America’s Favorite Band! How can it get better than this?!?

If I’m being honest: I’ve been waiting for these fine fellas to release some new studio tunes. As some of the hardest-working musicians in the CLE area Fuzzy Vandelay has been all over the live music and social media scenes for a few years now. Blending more traditional stoner rock heavy riffs with a wide area of influences ranging from post rock to blues to funk to hip hop….they are certainly a breath of fresh air! But, of course, extra depth is brought to a band when you get to hear their music in its most “complete” form. Live shows and studio LPs / EPs are, more or less, two separate arts with different objectives; we consume them for different reasons. And so I waited to complete my Fuzzy Vandelay collection of sonic experiences.

Not only does “World of Pain” not disappoint, it actually FAR exceeds my expectations for the group. Please do not take that as a back-handed compliment. Too often do I see a great, energetic, confident live band that simply cannot capture that same magic in the studio. I personally understand the phenomenon. Some music just translates better in the live setting. Fuzzy Vandelay is ripe for this unfortunate phenomenon, given that they make energetic rock with a penchant for building up potential energy before erupting in kinetic glory (yes I took physics for 3 years.) And yet the Fuzzy boys know better than to fall into this trap.

Track 1 is the titular “World of Pain”, a hard-hitting, riff-centric punch to the face perfect for any rocker with two ears (or even just one!!!) The tune kicks off with amplifier feedback, a little crunchy guitar goodness, and then BAM – the full band hits on the down beat. Our beloved guitar guru Tich takes the majority of the vocals on this one, with Mason the Bassman screaming his way through the sludge. These guys are a vocal one-two punch; Tich’s deep, smooth serenades lay a velvet foundation for Mason unabashed, angry, sometimes unhinged bellows. The mix really is quite a nice blend, a sort of “good cop bad cop” vocal styling. World of Pain never relents with riff after riff, scream after scream, floor tom after floor tom. It’s a true, rocking tune.

What really separates these dudes from the pack is their variety of sounds and styles, which becomes quite apparent with “Favorite Lies”. “Ballad” is not a great descriptor of this song, but it offers a similar reprise after the tenacious opener. If “World of Pain” is a 90 MPH joy ride down an open highway, then “Favorite Lies” is a row boat out at sea, calmly rocking in the waves while a hurricane brews ahead. I tend to prefer the “roller coaster of emotions” style of songwriting, which is exactly how “Favorite Lies” feels.

But now we get to discuss the magnum opus of the EP: “Walls”. Track number three is the longest, roughly the same length as the two preceding tracks combined. Perhaps the term “progressive” can be applied here, but not necessarily in the way that one might think. There are no odd times, no horrendously long guitar solos (I am guilty of this one…), no crazy lyrical themes about mystical lands. Everything is fairly grounded here, but the scope of this 10 minute track is “progressive” in its own right. Genres blend. Dynamics flow from pin-drop soft to an explosion that made me think that my car was going to fall apart on the highway. “Walls” is quite the ride that pays off in a BIG way with a guest performance from “Future Dead Man” Zach Hurst (Quiet Zoo, Signal Flow Studios). Zach’s presence, both in his guest vocal performance as well his engineering and production efforts on all of the songs, allows the music to reach peak dynamics of chaotic, destructive beauty. The best advice that I can give? Listen to this tune a few times and let it truly wash over your soul.

One other point that I would like to discuss is the overall feeling of the EP. I was expecting a stoner rock aesthetic, generally consisting of caveman guitars dominating the soundscape with a whole bunch of pentatonic bullshit along with a fuzzed-out bass thumping along with a drum track recycling some stuff Dave Grohl did on Songs for the Deaf two decades ago (please note that I am describing the GENERIC stoner albums that I hear over and over from “local” groups.) To my delighted surprise “World of Pain” has a crisper, more methodical sound that harkens to the grunge-era recordings by Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, etc. Yes, you will be treated to some guitar solos, but absent are the lengthy noodley sections in which rock guitarists do their best Eric Clapton impression. The bass is a phenomenal foundation, never over-playing but making its presence known throughout these 20 minutes. And the drums…oh man are the drums MASSIVE. Nice work Ryan. You made Dave Grohl proud, not by copying him but by paving your own way.

Yes, there are a lot of stoner bands. Yes, I am tired of them too. You might think that Fuzzy Vandelay is trying to shove another EP onto the overflowing stack of fuzzed-out Sabbath clones. But I must assure you: that is not the case. Give “World of Pain” a couple of listens, ye skeptics out there scouring the Internet with cynical malintent. You will not be disappointed.

The “World of Pain” EP drops on June 9th!