"ᏬᏙᏩᏌ" by Vuduwasa

Vuduwasa is a four piece from my town, Bloomington.   They play heavy music and call it Swamp Metal.  It is slow, moody, and heavy.  Unique in the sense that it is sometimes simultaneously so grungy and so sterile.  I get the impression that everything is EQ’d to correct presets so that no instrument (or drum) oversteps their determined frequency range.  I was troubled at the lack of buzz in their amps until I heard the intro to Return to Detritus and felt comfort in knowing I hadn’t transcended to a new dimension of magical demon guitar amps. Really though. It sounds super pro.  Not in a bad sense.  Just a sense.  Don’t be fooled by the kvlt album title.  

Not every riff will hit you hard and stick but every song has at least one moment that will make you remember to play it again. Even as I type this, I can’t help but clench my fist. Skunk Ape is not one to take sitting down. The grim poeticism in Rite of Reclamation will make you feel the world’s weight in a paper bag, trudging home from the Big Red, slower than you notice.  Crushed.  Interlude conjured feelings of younger days, with so much time to jam the old acoustic while my friends skated.  Having a place to smoke usually made it worthwhile.  Smoking set the riffs free.

As the album progressed, I kept thinking, “Wow. That sounds so metal. Why don’t I ever do that?”

Each track on ᏬᏙᏩᏌ is expertly arranged.  As lengthy as some are, I haven’t once wanted the band to move onto something else.  Each tune turns out more epic than expected. 

Note for note, the vocals never sag but the loose doubling doesn't always do it for me.  Still, they serve as a reminder that heavy music isn't really so serious.  You might wear the face of a tragedy, but inside you are filled with the joy at the rumble of speakers.  

Taylor Wood can hold a scream for a long time.  Something we should all aspire to!  At moments I think he sounds like Phil Anselmo but at other times I hear something so expressive, unique, and KVLT. Or is it cvlt?   I’ve been saying it since 2009 and I don’t even know.

For a band’s first release, I was half-hoping for something more raw.   Where will Vuduwasa even go from here?  I would like to see them succeed in every intended sense but selfishly, I’d like to hear them make an album so wrong but so right, like Celtic Frost’s Cold Lake.  I guess nobody makes an album like that on purpose.  

I told the social media I’d like to review their new and unpopular albums.  It seems like I should blog about things other than books and pizza.  However I don't want anyone to care extra about me or think I'm an authority because I do this.  I just want to practice writing.  

I might not review more stuff from local Bloomington bands.  We'll see.  The zone likely won't be as fun if it enhances my decidedly minimal social life.  I don’t want to be distracted by thoughts of other people more than I already am.  So maybe I’ll just do this one Bloomington release.  It’s hard to see things properly when they are so close up.  I know this but wonder.  Is there even such thing as an unbiased album review?

We do live in a weird town with a lot of bands.  There are often famous bands here that I don't even know about.  Why should I spend my time trying to plug them?  On the other hand, I do know Vuduwasa.   They’re probably the local band I’m most likely to just hang with.  I’m stoked Evan sent me their tracks in advance so that I could do this review!  Great work.  I wouldn't change a thing.