Cyttorak / Revered and Reviled Above All Others Split EP Review
Revered and reviewed above all others, Sleeping Village Records is BACK with their second split. This time the Villagers are riled up with their heaviest release yet – a split between Cyttorak and Revered and Reviled Above All Others (RRAAO).
Both bands are coming to the table with one original and one cover song. For Cyttorak’s contributions, they’ve delivered unfiltered, straight-from-the-sewage sludge. The prominent features are a disgustingly fuzzy bass tone and full-on aggro vocals. It’s not an embellishment to say that the vocals often leap from a growl to a bark. If you’re a fan of sludge, you’ll enjoy the band’s crusty take on the subgenre with their song “Royal Shoman Dismemberment”. It’s a lurching, terrifying track, as is their cover of Jawbreaker‘s “Boxcar”. Sludge goes pop punk is something I never knew I needed. But if blackgaze can work, then so could this, and Cyttorak pulls it off without a hitch!
RRAAO‘s contributions are equally confrontational, but in their own way. On both of their tracks, the band uses OTT production as an instrument. They play with the EQ knobs in a way that would make any Comic Book Guy-lookin’ producer send them to bed without supper. Bombastic is an understatement, but this style of production really plays well into their ominus brand of doomviolence. The band adds another haunting element to their sound in the form of Gregorian chants on “In Porco Laqueo”. Meanwhile, their cover of DEVO‘s “Gut Feeling” is barely recognizable from the original – but that’s what makes it so fun!
What makes this split even more of a fun listen is that the whole thing is only nine minutes long. To contrast the two bands, Cyttorak’s tracks are primitive viscera, whereas RRAAO’s are post-apocalyptic terror. Combined the bands make a killer combo, and I’m sure they’d make for an excellent bill if live shows were a thing right now… Anyways, I think I need to take a shower after listening to something this filthy, I’ll be making my way to the Burnt Coffee HQ locker rooms now…
Cyttorak and RRAAO’s split is available on January 22nd via Sleeping Village Records.
FFO: Primitive Man, Inter Arma, Ilsa
Cyttorak Links
| Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram |
Revered and Reviled Above All Others Links
Sleeping Village Links:
| Website | Bandcamp | Instagram |
– Alex
