March 19, 2008 | | 4

Sourvein, Ghetto Angel

Featuring members of Buzz-oven, Eyehategod and Hail!Hornet, you can only imagine the sludgy chaos that ensues on Sourvein’s latest 4 song EP. Down-tuned guitars spit out riffs like rusty chainsaws splintering vertebrae. Slow paced, churning rhythms from drummer Cool Clyde and bassist Dixie pummel the listener into submissive puddles of flesh. Guitarists Vince Burke and JC Fari violently lob thick, discordant riffs and squeals from tortured amps.

The only thing left is to add in T. Roy Sour’s nasty vocal work that reminds me of something straight from the bottom of the gnarliest, back alley dumpster you can find — I freakin’ love it! The combination of all these sludge heavy-weights and a few well placed samples and audio clips produces Ghetto Angel with four tracks of raw, ill-tempered sludge that only a mother could love.

Nightwing
The opening track starts off with huge riffs delivered through a rusty sieve of sludge. This thing has a very thick and beefy sound. The slow pace works well in conjunction with the nearly drowning vocals. Surprisingly for all the blunt force to this one there is also a very slick groove that’ll have you banging your head in no time.

Septic Werewolves
I can only imagine what a septic werewolf is, but if the doom on this track is any indication, it’s one evil motherfucker. With a layer of funeral dirge grime smeared over the guitar and vocals on this one, Sourvein trudge through riff after riff of sludgy metal. Slowly paced rhythms set the right mood for this one.

Doldrums…
“Doldrums” starts off with a little guitar noise before a few random and chaotic sound clips come in. I love the opening riff to this one as T. Roy’s screams come into play. It’s got a distinct sound to help separate it from the other three tracks. The mixing in of sound clips throughout are a nice touch and help counter the heavy doom presence of the guitars and beat.

D.I.L.L.I.G.A.F.
With the last track on the EP, the band picks up the pace a great deal in comparison to the the previous three songs. It’s still got plenty of sludge to clog up your toilet at the most inopportune moment. It just doesn’t have that oppressively heavy doom feel to it, which is a nice change up and keeps the short disc fresh. There’s a little more vehemence added to the vocal delivery as well. It’s definitely a great track to end on.

~ ~ ~

It’s usually fairly hard to judge a band on only four tracks, but knowing Sourvein’s pedigree and history, I can safely say that anything these dudes put out in the future is going to be just plain nasty. If this EP is any indication, be prepared for more sludgy, drug-fueled mayhem than you can shake a femur at.

Favorite Tracks:
All of them

Additional Notes:
N/A