Their southern roots should let this be a surprise to no one but their music has a swampy, groovy core to it. The guitar tone is dirty and abrasive as hell, a sterling combination of doom, sludge, and that classic southern-tinge that has that special sort of intensity. Mike Rot is the only guitarist but he sounds like seven because his riffs are heavy and layered as a goddamn dump truck full of coked up alligators.
Despite how great the riffs are, any band of this type would be worthless without a good rhythm section. Thomas Stanfel (drums) and Angel Rot (bass) are a two man wrecking crew. Their own sound and tones are heavy as lead and unmovable as that dump truck I mentioned earlier.
Travis Overcash's vocals are pure gut and guile, offering a variety that serves up growls, screams, heavy cleans, and a tone of seemingly never-ending energy. Without a doubt he is a great frontman and spearheads the music extremely well.
Since it's just four songs, I'll say something about each of them. They all standout in their own way and have big hooks that just pulled me in from the beginning.
"Decomposition," begins with sludgy riffs and doomed groove that are perfect for headbanging, which I did the entire time I wrote this. The guitars and vocals compliment each other very well while the rhythm section compliments everything. It results in one big sound that sounds huge but the cadence of the vocals make it all surprisingly catchy. The middle part slows the tempo a bit as the band goes into total devastation mode. That scream pierces the air as the the band throws out groove after groove.
"All Out War," is an apt title if I've ever heard one---this song just doesn't quit. Before the song even reaches the 30 second mark the band is full swing, like the swing of a sword that is about to severe a head from the shoulders. Around the 3:22 mark, the song hangs back for a few seconds to ramp up the climax before it explodes.
"Who's Your Devil?" wastes no time providing swamp grooves. This song kind of reminds me of doom/sludge version of Lamb Of God, except actually good and relevant. My favorite part begins at the 3:25 mark with the words, "Who's Your Devil?" kicking off two minutes of sludge/doom mayhem.
The darkest and most dense song is the final one, "Like Blood Down The River." It has a very bleak atmosphere that mixes well with the riffs. The vocals are strained and expressive, adding to the dark layers.
If you don't have a spare 18 minutes then you need to get them because this little EP provides a big experience and I can't wait to see where the band goes from here. We need a full-length very soon!
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