So, here it is: a collection of the reviews we've gotten over the last few months for Breathe Deeply, Horse.  Some are really good, some are mediocre... and some are so bad, they're downright hilarious.  Anywho, regardless of how shitty (or badass) they may make us out to be, it's just one person's honest opinion and is nothing for us to be offended or embarrassed over.  In fact, we're just thankful to have been reviewed at all (we're from Mississippi for Christ's sake)!   Enjoy.                                              


♦Decibel Magazine :     8/10   (by Rod Smith)

 The neighs have it.  Malamute's first album skews funky from the moment opener "6om" commences with jewel-eyed sparks flying off a pinwheel of chords juicy enough to make Matt Bellamy consider converting his piano to a toboggan.  The Hattiesburg, MS-based, progressive post-genre-signifier quartet works the libido lode often and well, especially on the brutally gorgeous title track, a molasses-slow copulation waltz that easily equals, say, Coldplay's "Bigger Stronger" in lasciviousness.
    Not that they're anybody's one-trick ho-  while Breathe Deeply, Horse hews to uno mood, Malamute's default mode is resolutely ADD-informed.  The difference between them and many of their peers - theater-filling progsters included - is that no matter how complex, the band's equations always balance.  Magnum opus "Wyoming" opens with a dissonant, lopsided shuffle dominated by guitarist Chips Jamison - the most prominent player in a band full of standouts.  "All these things / they can't be / happening to us now," bassist Spence Townsend sings plaintively, as another member hollers, "The key in the ignition / is flooding out the engine!"  As if to drive its lyrics home, the song dissolves into chaos just long enough for us to shit porcupines when the original theme reincarnates as gristly, high-velocity post-hardcore.  Flashing enough angles to fill II dimensions, Jamison's first guitar solo is magnificently cliche' free, his second, better still.  But the song's gestalt is what makes it irresistable, along with roughly double the average Dream Theater album's ideas, triple the satisfaction and nary a single kernel of corn.

♦Deaf Sparrow Zine :        4/5 Stars       author: unknown

    Some of the great music expelled by this label is indeed so acerbic I was quite surprised to hear Malamute’s heavy laden and prog-friendly leanings.  It is hard alright, it is technical indeed, and on its way through so many curves is fucked up enough to feel like after all they make good company in the AND’s headquarters. That said, it has taken me a few spins to swallow Breathe, Deeply, Horse whole. 
      In the beginning one could confuse Malamute with the type of band that’s fine at play in progressive rock fields. That is because of their vast technicality, the mighty presence of the keyboard and the cleanliness of their sounds, but beyond the indulgence that informs a prog rock band Malamute sounds like it functions in its own tiny hole - call it parallel universe – making the best of their fascinations and immortalizing them into sound. That is why it’s difficult to pigeonhole Malamute, the greatness of a song like “I Married Common Street Trash” lies not in how skillfull its execution may be, but in how bizarre and brain drilling its arrangements are.
    This is another winner for Acerbic Noise Development. Listening to Breathe, Deeply, Horse I can’t help but wonder how hard a decision it might have been to sign this band. I am guessing the label may have wondered if a band of this ilk could actually fit with the rest of their roster, but on second thought it is also the perfect addition; the contrasting sounds of The Devil and the Sea when compared to the free flowing and welcomed excesses of Malamute inform the listener that AND could release anything they pleased and it would all fall into place. Wise men indeed, this record is a trip. Fuck Fates Warning. Give me some Malamute.

♦CD Baby :          5/5 stars       author: Brad at CD Baby

   Ah, you've got to love a heavy rock record where the chaos comes together so seamlessly. Where it's filled to the brim with almost certain insanity, making it close to impossible to tell where one song ends and another begins. It doesn't matter. You'll want to take this one on from start to finish. It's absolutely worth it to hear the kinds of sounds these guys are capable of ripping out of their guitars while being backed by a keyboard player who, by my estimation, is largely responsible for their unique sound. The synth lead that anchors the beginning of "I Married Common Street Trash" should not work in this context at all, but when it locks in, you can't deny it. The song builds and falls repeatedly, peaking in a clash of sounds and then calming down just to rev it back up again. There's no formula to this one; these guys are all over the board and they somehow seem incredibly comfortable in a maze of time changes and mood swings. As proof, in the midst of all this madness they drop "Breathe Deeply, Horse," a sullen semi-ballad that, while an abrupt change, remains intense and doesn't kill the flow of the music. You'll want to stick around till the end, anyway. "Eckhart" makes for a killer ending.    

♦Heavy Metal Time Machine:      2.5/4 stars     (by Metal Mark)

    You know how something can sound good on paper or in theory, but then it just doesn't come through in the end? Malamute from Hattiesburg Mississippi are on what my opinion is one the best independent heavy music labels around (AND). The actual sound on this album contains punk rock, metal and various other heavy and melodic tones swirled around a rather liquid, non-structured type of format. The vocals are quirky yet coherent and the effort and enthusiasm are just bursting out as this band seems to go for the everything, but the kitchen sink approach. Now to me that sounds like it would be a fantastic album. So why am I wrinkling my forehead as I write this review? Well, despite including all of the above I just couldn't get completely into this album. Indeed Malamute loaded their bags with their wares and then dumped them out on this recording. They are not lacking angles or ideas, but they are lacking an edge or a hook or something that would really make this album engaging. I thought that after one play and that feeling loomed over me after three more plays of the CD. The wild and sometimes frantic stance they take had me interested, but they just seem to lack enough depth to really finish the deal. It's like wanting to dive into the water, but you know it's not deep enough to dive into so instead you end up staying on the edge just kind of kicking your feet in the shallow part. Perhaps my opinion is influenced by the fact that other artists on this label (The Devil and the sea, El Chupa Cobras and Ganon) have released outstanding albums this year and maybe I was expecting more. Altogether this is a somewhat likeable album, but it's from a standout and they need some work to really become a memorable band.

♦Sputnik Music:    4/5 (excellent)

    Summary: Synth driven, progressive, post...pretty much everything. Malamute - a large breed of domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris) originally bred for use as an Alaskan sled dog and is often mistaken for a Siberian Husky. 
    After listening to Breathe Deeply, Horse, the debut album from the Mississippi based Malamute, it's immediately obvious that the band either had no idea that the aforementioned animal existed and simply thought the word would be a cool band name, or simply named themselves Malamute to be ironic. To fully grasp the irony, one needs to have a small bit of background information on the physical attributes of the Alaskan Malamute. For example, Alaskan Malamutes are quite terrible at maintaining speed and momentum over relatively long distances, and if there is one thing Malamute excels at, it's maintaining momentum, as there is nary a hiccup or misstep to be found throughout the duration of the album.
    To fully describe the sound of a band like Malamute can be tricky to say the least. At times, the music they present can be soft, melodious, and airy, other times dark and brooding, and occasionally dissonant, thick, and heavy. Heavier synth driven passages give way to head bobbing groove sections, which swell into thick and oppressive sections filled with overly fuzzed out guitar, then break into mathy passages, followed by slowed down stoner metal (ish) riffery, and that's just the first three minutes of I Married Common Street Trash. The greatest part of all this is that throughout all the time changes, mood shifts, and genre mixing, nothing every feels awkward, the momentum is never lost, and nearly every transition is smooth and completely natural. To pull off feats such as this, it goes without saying that every band member needs to be fairly competent with their respective instruments, and Malamute is no exception to the rule. Guitarists Aaron and Chips (who sadly is no longer a part of Malamute) not only display ample technical ability (for examples of this see the slightly spazzy solo sections in the previously mentioned I Married Common Street Trash, as well as the interestingly out of key "harmonized" leads in Castrate Karate), but also provide great examples of how to use effects to enhance particular riffs and leads (i.e. heavy fuzz being used to make the slower sections more lumbering and "huge", reverb and chorus effects to add to the spacey elements presented in some of the post-punk passages, and so on). I think it goes without saying at this point the rhythm section is also very talented. Spence's ever present and grinding bass is constantly shifting from walking basslines and short stacato bursts, to rumbling chords and even a few pseudo-lead parts, and drummer Allen displays obvious prog influences through oddly timed and interesting beats coupled with sporadic fills.
     The album is also just as strong vocally and lyrically as it is instrumentally. Spence's vocal delivery, much like everything else, is constantly changing. Sometimes it's rather gruff and loud, others its very subdued and harmonious, and when called for the delivery switches to harsh yelling, and occasionally raspy screaming (usually present in the background). The lyrics are fairly simplistic in nature, but not overly simplistic. Basically, poetic enough to be interesting and simple enough to be relate able. I guess the best way to illustrate that is by example, so here is a little snippet from Wyoming.
    "Wyoming, you've drained the blood from our veins out,
10 below and whited out, you'll kiss us, now just another 20 more miles.
Never will we speak of this night again, what could possibly go wrong?
Last drive, to Denver,
Never To Arive."
     While none of the elements or ideas presented on Breathe Deeply, Horse are earth shatteringly revolutionary, everything presented manages to feel fresh and new, a feat which is not easily attainable. Hopefully, with time, the band will be able to further develop their already extremely solid sound and garner attention from a much wider audience. For an album so excellent, it's a shame that many will probably either overlook it, or simply not be exposed to it.

 ♦Metal Maniacs            by:Kevin Stewart-Panko                                                                     
  
This is what I gleaned from the first listen of the first couple of song's from this Mississippi band's debut:  Terribly off-key and flat vocals, a drummer that basically picks one pattern and uses and abuses it; interchangeable songs that aren't very exciting to begin with.  Doesn't sound very promising, or good, does it?  So why now am I (somewhat) singing Malamute's praises?  If first impressions were everything I'd have thrown this out the window weeks ago, but because I'll give anything a fighting chance, I gave Breathe Deeply, Horse a second listen.  Then, a third, fourth and fifth... If sixth impressions were everything, I'd have thrown this out the... but it was 'round the 10th or 11th try that this started to click and make sense.  This album went from sounding like a destitute man's Horse the Band, minus the Nintendo sounds and the sense of humor, to coming across like a big, juicy experimental slew of King For A Day...  Faith No More, melodic prog-post-rockers Look What I Did and the musical theater school better known as Tubring.  Breathe Deeply, Horse may still be rough around the edges (Spence, get thee to a vocal coach!) and their songwriting may lack consistant flow ("Castrati Karate" and the misguided ballad that is the title track), but it's obvious there are times they know what they're doing, like the beastly "Wyoming," "Cinema Verite," and "I Married Common Street Trash."  Let the record show that Mr. Stewart-Panko eventually made sense of Malamute.                       

♦Hellride Music                                            by: Jay Sayder

    Unearthed from the Mississippi mud comes Acerbic Noise Development’s latest noise-peddlers Malamute with their flagship full-length, Breathe Deeply, Horse. Just as Hattiesburg, the band’s home base it completely a mystery to me, so is the off-kilter quartet’s sound. 
    Musically I can dig on a big chunk of this. We’ve got some twitchy noise/math metal, heaving doom and keyboard swirling post-landscapes all told. Guitars plow through a furious gauntlet of angular riffs and tightly knit melodies, weaving in and out of the dizzying rhythm section’s shock n’ awe antics. A fat, muscular bass tone covers the tracks in a spectacular muck and adds serious weight to the constantly shifting paths the songs travel. Even the keyboards are pulling overtime hours here, elevating this far above the Nintendo blips and bleeps of something akin to say, Horse the Band. 
    Now that I’ve got the good out of the way, I have to get onto the bad. The vocals on this are completely below par. It’d be nice to hear this one with some ripping screams balanced with strong, traditional singing but instead the ears are harassed with theatrical, tailored for the mainstream emo scream/sing trade-offs. Not my thing at all. Sure, I’m into plenty of more indie/post stuff and dig a plethora of different vocal styles but this off-key wailing really murders the score here. 
    The title track is so viciously offensive because of the nail-on-the-chalkboard vocals that I couldn’t even get past the first three minutes. While listening I shifted nervously in my chair because it was annoying me to the point of making the hairs on my neck stand on end. What a damn shame the vocals are so nauseating on this album because several times I was dazzled by the pulverizing, noise cum post-rock grooves found throughout the other tracks. 
     Crushing riffage permeates every second of “I Married Common Street Trash”; down-trodden noise/doom licks lay thick as the tar on a freshly blacktopped road only to be interrupted by proggy synth work which fits the sound to a tee. Amorphous post-melodies wander into the fray later on, only to be interrupted by tense noise-guitar hysterics whipping the din into a white hot fury not to be reckoned with but those goddamn vocals turn me off for the duration. There’s the kind of progressive stomp going on here which The Mass utilizes to full effect. Although The Mass skip the pretense and blurt out a miasma of snarling screams to give their sound the rage it deserves. Not, so with Malamute. 
     So, it goes for the remainder of this tedious disc. Moments of musical bliss turning into pure fluff because of the drama queen vocalizing. Again they brew a special concoction on “Castrati Karate” and again the monstrous, power hungry riffs, Am-Rep tenancity and mind-altering ambience are derailed by shrill emotive yelps, cheapening every ounce of their heady, audio prowess. 
    Fuck it, I give up. I wanted to like this album, I really did. If they ditched the vocals and got someone more capable behind the mic, they would have a good shot at impressing me next time around. A couple of the tracks are musical boulders which steamroll their way across the countryside with no signs of stopping. All sorts of subtleties and complexities pop out when you least expect it and many of the guitar riffs are grade-A material. In fact all the instrumentation is the work of musicians possessing big time chops but the vocals lack the guts needed to take Malamute to the next level. Overall, this is a pass for me although I could honestly see myself returning to the album far down the line to experience a few of the tracks based on musical merit alone. Bottom line on Malamute: the music is a big yes and the vocals are a big no. The only disappointment from Acerbic Noise in my camp thus far so it’s not much of a blemish on their highly esteemed roster, so I will continue to anticipate every AND release on the horizon, unless its more Malamute with the same vocalist that is.

Pine Bluff Commercial   by Kristofer Upjohn  (from a local paper in Arizona...how very random)

     Some post-hardcore, jacked up Rush having a nervous breakdown and hovering between singing and yelling demonic spirit must have possessed Malamute. It seems like chaos to those used to more orderly appearing music, but don't underestimate the math at work behind all this noise. Not so much dodging genres as wallowing in a sort of ill-defined train wreck of styles - a calculated train wreck - Malamute comes barging in with angst and abandon, raucous but not whiny, leaving no doubt but that diverse CD collections take up space in these guys' homes. Or, at least, collections of CDs by bands that have diverse CD collections. Indie rock that's drunk too much coffee moshing with frenzied progcore abrasion - all unleashed like a pack of dogs with just a little too much foam slobbering from their flapping gums. It's dense and either off-putting or hypnotically belligerent. Or both.