Brothers of the Sonic Cloth / Mico de Noche – Split 10” (2009)

Leading off are Seattle based Brothers of the Sonic Cloth. At the helm of this glacier splitting vessel is Tad Doyle. Known for his stellar work in the early 90's grunge band TAD. He also recently took vocal duties when Soundgarden (minus Cornell) did a one off gig earlier this year. "Fires Burn Dim in the Shadows of the Mountain" has smokey distant vocals but is primarily a crushing instrumental. An eerie discordant start before the rumbling tidal wave of quaking amplitude crashes down. A turbulent riff voyage with titanic drumming, burgeoning bass, and a band that gets locked into rhythmic flow. A calm sailing violin thrown in before the surging groove engulfs. 

Side two comes brings us two rupturing tunes from Mico de Noche.  "Misanthrope" begins with a maniacal dual guitar explosion coupled with a gruffed vocal barage before settling into a concussion inducing groove. "Ganges" has a boozy and bluesy Southern style riff mixed with their own potent brand of boiling evergreen swag.  A feral thrashing bender towards the close.

Tracks:
1. Fires Burn Dim in the Shadows of the Mountain
2. Misanthrope
3. Ganges

Ear candy and one of the best of 2009.