounding low blow that you’d expect from both artists. The bottom end on this one is simply crushing, with violent vocals vomiting overtop. And yes, I’m pretty sure there are two drummers on this track, as they trade off Jason Roeder-style fills beneath the filth and slime. “Manifest Alchemy” is equally despondent, this one slightly slower and even more foreboding. There’s something of an industrial hum beneath the verses, which gives way to crashing waves of distortion, rising to a nice, slow roller.
“In Meetings Hearts Beat Closer” leads off the B Side with more of a black metal mood, guitar notes echoing and shimmering in the lead up to one heavy set of breakdowns. As with its predecessor, it ends in a drowning sea of feedback. And while I have no idea who Vic Chesnutt is, I’m guessing this collaborative take on his tune “Coward” sounds nothing like the original.
