Dwellers
Pagan Fruit
Small Stone Recordings
Street: 05.06
Dwellers = Datura + Kyuss + Greenleaf
 
Producing more of their psych-tinged “gut rock,” Dwellers have doubled down on the space rock sound that they experimented with on Good Morning Harakiri. The resulting album is unbelievably laid back, sounding a lot like mid-’90s stoner rock but without the angst-driven intensity. Pagan Fruit captures the sweat-dripping, lazy attitude of a Salt Lake City summer, with each song crawling from one dusty crack in the pavement to the next. Joey Toscano’s voice melds well with the dry distortion of his sparse guitar riffs. Even on the slowest parts of the album, Dave Jones carries the rollicking groove with his solid bass and backs up “Call of the Hallowed Horn” with a fiery rock organ. With Zach Hatsis’ skillful drumming and eclectic musical motifs, Dwellers seem to have crystallized their sound without losing their penchant for experimentation. –Henry Glasheen