Let’s hope the Acid Bath reunion shows, bring more attention to Dax Riggs’ solo work. It’s been 13 years since his last release, and Riggs finds himself. Reigniting his songwriting magic on 7 Songs For Spiders (Fat Possum Records). This time around Dax is backed by a three-piece band of grooving Cajuns who slither through these songs with a melancholic pulse, taking things back to his darker roots. The opening track “deceiver” finds a dream-laden haze hovering over his soulful speculation. It’s almost like gospel music for someone whose acid trip has been tempered by opiates. It picks up closer to what “We Sing of Only Blood or Love” let off, though more sonically layered. His trademark croon sounds as good as ever.
The synths going into “Sunshine Felt The Darkness Smile” create an almost Beatles-like vibe. Lyrically brilliant, he continues to ponder with his surreal phrasing the duality of Jesus, and Lucifer, amid musing issues of mortality. The fuzzed-out bass line occupies the space guitars normally fill in rock music. This allows the ambiance to breathe. “Even The Stars Fall” has a more rock n roll feel than the previous two songs, as the guitar creates more of a drive while Riggs throws his croon around. There is some ebb and flow, where previous releases felt like he was wrestling with depression, this album makes you wonder if marijuana might be helping elevate him from the emotional morass, and more hopeful in his esoteric questioning.
“Blues For You Know Who” is only marginally influenced by the actual blues, though given his cultural background it’s enmeshed in his DNA, no matter where he goes sonically, Riggs continues to provide a more soul performance than his previous projects. It drones off the bass line and slowly builds rather than conforming to the standard verse-chorus arrangement. “Ain’t That Darkness” is a wandering jam, that is hard to complain about as it flows like syrup. “Pagan Moon” carries the most blues in its DNA. Riggs makes the most of the steamy tension created here. He has always been one of the most underrated singers, yet he knows where to put each note and pours the right amount of emotive despondency behind them.
The bass lines of this album put more rock into the sound than the guitars, this is most displayed in how it drives the last song. It has a surreal grunge feel, with Riggs’ emotive croon doing what he does. Sure it’s only seven songs, but he got them pretty perfect for what they are and it’s a welcome return for him preceding his reunion with Acid Bath. If you were going into this album expecting metal, then you are not familiar with anything he’s done since Agents of Oblivion. This wonderful album finds renewed strength in both this voice and the creative spirit it holds up against his other solo work. If you are a fan of Acid Bath, then you are willing to accept reaches into the darkness that borders the confines of metal music, so there is no reason you should not at least have a profound respect for the magic Riggs weaves on his own.
Buy the album here:
https://daxriggs.bandcamp.com/album/7-songs-for-spiders
9 / 10
WIL CIFER
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