Chat Pile / Hayden Pedigo: In the Earth Again

"That track flows seamlessly into "Demon Time," a hypnotic number in which Busch prophesies the burning of all the castles in the world and the return of every demon. "And they will find you/And they will fuck you up," he sings, his voice low and even. Despite their tranquil sound, "Outside" and "Demon Time" are all tension, no release. So when "Never Say Die!" begins with a bulldozing power chord and a nuclear kick-the first percussion on the record-it's pure catharsis."

""Behold a Pale Horse" is a Pedigo/Manhole duet full of lovely counterpoint curdled by reverb. "Fission/Fusion" begins as a noisy, jolting scrum before settling into something more Metallica adjacent. And "I Got My Own Blunt to Smoke" finds Busch alone with his guitar, seemingly interpolating Timbaland. It's only a five-note descending scale, but Busch draws out its melodrama to an almost cartoonish degree."

In the Earth Again unfolds at a deliberate, glacial pace, allowing musical elements to coalesce. The opening instrumentals "Outside" and "Demon Time" create murky, tension-filled atmospheres with Pedigo's plaintive guitar, Busch's prophetic vocals, and unconventional lap steel work. "Never Say Die!" releases accumulated tension with a bulldozing power chord and the record's first percussion, delivering sludgy, detuned catharsis. The album alternates vocal-centric songs and instrumentals, ranging from Pedigo/Manhole counterpoint on "Behold a Pale Horse" to the noisy surge of "Fission/Fusion" and the sparse melodrama of "I Got My Own Blunt to Smoke." Field recordings and tape loops contribute atmosphere but falter on the eight-minute centerpiece "The Matador."

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