Couch Slut made a name for themselves on their debut, My Life as a Woman, through their bone-shattering riffs and the exorcising vocals of singer Megan Osztrosits. Now, on sophomore album Contempt (out 7/28 via Gilead Media), the band seems to have crystallized, or perhaps cemented, into a being that is as hauntingly beautiful as it is abrasive and sludgy.
New single “Snake In The Grass” showcases an effortless mix of both visceral noise rock and haunting ambiance, a sound that is as angelic as it is satanic and which was only hinted at on tracks like “Rape Kit” off MLaaW. The track has all the hallmarks of Couch Slut as we know them, the same brute militancy of drummer Theo Nobel and bassist Kevin Hall’s rhythm section, the controlled chaos of guitarist Kevin Wunderlich, the piercing wails of Osztrosits, even the band’s masterful use of feedback to produce the white noise that bookends the track. But what stands out about “Snake In The Grass” in particular is Wunderlich’s guitar solo after the 3-minute mark. Just as Osztrosits’ voice has been rightly praised for its ability to cut through the gargantuan sound of her bandmates, Wunderlich’s guitar solo, with its airiness and reverberation that would be more suited to ambient guitar music or arena rock, stands as a moment unheard in Couch Slut’s discography thus far. It Wunderlich’s work here that elevates the track from a discrete focus on the dark conditions of the earthly to a view that encompasses both heaven and hell.
We can’t wait to hear what other surprises lurk, waiting to be let loose on Contempt.