Reviews for [RL58]
Snow What "Demo Tape"

• Depression Chamber
  Playing to the tune of the 90’s is strangely in vogue right now, well maybe. I think there is a lot of talk of things sounding like they’re from the 90’s, grungey and sweaty garage rock, or whatever. But there is kind of a lack of Simple Machines flavored indie rock. Snow What provides some lost The Machines 7” series tracks. Mike from Rok Lok described it to me as “very Sebadoh and Chisel sounding,” and he’s right. I think maybe you can add some other well known bands to that list; Eric’s Trip, Small Factory, and you know, stuff that’s like that. Heart on their sleeve incoherency with guitars, drums, and bass. Some songs roll through and pound themselves out, while others kind of drawl on, and still others kind of explode in a loud/quiet/loud dynamic. I’ve been listening to this tape a lot and I really don’t know what to say about it. That’s not much of a problem though, because personally the demo feels a little more stuck in some realm I just want to relate to and cannot. I love it, it’s a place I haven’t been in for a while. The soundtrack to my empty life of wishing well and wishing I was doing something else. It’s kind of weird when you get to a point where music describes the life you’d want, a life that seems to be a lot less connected, a lot more tragic, maybe even more fragile, but ultimately a lot more real and physical. That’s what I get from this demo cassette. Any way I try to describe it is futile. Waiting for my DUI meet up to start, listening to this demo. That’s it. It’s not like there are a lot of tracks on the tape, but you’d lose your mind reading what I had to say for each one so I’m just going to run down my thoughts on three of them. Fear of Science kind of sounds a little bit like Get A Gun by The Connells (what a weird music video) but a little more mopey and perhaps in some way a ton more coherent. Falling At A Constant Speed was one of those songs in which I had the urge to pick up a guitar and play along. I didn’t play it right as I am not a good musician at all, but still this song is strong as all heck. The lyrics in particular are pretty clever, yet that’s a constant in the demo itself. Parting ways with the tape while listening to the super cheeky and a little maniacal I Found Jesus In A Black Metal Song is great. A neat exit for a demo, it’s very catchy, it’s very discontent underneath the light humor, or at least I believe so. I don’t know what else you want in a demo tape. Mike Rok Lok let me know that they’re working on new stuff and directed me to this channel that has some of their new material played live. I’m excited. The tape comes with a sticker on each side letting your brain identify which side is side A and which is side B, along with a stamp of a snow flake. The j card is in black and white with a silly image of a blimpfish, and the flaps have information relevant to this particular release. Dubbed by either the band or Mike Rok Lok, but either way dubbed at home I believe (correct me if I’m wrong). It’s particularly demo sounding, with all the warm and deep intricate hisses you want from your material possessions this catchy. Did you know that if everybody looked the same there’d be no bad haircuts?