This record still so underrated. “Under Sound” easily wins ‘best bass guitar tone of the year’ from me. Every track on this thing is just so relentlessly heavy and crunchy in the best possible way. but the way the drums cut through such tone-heavy guitar and bass production feels like such an accomplishment.
I’ve been completely obsessed with this record for the past few days. While it might appear on the surface like a straight-forward emo-tinged alt-rock record, “Under Sound” is an incredibly focused and groove-packed endeavor. The production is stellar, featuring one of the most perfectly mixed snare-drums I’ve heard on a fuzzy rock album in a long time. It might sound arbitrary to point out, but making sure the drums crack through the massive guitar and bass tone on a record like this is a true accomplishment.
There’s clearly so much love and inspiration packed into “Under Sound” that I keep picking up on each listen. The opening riff of “Further From My Start” could slot into Deftones’ 2003 self-titled record just as easily as the title track could fit into Codeine’s “Frigid Stars” from ’91 (albeit with some slowing down, of course). All of this is just to say that Prize Horse doesn’t quite wear their influences on their sleeves as much as they reconstruct their influences into alt-rock couture.
All songs written and performed by Prize Horse
Guitar/Vocals – Jake Beitel
Drums – Jon Brenner
Bass – Olivia Johnson
released February 16th, 2024
The Fat Angel Sings 