I have to admit that I am positively delighted by the proliferation of the two piece over the past decade of heavy music. Perhaps it’s because the setup has become fairly pervasive in the genres that are nearest and dearest to me, sludge, stoner rock, noise, and doom, but its effect is not all that different than the emergence of the bass-less three piece pioneered by Anal Cunt, Pig Destroyer, and Discordance Axis. Diversity can be found among heavyweights like Eagle Twin, Jucifer, and Black Cobra, the more experimental output of Colornoise, the Body, and OvO, and lesser known doomers Ommadon, Old One, and Olde Growth.

Connecticut’s Bedroom Rehab Corporation enter the fray as another two-piece drum and bass combo, combining the rambunctious flavor of Big Business’ Here Come the Waterworks with rockier stoner infused doom. Their debut full length, the nautically themed Red Over Red, is an excellent first outing, rich with hearty riffs and deep sinking hooks. The sea faring theme of the album dominates the lyrics while moments of gull-baiting noise and a bloopy aquatic bass tone add a bit of atmosphere to an otherwise straightforward affair. It’s a fine debut and one of the most infectious I’ve heard in some time.

Proper tone is absolutely crucial when you only have one instrument filling a role normally reserved for two or more musicians. Bassist/vocalist Adam Wujtewicz fills the void with an impeccable bass tone, stout and burly, excellently rendered by crisp production. Wujtewicz lays thick driving riffs and modulates his voice between a clean vocal style, something closer to a shout, and a hoarse scream. The arrangements are relatively simple and highlight the contrasting moments of heady grooves and sedate punctuation. Wujtewicz occasionally reaches in to a grab bag of pedal effects to fold in additional layers of noise, but for the most part is content to keep things simple and riff oriented. The other half of the equation is drummer Megan Killimade, who ably grounds the riffs and provides Red Over Red’s dynamic backbone. She locks her bass and snare to Wujtewicz’s rumbling swerve and uses quick tumbles across the snare and toms for transitions.

Though initial impressions ring the Big Business bell, Bedroom Rehab Corporation hew fairly close to the modern stoner rock milieu. There’s straightforward up-tempo stoner rock moments (“Basilosaurus” and “Captain Damnit”) and a few moodier pieces built on grooves (“Gone by the Boards”). The stock ingredients may be familiar but the two piece approach, the bass-forward production, and the obvious chemistry between Killimade and Wujtewicz put Red Over Red above much of the unwashed stoner rock masses. There’s a good deal of variety in their approach and they have some nice incorporations of noise here and there.

Bedroom Rehab Corporation have put together a solid piece of doom influenced stoner rock, one that I’ve enjoyed thoroughly. There’s not a whole lot that’s new here, but the two piece drum and bass approach and the overall racket they produce is different enough to be intriguing. There’s a lot of potential in Red Over Red, and perhaps with more expansive and integrated use of noise and effects they could be on to something genuinely unique.

[Visit the band's website]

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