Music is a cyclical beast where ideas come to fruition, run their course, and one day new artists find the bones and breathe new life into them. It’s one of the things that makes being a listener so much fun because you never know what’s going to be thriving a year or five years or a decade from now and what ideas will start to gain dust.
Rhode Island-based Coma Hole prove this point expertly. The band—vocalist/bassist Eryka Fir, drummer Steve Anderson—revived the idea of a power duo, something it seemed every other band was doing a decade ago, yet it’s become a fresh idea again because that style of group largely has withered away. They play an amalgamation of doom, grunge, and noise, in turn making these sounds feel vibrant, urgent, and pumping fresh blood again. The four songs on their debut EP digs into issues such as personal struggles, monotony from falling victim to repeated life cycles, isolation, and then some brighter lights when it comes to realizing you’re stronger from the things you’ve witnessed and survived. The playing is dirty, heavy, swaggering, and features some outright killer singing from the very soulful Fir, who helps elevate these songs even further.
“The Familiar” is sauteed in noise and feedback as the bass slithers along, and the track picks up momentum. The power wails as Fir’s powerful pipes blister as the track gets burly and sweaty, the bass/drums combo leaving ample bruising. “I want to make you feel my pain,” Fir howls as psychedelic heat melts the brief calm, the pace begins to pick up, and fuzzy trampling buries the track permanently. “Old Climb” punishes as the vocals go off, the playing feeling speedy and urgent. “My head, spinning around,” Fir calls as the bass curdles, the vocals agitate and amplify the challenge, and the drums mash flesh into unidentified forms.
“Wine and Bone” begins with grimy riffs and the bass rumbling the earth’s crust, the singing hitting new high points. Vir sings about “the endless road to become one with myself” as the vibe takes on an Alice in Chains aura, the playing crushing. High howls make the hairs on your arm stand up, the drumming powders, and the echoey finish devastates. Closer “Sinking” is the second-longest track here, running 11:23, and it bathes in noise, the bass crawling through the dirt, Vir calling, “I want to find my way to the light.” The song is dark and foreboding as the dangerous imagery clouds your mind, and the track slowly stomps your guts, and the drums splatter your blood. The track slowly gains speed, feeling like control is being wrestled from your grasp, and then everything disappears in a glowing haze.
Coma Hole’s debut EP is a fun, fiery, punishing experience that doesn’t feel like anything else going on right now, which is pretty refreshing. There are grunge and doom elements, metallic thunder, and really great vocals from a flexible, powerful vocalist who is total command of these four tracks. This is a killer experience, and I’m really excited to hear where this band goes from here.
For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/ComaHole/
To buy the album, go here: https://comahole.bandcamp.com/music
Meat Mead Metal 