"Deny the Absolute"

Instrumental metal Chicago quartet Pelican have always been an intensely beloved work in progress, subject to unusually harsh and exacting criticisms-- their drummer's time-keeping, the length of their compositions – from a devoted fanbase. It's an odd relationship for a band to have with its core audience, but something about Pelican's expansive art-metal seems to stir intense, possessive feelings. On this alternate version of "Deny The Absolute", a song that appears on their new album the band's latest, Forever Becoming (out October 15 via Southern Lord), they hit one of the most fevered churns they've managed in years, with maligned drummer Larry's hard, effective fills pushing the song forward like a thumb jabbed in your back. Like the best Pelican, it seems to form its own words as you listen.

[from a forthcoming 7"; out 08/20/13 via The Mylene Sheath]