Date Released: October 07th 2022. Record Label: Magnetic Eye Records. Formats: CD/DD/Vinyl
Glass Enclosed Nerve Center: Tracklisting
1.Anubis Rex 04:36
2.Lodestar 03:41
3.A Bailar Con Cuarentena 04:43
4.Shrouded Coconut
5.Bull Moose Against The Sky
Members
Francis Beringer – vocals, bass
Stefanie Zænker – vocals, drums, percussion
Andrew Yonki – guitar
Jake Kimberley – guitar
Review
Sludge/Stoner Rockers Caustic Casanova return with their strangest album yet. Glass Enclosed Nerve Center is awash with Progressive Sludge/Stoner Rock passages and sometimes far out Experimental creative themes. The music is also lively and vastly different to what we've heard from the band before. If you're a longtime fan of the band then you know the score. If you're new to their wild and crazy world then Caustic Casanova plays vast different styles from the Sludge/Stoner Metal underground world. The music is never the same and the band are perhaps more creatively aligned to The Melvins but draw familiar sounds such as Red Fang, KYLESA, Baroness and Torche into their crazy intense world.
Opening song Anubis Rex is a happy-go-lucky song with an almost 90's Alt Rock and POPPY feel but with a free-flowing Prog Rock attitude allowing the band to play one of the more friendlier songs. There's plenty riffs here that sees the band have mini extended jams when the later grooves appear. The dual vocals of Stefanie and Francis are superb with fantastic lyrics and spiky vocals working fantastically well with the heavy melodic sounds the band play for this song.
Second song Lodestar is a more fast-paced Punk/Sludge song with distorted ambient and glitchy noises perhaps having the first standout EXPERIMENTAL moment of the album that has a slight The Melvins vibe. Subtle hints of Psych Rock and Post-Rock appeal when Stefanie's lush sounding vocals appear before the song changes into a more sinister offering with the downbeat lyrics that could be classed as Occult Rock. The jangly guitars are heavy and bring a more solitary feel for the entire song.
Third song A Bailar Con Cuarentena opens with a Start/Stop Punk approach before moving into Experimental Art Rock/Stoner Rock territory. The instrumental work is excellent yet again with an Alt Rock/Metal creative influence within the lyrics and musical beats the band play here. Add Jazzy Psychedelic and Funk based grooves to this song and Caustic Casanova only become crazier and more intense with their different strands of Hard Rock that appears here.
Shrouded Coconut offers almost 10 minutes of intense Experimental Sludge/Stoner Rock riffage that easily has the best riffs on the album that flirts between Jazz Rock rhythms and Heavy Prog Rock sounds. You can expect moments of Freaky Psychedelics and Warped Electronica glitches towards the later stages of the song where the whole atmosphere becomes more DOOM based.
Bull Moose Against The Sky is perhaps Caustic Casanova's finest creative moment. As the band have their “Sgt Peppers Lonely Heart Club Band” or “Pet Sounds” moment with this part of the album and that's down to the many different sounds and genres of rock they've employed for this track. I mean that as a compliment. This is a 22 minute Progressive Sludge/Stoner Rock opera that's quite easy to follow and fall in love with. The song can be scarily loud when it needs to be but also sweet natured as well.
Glass Enclosed Nerve Center is a record that requires multiple listens to fully understand it all. As it's quite a multi-layered album which I wouldn't expect anything less from Caustic Casanova. The album has wonderful production values that helps the band get their crazy and hypnotic sounds over the finishing line with first rate results.
This is Caustic Casanova's best album to date. No question.
Words by Steve Howe
Thanks to Red Lead PR, Purple Sage PR and Magnetic Eye Records for the promo.
Glass Enclosed Nerve Center will be available to buy on CD/DD/Vinyl via Magnetic Eye Records from October 07th 2022.
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