Review Summary: Did you just put a curse on me?
The above summary is a legitimate response that someone gave me upon showing them Wold. It didn't end there though, upon showing Wold to a few others in a bid to see what kind of person would enjoy Wold, a few more responses were given:
"Is this serious? Like are they a serious band? They are?! Oh my..?"
"Um, what the hell is this crap? I can't listen to this"
"-just laughter-"
"are you trying to give me nightmares?"
It's true, Wold do posess that sort of atmosphere. It's eerie and downright evil at times. It's an album that should have been locked away in a box and buried deep beneath the earth for how evil it sounds. However, atmosphere alone cannot hold an album up. When you've got a completely abysmal vocal, instrumentation and production quality, no matter how evil it sounds, at the end of the day its still going to sound god awful. Basically, it sounds like TV static with someone bashing on a food tin and a desk while his friend in the other room tries to sing along to Darkthrone, all the while being recorded on a phone sitting right next to the TV. No melody, no beat, no rythm, no direction, no talent. It really is something shocking to behold. Honestly, that's what every song sounds like. At one point however, I forget which song it is because they're all "the *** one" Wold decided it'd be a good idea to try some vocal harmonies, which was of course the wrong decision. In that moment the entirety of their pretend evilness was brought to a halt and it became a comedy act gone wrong, boarding on the downright tragic.
Screech Owl is an awful album. Plain and simple. The atmosphere is creepy to be sure, however with such an unbearable 'performance' it's just not worth it. After listening to one track on youtube I should have learned my lesson, but honestly I was intrigued by what this thing was I'd just stumbled upon. Don't make the same mistake I did, avoid this at all costs, and if you do happen to be caught in the Screech Owls unrelenting aural assault, seek out your local church and beg for an exorcism.
