Chat Pile's Third Album 'Who Loves the Sun' Marks Shift Toward Alt-Rock Sound, Review Finds
The Oklahoma sludge-metal band's latest release trades some of its earlier heaviness for brighter, more melodic textures, according to a review published by The Guardian.
Oklahoma sludge-metal quartet Chat Pile has released its third studio album, "Who Loves the Sun," on The Flenser label, according to a review published by The Guardian's culture section.
The review described the band's 2022 debut, "God's Country," as a fully realized work built on oily guitars, grunting mid-tempo percussion and vocalist Raygun Busch's throat-shredding delivery, which drew on real-world violence associated with the band's home city. The album's title referenced mounds of toxic mining waste, according to the review.
Since that debut, the band has released several projects signaling a gradual evolution, the review noted, including the tape-experiment collection "Blood at Night" and "In the Earth Again," a collaboration with finger-picking guitarist Hayden Pedigo.
According to the review, "Who Loves the Sun" represents a partial rebrand toward brighter, alt-rock textures, building on a jangly, XTC-influenced riff first heard on the band's 2024 single "Funny Man." Compared with the band's earlier full-length albums, "God's Country" and 2024's "Cool World," the new record features more dynamic song structures, twangier guitar work and more melodic, hook-driven vocals, the review stated.
The review also noted a shift in the thematic focus of Busch's lyrics, which move from depictions of American violence toward broader, more abstract commentary on desensitization. As an example, the review cited a line from the track "Influence," in which Busch sings, "Scrolling past the screaming."
The Guardian review characterized the album's new direction as a "slightly limiting" rebrand, suggesting it lacks the distinctiveness of the band's earlier releases, even as it uses accessible, hook-driven vocals to convey its lyrical themes.
Sources
- Chat Pile: Who Loves the Sun review – sludge metallers resurface with a slightly limiting alt-rock rebrand — The Guardian — Culture
EGazette summarizes reporting from multiple sources; follow the links for the originals.
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