Earthly Delights

iTunes Review

Distant cousin to the Melvins and Melt Banana, Lightning Bolt differ in their take on aggressive-and-loud by leaving out the guitar in favor of battling it out with bass and drums, gladiator style. In truth, the word “battle” only applies sporadically, as drummer Brian Chippendale and bassist Brian Gibson often achieve their noise nirvana by locking together in one sludgy, viscous groove. The harmony created between the combative assault of Chippendale’s drums and the mauling of Gibson’s bass guitar (eccentrically tuned, stringed and running through various effects) is a dangerous thing, carving a bottomless channel like some kind of bulldozing behemoth under the influence. The distorted, repetitious bassline of “Nation of Boar” and the churning, rattling, bottom-heavy roar of “Sound Guardians” and “The Sublime Freak” drive deep into your skull, while the lysergically colored “Flooded Chamber” and “Rain On Lake I’m Swimming In” remind us that the Bolt are basically masters of psychedelia, altering the dosage as needed. Chippendale’s indecipherable vocals and Gibson’s wonderful, furious noodling on tracks like “Funny Farm” bring humor into the mix.