As if to wet your appetite for the forth coming The Red Album from Baroness, At A Loss has teamed the rather hyped sludgy/stoner post rock act with a fellow Georgia act Unpersons to give you this tasty split of fuzzy, groovy and experimental sludge/stoner metal.

The two lengthy tracks from Baroness will no doubt have some crossover appeal for fans of Electric Wizard, High on Fire, Sleep and Earthride, but also the crowd that enjoyed the latest Minsk or Rwake releases. The band manages to cleverly mix hazy, fuzzy stoner rock with a more teeth baring, virulent form of antagonistic yet expansive post rock especially on the killer second track, the 12+ minute, “Cavite”. I generally don’t enjoy genre of stoner/sludge, but Baroness with their gruffer, sterner take on the genre has indeed piqued my attention with these two stellar offerings that offer some form of intellect, aggression and development to the genre. I will definitely be picking up The Red Album when Relapse releases it later this summer.

As for Unpersons, their 4 shorter tracks are far more experimental yet rooted in traditional stoner/sludge metal. With Kylesa drummer Carl McGinley in their ranks, you can expect some furious drumming amid the off beat, angular, staggering, almost Mastodon-ish (and Kylesa) take on stoner rock. And while the music was acceptable in its often crazy structures and hazy hues, the vocals tend to put me off with their slightly spazzy delivery that verge on screamo/emo/nu grind quirkiness. Only more experimental lengthy last track “A Small Gesture, A Thousand Small Happy Gestures (Shone In The Dust)” held my attention. But still I don’t see Unpersons as an act I’ll be looking out for or waiting for future releases like Baroness.

[Visit the band's website]

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