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1000mods: Stoner Fuzz from the Land of the Magemeno

Liquid Sleep is the second EP from the curiously-named Greek stoner four-piece 1000mods (following 2006’s Blank Reality). Released through SuiSound, the 7” comes in a full cardboard sleeve cover with rockin’ purple artwork, pressed on foamy green vinyl and is just over 12 minutes of fuzzed-out riff bliss, marked with extended instrumental sections and the occasional bit of Echoplex shenanigans.

We begin with “Burnt Sleep,” the more straightforward and rock and roll of the two tracks here present. Bassist Dani comes in on vocals after a short stretch of riffing from guitarists Giannis and George (first names only), in the meantime starting off the song and providing suitable accompaniment to drummed Lab in the rhythm section. The production is modern but not overdone, though the vocals feel higher placed in the mix than the music warrants — could be my listening apparatus. Nonetheless, the half-decade-old band from Chiliomodi sound engaging in a not-asking-too-much kind of way.

The amps are Orange, the vibes are good, the structures are relatively simple, none of which is a cause for complaint. There are some effects sprinkled throughout on the vocals (and elsewhere) to keep it interesting, but mostly 1000mods traffic in straight up stoner fuzz that will ring familiar in the ears of the already-converted without sounding overly redundant. The jam about four minutes into the song goes a long way toward changing things up, Dani doing an especially notable job steering the course through dual-guitar delay improvisations.

With Side B dedicated solely to Liquid Sleep’s title track, and perhaps because of the titular similarity to its companion cut, I didn’t expect much different from “Liquid Sleep,” which made the slower, even riffier track something of a surprise. “Liquid Sleep” is entirely instrumental, and like its predecessor, won’t really throw you off guard in listening, but has a satisfying stonerly friendliness to it all the same. Here the Echoplex is more widely featured, and Giannis and George really get down to work. Think Fu Manchu played at three-quarter speed. I don’t know if I’d go as far as calling the central riff intriguing on an intellectual level, but it’s fun, and for the 5:54 of the song’s duration, that’s apparently enough.

1000mods are hardly original, but there is a time and place for revolutionary music-making and there’s a time where all you want to do is put on some obscure band’s vinyl and not have to think about it for 12 minutes. Toward that end, Liquid Sleep is utterly a win. It doesn’t require a close analysis; it requires an open bottle of your favorite beer, a lawnchair, a driveway (or patio), and a speaker facing out an open window. Sit your restless self down for a couple minutes and dig in. They’re not gonna change the world, but 1000mods are doing just fine where they are. Groove on.

1000mods on MySpace

SuiSound

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One Response to “1000mods: Stoner Fuzz from the Land of the Magemeno”

  1. Santiago says:

    Dude these guys STONE hard!

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