“…a dangerous, all too close flyby of a celestial event…”
09/09/2015 Blurt Magazine / Dead Sea Apes
The Upshot: Dub, drones, quivering psych, sugar and spice and everything nice from ace Mancs.
BY JONATHAN LEVITT
Dead Sea Apes hail from Manchester and have with Spectral Domain created a dense, psychotropic experience for those willing to spend a few ducats for the ride. “Universal Interrogator” starts things off with a pulsating quasar of sound, which then ushers in some brutally heavy tribal drumming. The song then continues to build (think Loop meets White Manna); the repetition forces the listener into a spellbound state. I often think that bands like Dead Sea Apes are able to channel something we mere mortals could never tap into. Here the band takes us on a dangerous, all too close flyby of a celestial event that is bombarding us with radiation. This is the sound of galactic violence, of solar ejecta scorching everything in its path.
The following track “True Believers” is the aftermath of barely surviving. The band here creates a false sense of calm as the track moves along at a slow dirge like pace, with simmering synths that quiver and drone. The slow build of the song is exceptional in the way it keeps the listener perched on the edge of sanity.
“The Sixth Side of the Pentagon” is a dub infused slice of psych that captivates as we are hurled through a myriad of worlds towards a blistering climax of pulsating synths, squalls of feedback, and echo-laden drums. This is the song that really showcases the bands collective talent, as creators of an aural symphony of sound.
Dead Sea Apes are another exceptional band on the Cardinal Fuzz label (this is a joint release with Sunrise Ocean Bender, incidentally) and much like their label brethren, have managed to expand upon psychedelic music in entrancing and original ways.