Anyone who has seen the band Low take the stage or turned on one of their records knows the general impression is that of a lumbering, sleeping savage. Their music tends to be a lulling, traipsing exercise, peaked with moments of frenzy and passion, such that pure stoner rock never felt in the cards for them or their progeny.
Of course, Alan Sparhawk released a drastically underappreciated record, Solo Guitar a few years back. That record was sparser, practically free from structure; certainly a drastic departure from what Low has offered its fans over the years. Listening to this record is an almost Ummagumma-like fracture from conventionality.
Now Sparhawk has slowly formed the Retribution Gospel Choir, something that adheres to convention like nothing he’s ever been a part of. It’s more Queens of the Stone Age than Pink Floyd, and to paraphrase the creator’s words, proof that he’s onto something big. The self-titled release (produced by Sun Kil Moon’s greatly underappreciated Mark Kozelek) is certainly catchy, melodic, and gut-satisfying. Like real rock. “Take Your Time” and “Breaker” are among the many guitar classics on the record, something that could never be found from the moody Minnesotans in Low.
|