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Sadartha Eden album review







Eden is the second album by grunge rock dudes Sadartha, from Richmond, VA. Described as an acid trip gone horribly wrong, Sadartha fire on all three cylinders, with influences ranging from Mudhoney, Nirvana, Bad Brains, and Gruntruck, these dudes are hardcore.
Nautilus starts us off with a heavy punky fast burner, like Melvins meets Mudhoney. Explosive, raw, and impressive. The right ingredients in the right places.
Soul Science begins with a trippy intro and a very Love Battery like vibe ensues. Very floaty, and then the distortion kicks in, and this Mudhoney/Nirvana hybrid comes out.
Great vocals, great playing, great attitude. Great melodies, too. These dudes are not clones, they have a unique mesh of influences and their own way of doing it
Spiral has a slow drumbeat, and a soft early Nirvana like guitar line. And out of nowhere the song explodes into awesome epic glory. So fucking powerful
This is true grunge noise dirge rock. The passion and feeling and vindication is incendiary.
Bad Friend has a very groovy vibe. Almost a hint of Syd Barrett here, which is not a bad thing and fits very nicely. Then explodes again in the chorus, such a great vibe.
You Lack The Courage Of Your Convictions, Sir is an absolutely punky intense bolter. The vocals are gone from melodic to pissed off and screaming. Fuck, this is great!
Dragon Opal Goddess has a very STP like thing to it. Much more raw, but the feel and vibe is very reminiscent of them. One of the many highlights.
Eyes Swollen Shut has a Melvins meets Alice In Chains vibe. Very heavy and chuggy. The vocals are screamed in a pissed off fury. A very varied sound, despite being straight up undiluted grunge. Bursts out in uptempo punk in the middl.
Slacker is a great upbeat anthem for the disaffected. Great hook, great rhythm
Deep As Blue has a slow dischord beginning with distortion kicking in. The soft/loud dynamic is back with a vengeance.
Apes With Ego Trips is another fast pissed off punk burner. My fuck.
Dancing Flames ends the album, starting off with a nice bass line. Slow, menacing sounding. The drums join in, still slowly going. Some wah infused guitar in the background, very cool.
In all, Sadartha prove that grunge can still be done, and done well. Those modern post grunge bands don’t need to be the only thing close to true grunge bands with new material. This record is simplistic, but also very diverse. The raw production makes it even more precious, given the real love of the genre itself. Great vocals, great songs, and a young voice full of conviction and frustration. It is very refreshing to hear a record of this quality.

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