Review Summary: Garage doom getting some serious momentum
Earth Tongue may be staying true to their two-piece configuration but their third full-length sees some real growth behind it. Dungeon Vision continues the group’s tug o’ war between garage rock and occult doom but leans decidedly in the latter style, their usual fuzzy riffs and upbeat songwriting rounded out with a spooky atmosphere and more layers of trippy yet theatrical instrumentation. It’s still somewhere between Uncle Acid and King Gizzard with flair reminiscent of groups like Castle Rat and Spiral Skies bursting out.
A production job courtesy of Ty Segall encourages bolder musicianship. Guitarist/vocalist Gussie Larkins especially gets some strong boosts as the riffs are bolstered by bottom-heavy fuzz while also handling the lioness’s share of the singing with thematic results. Fortunately, drummer/vocalist Ezra Simons never feels sidelined as the mix makes his loose yet intricate rhythms even easier to sort out and the extra helpings of synth, swirling guitar effects, and gritty wah never feel too intrusive.
The songwriting is also pretty tight with overall breezy pacing and each of the twelve tracks includes a catchy riff set as to not feel too superfluous. The title track sets the tone with a call-and-response between ominous vocals and percussive fuzz leading up to an ominous chorus. Elsewhere, songs like “Flashlight,” “Watchtower,” and “Orbit Of A Witch” put their grooves to more mid-tempo grit while still keeping up that driving energy. I can also dig the outliers as “Body Of Water” settles into gentler psychedelia with acoustics and what sounds like faint mellotron, “Symmetry Dripper” serves up a neat synth-driven interlude, and the vocals on “Living Hell” plays like demonic Beatles.
With Earth Tongue having been pretty serviceable for the last decade, it’s pretty satisfying to see Dungeon Vision offer so much forward momentum. It doesn’t feel out of step with what the group has done before, always maintaining that garage rock looseness even at the album’s doomiest points, and the songwriting does well with catchy riffs and alluring vocals. I can only hope that the group will be able to expand without losing too much of the spirit that comes from such a close-knit pairing.
