No. Not even a bit. The truth is, when you put all these beige-coloured bands in a beige blender, the precise common shade of beige that comes out may very effectively be Jointhugger. Surrounded by Vultures differs from the norm in precisely two locations: the album opens with a prolonged instrumental (normally it’s midway) and… No, wait, that was it. Every little thing else conforms precisely to the template. The downtuned riffs are large and spacious, but rudimentary, thriving on easy, effectively-established grooves. They’re rendered with an quantity of fuzz that will not be authorized in all nations and all the time performed till you’re uninterested in it, after which performed a bit longer. The vocals have the standard considerably reedy timbre, which appears even thinner for its distinction to the quaking rumble they pierce by way of.
And actually, that’s to not say that that is unhealthy music. Dangerous music is irritating. It’s an actively disagreeable pay attention. If I can, I’ll take steps to cease listening to it (which is why I normally end opinions of unhealthy albums sooner than bland ones). Surrounded by Vultures, alternatively, is ok for what it’s. The vocals are tough, probably untrained, however they’re fairly spirited of their supply. The riffs are unremarkable, however the groove is there. If there are any small blemishes, the quantity of distortion hides these effectively, like a layer of basis on a pock-marked face. And there’s the occasional amusing second, equivalent to “Delysid Rex,” the place the vocals get to crawl out from beneath the guitars and use that additional room on such lyrical mastery as “I do know you’re all the time round since you, you scent like shit!”
However that’s concerning the extent of Jointhugger’s capabilities. The layers of distortion serve their function in including heaviness, however in addition they lower any sense of distinction and dynamics. With out actually outstanding riffs, the one properties that set aside one observe from the following are the vocal strains and the tempo. With out extra variation or depth, Surrounded by Vultures stays a fairly nameless affair, and also you’ll overlook about it the second the working time ends. Even the manufacturing may be summarized as nondescript. It’s loud, it’s heat, it’s fuzzy, it’s precisely what you’d anticipate.
By some means I don’t assume Jointhugger‘s constituent elements are going to care one iota about any of my belligerent commentary. If these guys are as laidback as their music suggests, they may chuckle, blow a raspberry, and put the pill away to put in writing one other fundamental riff that sounds cool when performed with sufficient distortion. It’s the kind of band that’s most gratifying because the second slot on the final day of every week-lengthy desert rock pageant. One thing to nod your head to whereas ingesting your first beer, however requiring not a single spark of brainpower. All of the extra energy to them; not all music has to interrupt the mildew, and loads of persons are completely satisfied simply to make easy, unassuming music, no matter an viewers. However that merely explains why the band exists and why they make this music. Why you ought to be listening to it, I can not say, as a result of although it’s ample, additionally it is drained and past uninspired. There are literally thousands of different acts enjoying this model, and Surrounded by Vultures does nothing in any respect to differentiate itself from the lots.
Ranking: 2.0/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 160 kbps mp3
Label: Self-launched
Web sites: jointhugger.bandcamp.com | fb.com/jointhugger
Releases Worldwide: October 29th, 2021