"The Nightmare" is the debut EP from Indiana trio Karloff, which offers up five short tracks in just five short minutes. The band states that they formed "with the intentions of combining a range of genres that include grind, hardcore, and black metal", and I'd say that's fairly accurate, surprisingly enough. For the most part their approach is one reminiscent of straight up drum machine grind with little hints of power violence explosiveness and vocal assaults thrown in for good measure, but there are indeed some scathing dissonant runs that have a black metal kind of vibe going on—often combined with a strange sense of blazing hardcore, no less. The material's a little rough around the edges (the mix could be a hint more balanced, etc.), but the bass presence is fuckin' great, the overall aesthetic of the production values is solid, and the songwriting is definitely fucking promising. Oh, and I have to mention that their artwork is totally fuckin' badass, too. Not just the cover art, but some of the designs and illustrations on their MySpace page as well. If they ever make t-shirts they're sure to have some of the best looking merch out there. Good stuff. So the whole shebang's fairly strong, especially for a band that's only been together for a few months at this point!
If you like what you hear, the EP's available for free download from the band's MySpace page or using the link below:
Comments
This stuff has some pretty strong potential, but I think the band would really benefit from the inclusion of a real drummer.
5.20.2008 | By Anonymous
great stuff, the vocals remind me a bit of zao, the clean/spoken vocals are not my thing though, or just put up to much in the front of the mix. and yes a real drummer would be a benefit, or just a better sounding drummachien, haha
5.20.2008 | By klonkk
I’m the guitarist/programmer for the band, and I’m hoping that using Reason on our next recording will greatly enhance the drum sounds. Thanks for the feedback though guys. It’s near impossible to find a good drummer that isn’t already taken around here.
5.20.2008 | By Dan
This is solid. The drum machine sounds great to me, well programmed. it definitely does not detract from the music at all, i think it adds to it. the clean vocals in that one song are a bit naked, but fuck it. its got that awkward old school personality. and everything else is on point: guitars, bass… and the vocal harmonies are VERY effective. bad ass art too.
5.20.2008 | By Marcus Garvey
Thank you Marcus Garvey… I’ll let you guys know when the next recording is released. We are going into the studio in late June and hoping to actually release something concrete this time around instead of just a digital download. A 7” seems to be the best bet. Again thank you to everyone, especially Andrew for running this blog.
5.20.2008 | By Dan