Burden and Courage by Somber Distortion

I am always very wary when a friend tells me "you got to listen to this" but I allowed Ted Pepper to make me listen to these. Twice.

Burden unwinds slowly. A melodic looping bassline and some fragments of guitar pull you in until the holy shit moment when it leaps out of the speakers and hits you.

Blam.

The production manages that trick where you remember the song as far heavier than it actually is. The real song is almost subtle, but when I remember it I remember it raging through my ears. A neat trick.

Courage is a more confident piece that would be in place at any shoegazing festival - indeed the likes of Ride would probably have been very happy to write a sing as good as this. Most digitally recorded music leaves me cold, but this manages to feel organic and natural through the layers of effects. Good songwriting and clever production. I made Ted Pepper listen to THAT.

Recommended.