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**Smote Reverser by Oh Sees**
★★★★☆

John Dwyer's prolific psychedelic outfit has undergone more name changes than a witness protection programme graduate, but by 2018's *Smote Reverser*, the band had settled into their Oh Sees incarnation with the confidence of seasoned shapeshifters. Following the twin-drummer assault of 2017's *Orc*, Dwyer and his merry band of garage-punk alchemists returned with an album that finds them pushing further into the experimental territories they'd been mapping since their Thee Oh Sees days, whilst never abandoning the feral energy that made them underground darlings in the first place.

The album arrives after a particularly fertile period for the San Francisco collective, hot on the heels of *Orc*'s percussion-heavy explorations and the sprawling *Memory of a Cut Off Head*. By this point, Dwyer had established Oh Sees as a vehicle for his restless creativity, a band that could pivot from blown-out garage punk to krautrock motorik rhythms to free-jazz freakouts without missing a beat. *Smote Reverser* represents perhaps their most cohesive statement yet, a 16-track journey that feels both meticulously planned and wonderfully unhinged.

Musically, the album sits comfortably in Oh Sees' established wheelhouse whilst pushing at its boundaries. The garage-punk foundation remains solid – Dwyer's guitar still sounds like it's been fed through a blender full of broken glass and good intentions – but there's an increased emphasis on texture and atmosphere. The twin-drummer setup of Dan Rincon and Paul Quattrone provides a rhythmic backbone that's both thunderous and surprisingly nuanced, allowing the band to explore the hypnotic repetition of krautrock whilst maintaining their punk urgency.

The album's opening salvo, "Sentient Oona," sets the tone perfectly – a lurching, bass-heavy groove that builds into a full-scale assault, with Dwyer's vocals buried in the mix like transmissions from a distant planet. It's followed by "The Static God," which finds the band at their most motorik, channeling Can and Neu! through their distinctly American filter of distortion and controlled chaos. These tracks establish *Smote Reverser* as an album that rewards both casual listening and deep dives into its layered soundscapes.

"Abysmal Urn" stands as perhaps the album's finest moment, a nine-minute epic that showcases the band's dynamic range. Beginning with an almost meditative guitar line, it gradually builds into a crushing wall of sound before dissolving into abstract noise and reforming as something altogether more sinister. It's Oh Sees at their most ambitious, proving they can stretch out without losing focus. Similarly, "Overthrown" demonstrates their ability to marry accessibility with experimentation – it's arguably their most straightforward rocker on the album, yet it's shot through with enough sonic oddities to keep longtime fans engaged.

The album's middle section explores quieter, more contemplative territory. "Moon Bog" and "Enrique El Cobrador" find space within the chaos, allowing Dwyer's more melodic instincts to surface. These moments of relative calm make the album's heavier passages hit even harder, creating a dynamic ebb and flow that prevents listener fatigue across the album's substantial runtime.

"Last Peace" serves as a fitting closer, a sprawling 11-minute journey that encompasses everything Oh Sees do well – crushing riffs, hypnotic rhythms, and just enough chaos to keep things interesting. It's a statement of intent disguised as a farewell, suggesting that even as one album ends, the band is already looking toward their next transformation.

*Smote Reverser* finds Oh Sees at a creative peak, balancing their punk roots with increasingly sophisticated songcraft. While it may not convert newcomers in the way that a more streamlined effort might, it serves as a perfect entry point for those ready to dive headfirst into Dwyer's singular vision. The album's legacy lies in its demonstration that punk energy and experimental ambition need not be mutually exclusive.

In the broader context of Oh Sees' catalogue, *Smote Reverser* stands as a consolidation of their strengths rather than a radical departure. It's the sound of a band comfortable in their own skin, confident enough to stretch out when the mood strikes whilst never forgetting that the best psychedelia is built on a foundation of solid songs