This came out in 2003 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Every band needs a leader. But there’s also such a thing as having too much power for your own good — and that seems to be the dilemma Today Is The Day singer-guitarist Steve Austin faces on his extreme metal outfit’s latest release Sadness Will Prevail.
A two-CD set apparently recorded in Austin’s home over the past few years, Sadness is a sprawling, deliberately antagonistic disc that practically dares you to sit through its 144-minute duration. Sometimes, that’s no mean feat — many of these 30 tracks are unfocused, ragged creations that jettison basic song structure in favour of aimless-seeming noisecraft, primal scream therapy and druggy noodling. To make matters worse, the whole thing sounds like it was recorded on a cheap boombox. Admittedly, if you have the patience to wade through the endless Melvins-style ooze and scuzz, you’ll find buried gems like the searing drug ode Friend or the frenzied Flowers Made of Flesh (which samples American Movie). Amibient noise collages and interludes that find Austin incorporating grand piano and strings are intriguing too. But even if Steve is no slouch as an artist, he could still use a good editor.
