SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: SLEEPY GONZALES – MERCY KILL

Sleepy Gonzales
Mercy Kill
Light Organ Records

Some of the best pieces of music take you on journeys outside of musical genres and reality. Bands such as Sleepy Gonzales make it their business to transport listeners into a slumber-like state, with a mix of shoegaze and elements of punk for good measure. Since their 2020 debut album Slow Apocalypse, 2021’s New York Sludge, and 2022’s reimagining of Slow Apocalypse, Sleepy Gonzales has always strived to create a soundscape more thematically complex and dissonant than their last effort. Within the year gap, Sleepy Gonzales has not only broadened its horizons in 2023 but by braving a new perspective comes a sparkling new listening experience, Mercy Kill.

An EP that dedicates itself to its craft as much as it does to nostalgic integrity and unbridled emotion, the amount of depth and weight this EP carries is astronomical for something that only holds five tracks in its presence. From the beginning, the fuzzy and richness of the guitars, captivating vocal harmonies, and euphoric atmospherics show a level of beauty and charm that draws audiences in to want to listen more.

Something that Mercy Kill does well is the execution of different melodies, as it effectively crisscrosses between the dualistic female-male vocals, “Destroyer” makes perfect use of these transitions. Drenched in hazy reverbs and evocative lyricism, it gorgeously transcends into a more upbeat venture, “Freak Out”.  Sleepy Gonzales provides one of the greatest moments on the EP, unhindered and melodic, with escaping moments of ecstasy skillfully nestled in between its grungy subtle layers.

“Couch Song” takes a bit of a denuded turn, showing a more bare bones approach to their sound, but it’s welcomed after showing all off all the bells and whistles in the last few songs thus far. The simple approach of showing off more of the vocal strengths works well here, having the instrumentals pull back ever so slightly for the guitars to pull off a few stellar parts here and there, but not so much that it overpowers the harmonies and creates something truly profound before reaching the ending track.

The EP ends with “Mercy Kill”. Another acoustic-laden track, its soft canorous elements end the EP wonderfully.

Mercy Kill is a lovely EP that presents a lot of intricate layers in such a small presentation, but it illustrates that you don’t need an album to create something genuine to make significant waves in the business. Mercy Kill is an example of how the tiniest voice may have the greatest impact, and this EP proves they are just getting started.

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