Crystal Fairy – Crystal Fairy
“Written and recorded over pho while watching cannibal movies” is how Omar Rodriguez-Lopez explains supergroup Crystal Fairy’s debut LP, and truth be told that juxtaposition of the comfortable and the gruesome is a fitting summary. Few know this sort of sludgetastic rifferama better than the Melvins’ King Buzzo and Dale Crover, so aficionados of their output will find themselves in familiar territory. Still, that familiar contorted schlock gets a splattercore makeover courtesy of Terri Gender-Bender’s punch-in-the-teeth presence.
In fact, it’s the Le Butcherettes vocalist’s sheer power that makes Crystal Fairy feel less like a Melvins offshoot and more like its own entity; the grinding chug of Moth Tongue is lifted above the proto-grunge veterans’ (admittedly addictive) standard fare by a combination of her dynamism and an audible chemistry between the four band members. Add the intense bubblegum of Vampire X-Mass and the title track’s rollicking immediacy and you’ve got a surefire winner: a scintillating punk-fuelled opus that delivers on all counts and doesn’t let up.
Maybe it’s obvious, but with ingredients this good you’re guaranteed great results.
Listen to: Crystal Fairy, Vampire X-Mass