To be quite honest, despite being a big Sleep fan, I had never heard of Asbestosdeath until this reissue became available. Asbestosdeath is an early incarnation of the sonic titans and this reissue collects their two extremely rare 7" singles onto one CD. The songs will be familiar to those who own Sleep's Volume One as the songs here ended up being recycled when Al Cisneros, Chris Haikus and Matt Pike changed the name of the band and got Justin Marler on board. To hear these early versions of the songs gives me the same feeling as hearing that Velvet Underground acetate for the first time.
Southern Lord
While Sleep's masterpiece Dopesmoker deservedly gets the most attention out of their back catalogue, I get the feeling that many people ignore their earlier albums undeservedly. Both Holy Mountain and Volume One are classics of stoner metal, out-Sabbathing Sabbath like no other band (as a friend of mine pointed out, you can sing the lyrics to Sabbath's "Into the Void" over pretty much all of Sleep's early works). So, on this immense, fuzzed out and down- tuned note, I am delighted to see these Asbestosdeath singles getting reissued.
The versions here are not as huge or as heavy as the ones that appear on Volume One but they are a great insight into the evolution of Sleep as a band. These recordings sound a little rougher and although they are nicely remastered it sounds like they were mastered from the 7" singles themselves and not the original master tapes. Cisneros' vocals lack the power that he later developed; sometimes he comes off a tad weedy after becoming accustomed to his throaty delivery in Sleep. The other striking difference between Dejection/Unclean and the music that followed is how much less bass there is in the sound here. As a band is renowned for their low frequency presence there is far less window-shaking action here than I would hope for.
Nonetheless, these observations are only nitpicking as the four songs here are a hitherto unheard glimpse into the dawn of Sleep. Asbestosdeath's take on the songs reveal that their form was fully realized a year or two prior to Volume One and in those years the band refined and beefed up the sound into the final masterpieces that they became. "Scourge" is essentially the same but lacking the big bottom that takes the song to a higher level. "Anguish" and "The Suffering" both have a little more low end, sounding more intimidating but let down by Cisneros' vocals. That being said, even in their early days, this band stand on a pedestal set at a great height above most of their contemporaries and followers.
Chances are that anyone who already owns and loves Volume One will have a good idea about what Dejection/Unclean sounds like but hopefully those who are just discovering Sleep via Om and High on Fire will hear this and check out Sleep's full (but hardly extensive) back catalogue and not just Dopesmoker. For casual fans of the band (i.e. those who have no time for the first two albums) this is a superfluous release but for those, like me, who cannot get enough of this incredible band this is essential.
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