“Mate, how good are Sallow Pillow?” is a statement I read on my Facebook feed the other day. So, I decided to check them out, and upon being thoroughly impressed with the raw force that assaulted my eardrums, I thought I would like to review them. But I have so many requests coming in right now, I decided to focus on the bands that had actually asked for a review, but by sheer bloody luck, the next band on my list was in fact Sallow Pillow! They had asked for a review some weeks prior, but I had forgotten! I must not have listened to them at the time otherwise I definitely would have remembered. Thoroughly enthused, I immediately began my preparations for this review (which for those who don’t know, simply means I have this band on repeat for a day or two and do some basic research into the artist) and as I sit down to write this, I’m still just as excited to talk about this band even after listening to their latest EP, Wince Meat, multiple times now. So, lie back into your Sallow Pillow and enjoy.
The first single off of Wince Meat is a track called The Architect and could definitely be called a slightly trippy Heavy Lungs song. It’s got the fast basslines and riffs that you might hear in such a track, but the guitar work is very different. Lots of crazy effects and distortion that I would place on a shoegaze tune, not a punk record, but the change is very welcome, and isn’t the last use of heavy effects you hear on this EP. The vocals are powerfully manic, reminiscent of many other underground punk acts around at the moment, throwing them in with the likes of Toronto Blessings (another great band I’ve reviewed), Shame, and Fontaines DC. The drum work is extremely dynamic, with that all-important use of cowbell in the drum break that I just love. This has to be my favourite song in Sallow Pillow’s entire discography and is a strong intro to an outstanding record.
Right – I try to keep my posts under five hundred words as otherwise they can get a bit boring, but I’m quickly going to mention another track off of this awesome EP, and that track is the epic Cbdbs. I was literally drumming the air on this one. Only forty-six seconds long it packs so much emotion into such a short piece. The centrepiece of this absolute banger has to be the drum/vocal combination, with only feedback and the occasional chord to back it up. This song is like if Slaves and Idles wrote a song together. With the raging vocals and punk as fuck drumming, I absolutely love it. It’s as much an art piece as a musical experience….
…What are you still doing here? I’ve given you my opinion. Go listen to them, or better yet, see them live, I know I’m going to. It’s almost like you’re waiting for me to say something…
Oh wait.
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Oscar