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Puppies, ice cream, blast beats, science


Clinical Trials' latest effort, "Bleed Me" is a dark detour into the fringe regions of rock music. Challenging and balls-out, these new creations have been birthed bloody and wailing, fueled by punk, tinged with sexuality, yet still dangerously charming. From the first explosion of brass coupled with pummeling tom-heavy beats on "Whip It," to the deceptively poppy "American Girl," where dark synth textures bear counterweight to a danceable soca beat, "Bleed Me" is the most menacing type of thrill ride.

Bass-heavy, slow-driving verses give way to a wall of grunge guitars ("Sweet Machine"); hauntingly simple, nursery rhyme-like melodies dissipate into echoes of static and dying feedback ("White Fence"); nihilstic punk shouts soar over surf rock drums ("Animal"). The album oozes an intoxicating dysphoria. It breeds in a world of angst. It might leave you with a sense of nostalgic depression, or a reckless desire for self-destruction - perhaps even a chaotic urge to go out and smash little bunnies.

The EP was produced and mixed by the founding member of Clinical Trials, Somer Bingham, who also performs a wide range of duties in the live setting; playing bass & guitar simultaneously, triggering samples, and, of course, alternating between a disaffected sultriness and desperate, screaming vocals. She is now joined by bandmate Caryn Havlik, whose unstoppable energy & forcefulness in the kit-crushing department are a winning match for Bingham's live intensity.