That dastardly duo of A (guitar/bass/vocals) and P (drums) return with another platter of distortion drenched fuzz flooded acid doom. For those of you scratching your heads wondering who the fuck A and P are then you will probably know them better by their collective name of Sonic Demon, an Italian duo renowned for barely audible vocals roared, shouted and snarled over backdrops of Electric Wizard inspired gnarled guitar riffage and relentless powerful drumming. Those with their fingers on the pulse of the Italian acid doom/scuzz scene will probably already be familiar with the bands previous outings "Doom 2020" and "Vendetta" and will know that finesse and subtlety are not high on Sonic Demon's list of musical attributes, but even they may be surprised by the venomous attack of their latest release "Veterans of the Psychic War" (Majestic Mountain Records/ Interstellar Smoke Records)
Sonic Demon are with "Veterans of the Psychic War" inviting you to hear the scuzz, feel the scuzz and become one with the scuzz. This has got to be the bands most gnarly, raucous and uncompromising album to date, its fuzz and distortion has a tangible quality that adheres itself to you like a foul filthy grime and makes you feel like taking a long hot shower moments after its last note has faded into the ether. From opening song "Electric Demon" to closing number "To Hell and Back" there is hardly any let up, moments of hazy quiet reflection are rare and when they do present themselves, like on the excellent "Black Pill" and the psychedelic and bluesy "Sexmagick Nights", they have an almost reverse shock effect whereby the listener, who by now is expecting more scuzzed out gnarliness, suddenly experiences a "where the fuck did that come from" reaction when an out of the blue passage of lysergic haziness suddenly appears. Like many of the bands populating the Italian acid doom scene Sonic Demon are not overly concerned with the clarity of their vocals and bury them way back in the mix, the odd word can be picked out here and there but on the whole are delivered in a barely audible sneered snarl, strangely this is the bands, and for that matter the scenes, biggest selling point because those coming to this music are not looking for pristine solo's and sing a long choruses, they are here for the rawness, the ferality and the filthiness of the fuzz all of which Sonic Demon deliver by the truckload.
Sonic Demon make the music they want to make, they are not trying to please anyone but themselves. You are unlikely to find this duo getting in depth articles written about them in glossy mags like Classic Rock and Metal Hammer simply because they are just too feral, raw and uncompromising for the readership of those publications. However for those of us who like their grooves filthy and their vocals sneered and snotty Sonic Demon are manna from heaven (or maybe hell) and their album "Veterans of the Psychic War" a shining example of how damn good nasty can be
Check 'em out ....
© 2023 Frazer Jones
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