PRIZEHOG Re-Unvent the Whool [LP]

Combining meditative grooves, punishing sludge, dazzling melodies, ultra-heavy psych, and crunchy riffs aplenty using a baffling and impossibly cryptic calculus, Portland, Oregon’s celestial space sludge trio, PRIZEHOG, has created its own bizarro universe of heaviness. Re-Unvent the Whool is a byzantine labyrinth of impenetrable riffs, crushing dirges, heavy hooks, and warped excursions wrapped up in triumphant progressions made complete with downshifted bellows and dark cries; perplexing and mystifying yet grand, spellbinding, enthralling, and uncannily soulful. It’s a record full of depth, complexity, power, humor, and beauty. Recorded and mixed by Toshi Kasai (Melvins, Big Business, Tool, Russian Circles) at his new Sun Valley studio Sound of Sirens, Re-Unvent the Whool is focused, sophisticated, and masterfully produced to showcase the exquisite but intense interaction within the trio: guitars, synths, and drums push and pull one another as they crunch, crush, whirl, weave, and straight up rock their way through mazes of dynamic and dramatic movements, adding layers upon layers to sculpt mountains of sonic majesty. Pitched-down vocals, at once otherworldly and deeply human, shift between omnipotent bellows, soulful wails, and surprisingly gorgeous chants, elevating the whole enterprise to a whole other level. The album was released by Eolian Empire, the outsider label run by noise rock trio, Rabbits; the LP on black 180-gram vinyl with a black inner sleeve, full-color standard jacket with clear matte titles, a two-sided 24″ x 24″ poster of the Chris Jehly cover art and code to download the album. [Eolian Empire]