There is music that sounds best when the sun is setting in the summer, the horizon is awash in oranges and blues and purple, and at least for me, it’s when I feel most connected to who I am. Not everything hits right at the time of day, but the music that feels suited for my brain at the hour, nothing hits harder.

Dry Wedding comes to mind at the moment, mainly because I’m going to talk about their thunderous third record “The Back of Beyond.” If you’re new to the band, they’re not heavily on the metal side. They’re dusty and feral. Think more on the lines of Wailing Storms, 16 Horsepower, Nick Cave, and Crazy Horse. It’s a gothy, dark thing that is perfect for the end of the day, letting your emotions get the best of you. Comprised of Davey Ferchow (vocals, guitar), Jarrod Green (guitar, synth), Chadwick Ferguson (bass), and Tom Fuller (drums), the band fires up over and over, letting the smoke and darkness settle, the alcohol burn your tongue, and the ash on your cigarette grow mountainous.

“Arrowhead” has a dusty open, Ferchow’s husky singing tussling (his voice and delivery remind me a bit of Haley Fohr), the playing picking up, sending people packing. A burst teases as the guitars wash over, the vocals push, and gothic fury rages from the edges, delivering a heavy emotional blow. “The Serpent Box” is psychedelic and gusty, the singing driving as the playing sends jolts, chugging as the pace snakes, sweeping with electricity. Rich singing blasts as the guitars swirl, storm clouds hanging overhead. “Sure as a Gun” swaggers and steams, slide guitars adding oil slicks, the vocals working through a dirty filter, the bass dragging bodies through the dirt. The aura turns mystical, guitars trace and churn before power ignites, and Ferchow’s calls ring in your brain, stabbing into hearts.

“Blood-Red Vengeance” is a quick one that enters on drums rolling, the singing swimming, and the guitars moaning, desert heat stretching its way across the horizon. “One Last Strand” rounds up as the bass trucks and the singing lurks, steely melodies landing blows, digging into a mound of hot coals. The tempo picks up and chugs, the energy jolts, and the heat melts away with savage energy. “Moths” hangs in the air, dust getting in your lungs, the singing getting stronger as the whiskey burns in your veins. The pressure collects as the pace encircles, sun-scorched melodies torch flesh, Ferchow howls, “There’s nothing left!” Guitars do damage as the bass clubs, the sounds echoing out. Closer “Shifting Wilderness” is propulsive, Ferchow calling, “I can’t stop, I need to reach.” The heat multiplies as slide guitars cry out, the playing trudges harder and gets faster, and the humidity thickens. Emotions fire as spirits float in mists, burning into oblivion.

“The Back of Beyond” is a record that gets into your nervous system and takes control of you for 38 minutes, aligning with your darkness and strangest inhibitions and powering them forward. Dry Wedding are not tied to any particular sound or boundaries, making what they do as refreshing as it is raw and thorny. This is blood-fueled expression, burning everything down to its foundation in order for you to fly high again.

For more on the band, go here: https://drywedding.bandcamp.com/

To buy the album, go here: https://linktr.ee/vesperian#558508322

For more on the label, go here: https://www.metalblade.com/us/

And here: https://www.vesperian.world/