THE GOSLINGS - “Sister and Son / Death Garage” 2 x cassette (Rotting Chapel).

Everything is a matter of opinion, and one person's most cherished meal may be the next's most nauseating indigestible serving of garbage imaginable. Or: while this is obviously not for everyone, those on the same (or a similar) page will be very happy to hear that this new release from Goslings is full of all anticipated vitamins and minerals, regardless of it's effect on the tongue.

“Everlasting Arm” starts off the first of the two tapes with the signature sound of overblown soul-drone, which while may seem unappealing of not all that specific, is a genre that I feel this trio is alone in. (Or: when a track like this starts, which slow, relentlessly pounding guitars that are so horribly scrambled that the tape itself sounds as though it's been distorted, over abused drums that refuse to allow you any sort of freedom to nod along, and Leslie's vocals, loud in their own right and swooning through wherever there is a crack in the wall, I feel as though it's easy to know who you are listening to).

...and yet after the five minutes of this machine start to come to an end, the components all becoming less violent and much more sparse, the tone is changed fairly dramatically as “Lisa” dances across a bleack industrial landscape, coming forward as more of an “early electronics” platform for conversations on depression and pain. It's one of the more subdued Goslings tracks I've heard, yet still channels their energy perfectly.

The second tape immediately unleashes a thick, low, speaker compromising feedback(?), an extended tone that falters once the inevitable percussive assault, and then seems to comfortably settle with being a casual observer as Leslie's vocals are allowed a fair moment in the forefront along side what sounds like well-restrained, yet still free, saxophone work.

“God is a Bird” wraps things up with a piece that initially starts off much like a Slither recording might. (Upon skimming, the entire second tape is guitar free, replaced here with horns / electronics, hence the comparison). Much like the previous several minutes of sound, this is a well contained assembly of sound, though to the poorly-versed ear that ha never soaked in an American Tapes release, this could potentially just seem like a mess.

There are a few things about this release that leave me with these questions: The art: why does it not say Goslings on it anywhere on the outside? I quite literally had no idea what this was when I picked it up from my PO Box, though was quite obviously in for a pleasant surprise. (I should add that I am not very keen on the art for this thing, regardless). The tape(s): why a double tape when both tapes are single sided? (to be clear: both tapes have the same thing on both sides, so essentially there's just side A and side C, if that makes sense). And: this has been out for a few months or so, where's the LP version? This is begging for someone to press it in that format, and there's got to be someone out there that wants to do it. If I didn't have so many things in the works, I'd offer in a second.

In a completely general context, or more so for comparison: The Goslings (very much) sound like they are some sort of strange combination of Get Hustle, Sword Heaven and Grey Daturas. Maybe. As far as the scarcity of this release: There are 150 copies, making one of them yours would be a wonderful choice, if any of this sounded like it would be up your alley at all.

Check out THE GOSLINGS: HERE.
Buy this from ROTTING CHAPEL: HERE.
Pick up their previous, incredible, “Occasion” CD on Not Not Fun: HERE.



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