Aversionline
Od Vratot Nadolu is a two-piece act from Macedonia that consists of bass, drums, and vocals, and I believe "Ziva" is their debut EP (which I was hooked up with by Fuck Yoga Records, who released it in cooperation with SuperFi Records and Insulin Addicted Records). As would be expected of most any bass-centric, powerviolence-leaning band, these guys have and will continue to draw comparisons to Man is the Bastard (which is obviously not a bad thing) with these eight tracks in about 18 minutes of winding, distorted bass runs, hammering percussion, and a dual vocal attack of assorted shouts and growls. Don't expect a lot of explosive, chaotic speed, though. In fact, what works so well about this material is that there are a lot of pounding, midpaced tempos that benefit from the breathing room that a two-piece band offers. The recording is also rugged but clear, and suits their stripped down approach quite well. Every now and then it sounds like they might be throwing in some keyboard textures, but maybe they're just applying weird, atmospheric effects to some of the basslines? That being said, they keep things pretty straightforward for the most part, and that's perfectly fine. I actually prefer generally tried and true approaches to this particular niche, and Od Vratot Nadolu totally nails it. The EP (which is also referred to as "Mercury", so don't get confused when trying to order a copy) is limited to 500 CD's and 500 12"s (400 on black and 100 on clear), and if it had been released by Slap a Ham Records in the early- to mid-90's it probably would've sold out last week, so… get moving!

Sleeping Shaman
I must admit, my knowledge of Macedonia is about as extensive as the number questions I can vaguely guess the answers to on an average round of University Challenge. What I do know is that basement-dwelling sludge-goblins Od Vratot Nadolu (OVN) are capable of creating enough racket to shake the capital of Skopje to its ancient foundations. Iceman (drums, vocals) and Maverick (bass, vocals) seem to have taken copious cauldrons full of death-cheating doom, thrown in the blood-spitting elements of power-violence and cast a witch’s spell of shattered misery to conjure up one of 2011’s ugliest slabs of noise. This record reeks of the underground; basement gatherings of those already succumbed to the power of the grooving bass riffs and cavernous drummed demolition nod their heads in mystical enchantment. For a two-instrument attack, OVN sound truly enormous as the hulking density of opener ‘Videodrom’ kicks into existence. Maverick’s bass throbs like the worst migraine imaginable, yet maintains such a giant amount of solidity that it’s a wonder the track is even allowed to slow to a gentle crush before petering out into nothing. The rest of the tracks follow in the same ferocious vein: rising and falling, but always remaining tight and intimidating. ‘Seriozen Delirium’ is short and sharp and the double-kicks sound like rapid mortar-fire as the vocals growl their way under your skin. ‘Foreva’ slows the speed, but still the bass takes on an ever-distorted, rolling downturn as the track lurches into death-doom territory with cymbals exploding in its wake. ‘Drugar So Problemi’ introduces sound bite samples for the first time up against yet more gigantic riffing, and ‘Gangsterska Lubov’ adds in some echo-ing spacey choir harmonics to accompany the metallic pandemonium. ‘…Taa Sjebana Faca’ barks some military-style orders towards us, before the plodding bass takes over for yet another apocalyptic hailstorm. ‘Nekoj Vi Gi Ebe Decata’ introduces an element of swagger and progression; the riff staying constant, but the drums evolving to the sound of an added electronic drone circling above the mix. ‘Od Vratot Nadolu’ is somewhat of an anti-climax as a closer. By-now standard tombstone bludgeon and rasping desperation overpower the well-controlled tribal floor-tom and gentle cymbal splashes as OVN the band teeter out of your speakers and back into their pit. This is an angry motherfucker of an album that felt hard, straight and powerful, whilst retaining fantastic control over its chaotic filth. If you enjoy hardcore, punk and even grindcore with your sludge, this could well be your new favourite band. Its outfits from lands afar like this that give me hope that colossally heavy music is alive and well the world over.