Brahma Loka – Awaken EP (2015)

From the rolling hills of Mossley stride Brahma Loka, new kings of cool and kith and kin to all of Manchester’s giants. Formed just last year and already with a debut EP to their credit, Brahma Loka are going places.

‘White Horse Waves’ spins a languid, simmering sun-baked vista; half indolent blues, half revenge laden spaghetti western. The slowness accentuates the potency, a lazy malevolence. This song is Clint Eastwood in Coogan’s Bluff; laid back and relaxed but with a barely contained capacity for cruelty.

‘Awaken’ paints fragments of broken poetry, carefully crooned by Patrick Neville. Slightly bluesy, slightly psych-y in a drawling Sunday morning manner. What is impressive about ‘Awaken’ is that Brahma Loka are already capable of making quiet, studious album tracks.

‘Bones’ begins part Richard Ashcroft / part Sigur Ros. Guitar shoots sideways lightning. Drums creep. Vocals lament: ‘Got no feelings in my bones’. As bruised as it is mysterious, this contemplative mid section of the EP is both surprising as it is intriguing.

‘Soulreaper’… aw hell yeah… Brahma Loka’s display of noise totality lands here with a stomping glam rock drum beat you thought they’d outlawed eons go. It’s good to hear you back, ol’ friend. A chopping classic-rock riff runs through the song like a metal vertebrae. The second guitar jinks around the periphery like a tricky Scottish winger. The dual tag team guitar work on show is a prime example of how the band recalls Television. Essentially a guitar attack on the chakra points.

Effortless.