Agoraphobic Nosebleed “Arc” Review

Agoraphobic Nosebleed
“Arc”
Relapse Records
Released : January 22, 2016

Wait! What’s going on here? This can’t be right! Is this really Agoraphobic Nosebleed?

This is the same band that released a three-CD set that had a hundred tracks and a running time of just over twenty two minutes, right? What was that called? “Altered States of America”? And the longest track in that package was just shy of a minute long. So, how did we arrive at this three song EP where the shortest track is a second short of seven minutes long?

Time tracking aside, this thing sounds nothing at all like anything I’d ever have expected to hear from Scott Hull. Ever. Like, forever ever. My first encounter with Hull was on the debut full-length (if that term can be applied to Grindcore!?) album from Agoraphobic Nosebleed; “Honkey Reduction”. That record was earth-shattering for me. Absolutely blistering and rabid tracks unlike anything I had heard up until that point. Sheer ferocity. Up until that point, my knowledge of the genre was probably limited to Napalm Death and Brutal Truth. Everything was about to change.

Fast-forward eighteen years, and four since the band last hit a recording studio, and try to imagine that group that spat out a hundred songs in just over twenty minutes (You do the math!) now playing sludge songs that last for minutes! Minutes, like, multiple minutes! I couldn’t wrap my mind around it. How had this happened? Did Hull move away from the meth and into a big bag of weed? Turns out, this is the first installment of a four part set where the band is going to play the style of a certain member per record. Well, that’s not been done before.

See also: Fuck The Facts “Amer” Review

At this point, it is worth pointing out, dear reader, that this is not an accurate description of the band by any means. What it is, is a pretty fucking fantastic test. An experiment. This is what happens when a Grindcore band starts jamming Sludge and Doom tunes at rehearsal. I suppose you could argue that Agoraphobic Nosebleed have always had an experimental edge. Previous releases have all had a groove, a bit of melody. Hooks and whatnot. Nothing like this, though. “Arc” is a stoners wet dream. All the fuzzy, groovy riffs you would hope to find on, say, an Electric Wizard record, with the snarled ferocious vocals you’d be more likely to discover on a Fuck The Facts release. Yes. I made that connection based on both bands having girl singers – your point? What a pleasant surprise this EP has proven to be.

In conclusion; what we have here is a little something for the fan already acquainted with the band. Not an entry level release. Else you find yourself baffled when you go check out something else this band has done. You’ve been warned. I suppose it could work for sludge fans, but lets not go there or we’ll never get done here. As much as I dig this, and I really fucking do – I’m more intrigued by what comes next. There’s three more of these EP’s planned and on the horizon. One of those is surely a Grindcore release, but what will the others be? Oh how I hate surprises. And waiting. And Nickleback. Shit! I hope none of these guys are into Nickleback.

For Fans Of: No Rest For The Dead, Fuck The Facts, Electric Wizard
Track Listing:
01. Not A Daughter
02. Deathbed
03. Gnaw

 

 

Author Rating

  • overall
    8.6
  • composition
    8.6
  • enjoyment
    8.4
  • production
    8.4
  • variety
    8.9
  • memorability
    8.6
Pros & Cons
  • Aggressive
  • Groove laden
  • Original
  • Short
Contributors