Post by thesoundmonitor on Oct 12, 2003 6:20:59 GMT -5
DEVIL TO PAY / MANTIS
Split
(Lax Wax)
By Warren Wheeler
It’s always nice to receive a new slab o’ vinyl. Especially when it’s coloured, like this one here is: nice and red. But ultimately it’s the tunes contained within the grooves that I have a responsibility to review - not the colour of the product.
Thankfully, the tunes are indeed worthy of equal praise as the colour - if not more so! Lax Wax is a new label spearheaded - by what I can gather - by Steve Janiak, vocalist/guitaist for Devil To Pay. So we’ll focus on his band first off.
Hailing from central Indiana, USA Devil To Pay are stoner-doom in a familiar way but not entirely derivative of the countless others who’ve come before them. Their track ‘Tractor Fuckin’ Trailer’ utilizes the same riff predominantly throughout, varying the delivery to discourage repetition. A mid-paced tune, a tight rhythm section and Janiak’s clean vocals hold the guitars together, culminating in a slower Kyuss-esque tune.
Mantis’ contribution ‘Choking on Forbidden Fruit’ ups the pace considerably. Again from Indiana, Mantis’ stoner style falls more in the vein of Monster Magnet. The verses cruise along before an exploding and memorable chorus kicks in. The track then deviates into what would usually be considered a bridge, except a bridge usually leads somewhere. This additional movement rather cleverly takes you by surprise as you wait for the original riff to return, but to no avail.
In total, two acts equal in quality and certainly worth further investigation.
Split
(Lax Wax)
By Warren Wheeler
It’s always nice to receive a new slab o’ vinyl. Especially when it’s coloured, like this one here is: nice and red. But ultimately it’s the tunes contained within the grooves that I have a responsibility to review - not the colour of the product.
Thankfully, the tunes are indeed worthy of equal praise as the colour - if not more so! Lax Wax is a new label spearheaded - by what I can gather - by Steve Janiak, vocalist/guitaist for Devil To Pay. So we’ll focus on his band first off.
Hailing from central Indiana, USA Devil To Pay are stoner-doom in a familiar way but not entirely derivative of the countless others who’ve come before them. Their track ‘Tractor Fuckin’ Trailer’ utilizes the same riff predominantly throughout, varying the delivery to discourage repetition. A mid-paced tune, a tight rhythm section and Janiak’s clean vocals hold the guitars together, culminating in a slower Kyuss-esque tune.
Mantis’ contribution ‘Choking on Forbidden Fruit’ ups the pace considerably. Again from Indiana, Mantis’ stoner style falls more in the vein of Monster Magnet. The verses cruise along before an exploding and memorable chorus kicks in. The track then deviates into what would usually be considered a bridge, except a bridge usually leads somewhere. This additional movement rather cleverly takes you by surprise as you wait for the original riff to return, but to no avail.
In total, two acts equal in quality and certainly worth further investigation.