In Spiral Sleep (Independent)

Hard as this is to fathom today, bands didn’t always feel the need to mash up three or four different genres every time they hit the practice space. And truthfully, the last thing the world needs today is an EDM-bombed fusion of mushroom-scented psychedelia and classic Bakersfield country.

Owlface keeps things so simple and straightforward on In Spiral Sleep, you’ll wonder if the three-piece stopped buying records around the time Singles first hit movie theatres. In a weird way, that’s kind of refreshing, the riff-based alt-retro rock of “Triceratops” suggesting a 73 percent less histrionic Soundgarden and the distortion-glazed “A Better Daze” more than a little reminiscent of SST-era Screaming Trees. As somewhat stilted as guitarist Vincent Favel’s vocals sound at times on the tightly torqued metal of “Colour Bars”, that’s still a welcome change from some guy trying to be Maynard J Keenan channelling David Bowie over a mix of classic dubstep, desert-sessions stoner rock, and polka-flavoured steampunk.