Rising from the dank netherworld of Delaware, Ape! is an exciting new addition to the ever-expanding tree of Sabbath -genome metal. Any fan of mid-fi doom and deserty shred will love this release. Huge Kyuss/QOTSA riffs over epic drums and convincingly screamed vocals.
Of course the aforementioned Kyuss influence reigns here, but there are harder more metallic touches reminiscent of the bluesy doom of Sourvein and Electric Wizard . Ape! nimbly build a dark iron bridge between Southern Lord darkness, desert rock and the new generation of North American Metal spearheaded by young’uns like Bison BC and The Great Sabatini .
Though just a trio, Ape! generate a really full and powerful sound, headbang-worthy riffs and capacious solos are established right away on the amazing Sabbath-haunted opener “Black Blood” and rhythms take a footstompingly surprising twist on “Judas’s Dog”. By the time we’ve reached “Pretty in a Boring Way”, we’re bordering on punk with gnarly bass to the fore and gang vocals. “Dead on the Vine” jumps off a Stooges -esque riff into heavy chugging with darts of pained vocals screaming through the haze. The onslaught continues until resolving back into slowbang territory on the cleverly titled “Weekends In The Abyss”, which picks up into a frenetic and all encompassing pound midway, reaching a peak and then surfing there, majestically.
The Dirger is some heavy, heavy shit. Recommended for those who like their metal really filthy around the edges, Ape! rocks like King Kong.
http://www.myspace.com/weareape
