[Review] Sadhus (The Smoking Community) - Sadhus (The Smoking Community)

It was about time for some putrid, hellish sludge to come out from Greece. Damn, the last time I listened something worth was Guinea Pig’s demo from back in 2008 (please leave all your post-atmospheric “sludge” cocktails aside). Thank god, these bong-blessed fellows, called Sadhus (The Smoking Community) are here with their self-titled debut to fill this gap.

Τhese guys are authentic and passionate. It would be a mistake to expect something innovative or original, since their music is a straight decendant of both big sludge schools (see UK and USA, where they perfectly balance between them). But Sadhus just live for it. I don’t know a thing about their backgrounds or every day lives but it’s like sludge is a way of life for them (see EHG, where their music was a mirror to their lives). Another thing I have to give out my kudos for; is the lack of any NOLA references in their attitude as a whole, like Athens is located just next to New Orleans. Not that I have anything against NOLA or the "southern" influences in music, I'm just sick and tired with all the Down (as an example) wannabees believing or wishing to have been born in Louisiana. 

Imagine the album as a bag of weed, rolled up in six joints; four big, fatty ones and two quick fixes just to keep you going. “Burned By Hand” initiates the smoking ritual, under a bong’s sounds. A slow-paced track, nicely built and having a couple outbursts, maintaining the right amount of intensity. And right when your head starts to mellow, these perverted cats punch you straight in the face with “Colombian Boat Blues”; which is one of the fastest and shortest songs, along with “Make Me 20 Euros” (where we have guest vocals by 1000mods’ Dani and Lucky Funeral’s Mike). Both songs are quite catchy, having a punk rhythm which although I liked I’d prefer to leave the “n’roll” out and instead follow the crust way. Much more interesting and well-fitted in my opinion. Sludge and crust are quite close in attitude and it has been already proved that they work perfectly together.

The same titled song “The Smoking Community” is indisputably their magnum opus. I wish I could describe it as I wanted to. It’s like a toxic plague spreading all over in slow, torturing pace making your face melt and your eyes pop out. In the second minute, where the intro comes to its end and the vocals kick in… Or in around 5.30… I felt my beard having multiple orgasms. Or I just was too shitfaced.

“Stevaro” is more of a groovy tune having some of the best riffage in the whole record. The closing track, “Bampoola” starts from where “Stevaro” left in order to evolve in a doom-paced onslaught, burning down the last of your brain cells. If there are any left of course…

“Sadhus The Smoking Community” is nevertheless a solid, quality release both in terms of music and production. The songs are well-crafted (my only “objection” was the one I mentioned above about dropping the punk ‘n’ roll) and they have a lot of soul in them (a filthy, sludgy one but still soul). The only downside I could find until now is its short duration, reaching 32 minutes. I think one track more – yes a long one – would be enough to satisfy my apettite.

It will be released in vinyl in the middle of July, being the ideal company as you’re getting fried like bacon under the summer sun. Until then you can check a couple of their songs in their bandcamp page.

Roll fast, play slow and let the Baba smoke.

by Thanos

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[Interview] Down with Sadhus (The Smoking Community)

Welcome to Downtuned

Tell us a few words about the group, when and where did you get started?

How did you meet?

Back in August of 2008, we formed Sadhus, as a band of friends who had a connected idea about heavy music. Starting with some jams in our special place in Piraeus, we found ourselves making our own music and we started giving shows in local clubs of Athens. The meeting place considering the formation of the band, is our studio, although we've all been friends many years and some of us many more or almost a whole life...

Which are your musical influences?

We all have several influences that come from different scenes of rock and heavy music. On "sadhus" music, sludge and doom bands such like Electric Wizard, Bongzila, Eyehategod, Iron monkey, Saint Vitus, Sleep and as always Black Sabbath are the main musical influences.

What’s your lyrics about? What catches your interest?

Some say that we haven’t lyrics… That’s not true. Our lyrics express our thought for that abomination in which we live in… Topics such as the human brain, the wreckage of human societies, the human relationship always tickles our interest. The production of mass negative or rotten feelings is the combination of our music with the lyrics and that is our point of creating music.

Is the communication with the crowd something that you care about, in all levels, or do you do music for yourselves?

The communication with the crowd and everyone who have some thoughts about our music or generally for the rock scene is always very important for the “living” of Sadhus. We like to play live in front of people that love music and the reactions of them always is considered. We create music at first point for our pleasure, coming from inside and our music influences, but then the reaction of the crowd make us have a more spherical option of our music and help us finding the way we can achieve more....It’s odd to see people love your music and we are very happy for that.

Do you feel like you’re a part of a particular “scene” in which you would like to join and contribute or you are indifferent about it?

We are part of the local underground scene. If you want the label of it, we could say that we are part of the extreme music scene. There is a very important point about this participation. We consider that it creates a kind of unity between several persons, ideas and music influences that makes a kind of progress with the whole music of the scene. If for example Sadhus is a part of sludge worldwide music, that make opportunities for this group such as, for example, tours with similar bands, the constant listening of the bands' progress and further so, the product of new ideas that make the whole thing more interesting and goes on...we hope to be a unique band creating our special sound and the participation to a scene helps us more to achieve it...

How do you imagine that the band will be in ten years from now?

You could imagine so many things about the future and in the end nothing of these thoughts will come true... so we say that we hope at first sight to be together as friends in the near future, to make some good music and to to have healthy ears and soul. For sure much more older, much more wiser, mush more “garbage”. In sludge we trust!!!

Which famous artist you would like to do a guest to a record of yours and why?

Matt Pike off course… Because he had more beer abdominal from us… Xax just joking. He is a fucking freak of heavy and loud sound.

What plans do you have for the near future?

We hope our first album to be ready in the near future (2-3 months from now).We would like to promote it in some ways like playing more gigs out of Athens, such us Patra at 17/5 with Toner Low, and we hope more to come. Also we would like to try playing live gigs in oddly places such us caves, forests, beaches, resigned buildings. The feeling of doing something like that would be in several ways extravaganza.

We wish you good luck to whatever you’re doing, the epilogue is yours. 

Thanks a lot for this interview we really appreciated. Roll fast, play slow…

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by Kavaldi