By: Thomas Bell

They’ve toured with label-mates The Hold Steady, as well as The Thermals, and The Big Sleep are headed out on tour by way of SXSW (four dates there!). Their sound has been described as psych-rock and post-rock, but there's much more to it than either moniker implies. Their 2006 debut, Son Of The Tiger, with its heavy/soft surprises and math-rock angular rhythmic flourishes won critical raves and a quickly growing fan base.

Their sophomore opus, Sleep Forever, finds the band more confidently honing their craft and expanding sonic territory. Sleep Forever utilizes the mesmerizing drone and noise-infused layering of Sonic Youth and My Bloody Valentine with echoes of Zeppelin’s face-melting guitar grandeur. Elements of avant rock with soft (and at times more exposed) vocals/lyrics go beyond connecting viscerally with the listener to speak emotionally and personally here. One hears the band battle through tumult and despair to reach tranquil resolution and even hope.

The experimental stylings of Danny Barria (guitar), Sonya Balchandani (bass/vocals), and Gabe Rhodes (drums) sound like more than three people. It's huge at times and intimate and emotive at other times, and never randomly so. The dynamic, tonal, and rhythmic shifts are skillfully planned and arranged. The name of their first record (Son of the Tiger) was apt. Tigers become human and play wild, loud, intense rock, only these tigers are calculating and emotive with a little of the math-geek in their blood, hence the unexpected quiet passages, erratic rhythms, doses of chaotic noise, and occasional well-placed blues riffs.

One could argue that this album is less focused than their debut release. Even if that were the case, they deserve extra points for experimenting and adding more varieties of sound and texture to their palette. What this sounds like is a band in the process of growing and developing their musical aesthetic courageously. Time will tell whether Sleep Forever is a destination or a transitional record, but whichever the case it is a bold statement in its own right and a ride worth taking. The Big Sleep are sonic thrill seekers and on this album one hears bigger things on the verge of happening.

Video: The Big Sleep