Chat Pile – Cool World
Release Date: 11th October 2024
Label: The Flenser
Bandcamp
Genre: Noise Rock, Sludge Metal.
FFO: Portrayal of Guilt, KEN Mode, Nerver, The Jesus Lizard.
Review By: Jeff Finch
By one of the most important metrics in music, I should not like Chat Pile. Every band I’d heard that tried combining spoken word vocals with heavy music came across as too forced or too “hey, look at us” for my taste. So when God’s Country dropped in 2022, and I found myself utterly captivated, I was a little shocked, but more listens removed that surprise and replaced it with giddiness, as this album that I tried because of the hype not only lived up to it, but opened my mind to other artists similar in scope. What the band does with Cool World is showcase that their debut was not a fluke: Chat Pile is not going anywhere, and they won’t let you get away so quickly.
What needn’t be said for fans, but does for those maybe just turning the band on for the first time; this group is unhinged. More specifically, the performance from vocalist Raygun Busch is unhinged, so much so that at times the line between reality and entertainment seems to blur; the low, pained shouts shifting to deeply hurt vocal roars on opener I Am Dog Now and the near canine growls of Shame the sign of an artist who is letting everything ailing him come out in a fierce battle he’s clearly having within himself. Rendering the vocals all the more impactful is the palpable anxiety created by the rest of the band; dissonant musical crescendos at the apex of the screams, unsettling tonal noise during solos yielding moments of respite that are anything but, equally uncomfortable licks in the background as Busch cries ‘outside there’s no mercy’ and ‘not everyone can hide, not everyone gets to hide,’ on ironically titled Funny Man. Equally ironic yet captivating is the opening melody, which the band revisits after these desperate shouts, a faux cheerful quality to the music and vocals right before a shift down a dark alleyway, deeply disturbed as the “chorus” comes back to remind us there’s no mercy.
While the band is unafraid to hit us with heavy, whether topically, vocally, or otherwise, sometimes the heft present in these songs is jaw dropping given the nature of the tracks. On standout Frownland, the bass pops even more than usual, working in tandem with the percussion to create a sonic landscape that feels like being slowly overtaken and unable to escape. When the guitars come in, they’ve already got us hook line and sinker, keeping a near hip-hop pace with the vocals and with the beat dropping from the bass and the drums; it’s already captivating before Busch starts screaming “do you want to hear what I have to say?’ over and over. The ‘guitar solo’ in this one sounds a lot like the saxophone from KEN Mode, unsettling in noise and tone, that anxiety fueled desperation palpable in every note that escapes, culminating in one final release, screams reminiscent of a man that’s really and truly lost his mind. Longest track on the album, Camcorder, poses as an exercise in restraint, cymbal taps and bass drum kicks matching simple guitar strums at one point, losing the disguise as mammoth drop tuned riffs and aggressive bass lines blast off at another. Busch sounds exhausted at this juncture, completely done with whatever he’s facing and no longer finding the strength to continue, giving the impression of being near unconsciousness, the complete lack of control lending power to the track as we’re treated to more random interjections of those creepy high-pitched licks, never once allowing a listener a moment of respite.
At this point we somehow have 5 songs left, yet also can’t believe there’s only 5 songs left. Tape sees an influx of harsh vocals, music shifting to meet the vocal tone; the song quickly changes genres, a Hawaiian style emanating but only keeping us elevated for a moment, as the despondent, weak, pained shrieks take over once again, the shrieks layered with despondency, enveloping the listener in a cocoon of negativity and rage. The switch from thick sludge to upbeat melodies is almost physically unsettling, these inherently fun notes with emotionless, spoken thoughts following them, unsure of the reality of their combined existence. The New World attacks with visceral energy, intensely groove laden, rarely relenting as it mostly hovers at a fever pitch, screams of ‘into the new world’ preceding unrestrained percussive power, as close to blast beats as we’re going to get, feedback popping from the guitars to ensure we haven’t got comfortable with our surroundings. And while the final quarter of the album doesn’t present with the same unhinged fury as the opening three quarters, it feels like it’s a product of exhaustion: of life, music, everything. Still maintaining that dark as hell motif, Milk of Human Kindness features a common refrain of ‘I screamed, I screamed,’ but purposefully delivered with such a weakly lackadaisical tone that listeners don’t know whether to be concerned at the screaming or the emotionless expression; even as the phrase is repeated with increasing urgency, it’s followed up with the low energy alternative, the roller coaster of emotions jarringly painful and unforgiving.
Suffice it to say, Cool World paints an ironic sonic soundscape; there is nothing cool about the world that exists in a Chat Pile album, truly an unfortunate situation as the world being portrayed is our very own. God’s Country displayed a band tortured, unable to sit idly by and accept the horrible goings-on in the world, such as homelessness and mental health crises. Cool World finds that band even farther down the rabbit hole, even more replete with despair and anger, now showcasing the signs of being overrun and beat down; while creating music that is genuinely, truly enjoyable for its uniqueness and the obvious passion contained therein, the band simultaneously displays just how bleak things are out in the world, and how it’s getting harder and harder to keep fighting. But as long as Chat Pile keeps fighting, we listeners win, because this band is as passionate as they are captivating, as emotionally charged as they are heavy, and traversing this cool world leaves us with that same crestfallen feeling as did exploring god’s country.
(5 / 5)
