Album Review: Seafog – Animal Lovers (Zelle)

Port Chalmers noisemakers Seafog’s third album is epic in both sound and size.

Led by guitarist/vocalist/songwriter Robin Sharma, Seafog have been raising a racket for over a decade with guitarist Nigel Waters and drummer Marty Sadler along for the ride.

Animal Lovers, the trio’s third long player, is longer than most. It’s a double album on vinyl, consisting of 16 tracks, some breaking the 10 minute mark.

Soundwise, the group thrives on guitar distortion, clattering drums and Sharma’s vocal piercing through the squall that he and Nigel Water conjure up.

Vocally, and at times, musically, I’m hearing Lou Reed’s sneer and Velvet Underground swagger, but with amps set to 11. Sharma’s snarl is particularly effective on Purakaunui, as the drums pound and the guitars swirl around him.

The following track, Hail To The Mother, has a bracing, immediate feel about it. “I need some nature in my life”, Sharma sings as the industrial sound of the band builds around him.

The band really shows off their stuff during Feelings, the nearly-twelve minute opus that fills most of side 3. I’m sure I heard Sharma sing, “I got a foggy notion”, confirming their debt to the Velvets.  Over the course of the track, Sharma sounds as if he is ultimately consumed by the roar of the band.

And these aren’t just mindless jams…Sharma and company have something to say.

Indian Reservation addresses the issues around the Dakota Access oil pipeline in the US and the effect it has had on the indigenous population there, throwing the lyrics to Born In The USA back in the oil company’s face while also making reference to their own song, the nature-loving Hail To The Mother.

Think The Velvets and Modern Lovers, mixed with Suicide but with twice the distortion, you’ve got an idea what Seafog are all about. So, turn it up and let it transport you.

Marty Duda