Review: Ufomammut ‘Crookhead’ EP
Ufomammut are a major source of inspiration for me when I’m playing the guitar and are constantly heard emanating from any speaker I can play them through. Any new music coming from them is epic and what’s more exciting is that Crookhead is setting us up for a full-length album in 2024 to mark Ufomammut‘s twenty-fifth year as a band.
That’s a huge accomplishment from the Italian trio and it will also be their tenth album. The sonic landscape they create is impressive and although this EP is only three songs with a runtime of eighteen minutes, it is still as powerful as their previous releases.
The title track opens with a cascade of distortion backed by pummeling drums and rumbling bass. No build-up, just intensity from the start. Ufomammut ease off halfway through, quieting the music to pull you further in to ensure your focus then the crescendo begins once they have complete hold over the listener. Laid over the top of the repeating heavy riffs are wavering sci-fi synths that sound like they shouldn’t belong but fit in seamlessly with the music.
Supernova is encased in the grand bookends of Crookhead and Vibrhate and offers more of the spacey vibes they are so great at. Building droning tones with seemingly random reverb soaked leads that all line up as the band kicks in. Haunting whispers mix with more synth building layers on top of the deep rumbling bass.
The raw energy expressed is relentless…
The nasty fuzz riffs return and Urlo‘s scratchy vocals weave between as if screaming from a distance that is one of my favorite aspects of the band. It’s especially profound on the Soundgarden cover of Let Me Drown featured on Superunknown Redux which was released last year through Magnetic Eye Records.
Sorry, I got sidetracked with the Soundgarden cover but bringing it back with the final track, Vibrhate, is an instant hit of madness that’s a few short minutes of chaos that doesn’t let up. The raw energy expressed is relentless and consists of my favorite vocal work on the EP as Urlo‘s screams are catchy but also draw you into the insanity.
Ufomammut are a band that love what they are doing, and it shows in each song they create. There is feeling and emotion seeping through that’s an earworm for the listener to keep revisiting their music, which is especially present in Crookhead. This three-track EP has also built excitement and sets up what will surely be an amazing tenth long-player.
Label: Supernatural Cat
Band Links: Official | Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Twitter | Instagram
Scribed by: Josh Schneider
