Chat Pile & Hayden Pedigo In The Earth Again

Critic's Take

Tremblay insists the best songs on In the Earth Again are those that marry Pedigo's delicate picking with Chat Pile's brute force: "The Magic of the World" emerges as perhaps Pedigo's best work, and closer "A Tear for Lucas" is singled out as Busch's finest vocal turn. He praises "Never Say Die!" and "Behold a Pale Horse" for their eerie dissonance and Cynic-esque flourishes, while pointing to "The Matador" and "Fission/Fusion" for satisfying the band's penchant for sludge and down-tuned madness. This is an album where the best tracks on In the Earth Again feel like logical next steps for Chat Pile, balancing heaviness and surprising subtlety in equal measure.

Key Points

• "The Magic of the World" best showcases Pedigo's playing, bringing joyous and haunting dimensions to the band.
• The album's core strengths are its successful collaboration, blending rural-accented acoustic nuance with Chat Pile's heavy, sludge-rooted sound.

Themes

Critic's Take

Helfand finds the best songs on In the Earth Again where catharsis meets tenderness: “Never Say Die!” is singled out as pure catharsis, while quieter pieces like “Outside” and “Behold a Pale Horse” reveal Pedigo’s plaintive touch. He praises the album’s seamless fusion of Chat Pile’s sludgy mercilessness with Pedigo’s empathetic fingerstyle, and points to “Never Say Die!” and “Outside” as standout tracks that answer the question of the best songs on In the Earth Again. Even when a centerpiece like “The Matador” overstays its welcome, the record’s moments of raw entreaty and vulnerability—the very best tracks on In the Earth Again—hold the listener.

Key Points

• “Never Say Die!” is the album’s best song for delivering the record’s cathartic release and characteristic Chat Pile sound.
• The album’s core strengths are its seamless fusion of sludge and fingerstyle, and moments of vulnerability tempered by tension.

Themes

Critic's Take

Nieto writes with attentive clarity about the best songs on In The Earth Again, singling out sprawling standouts like “Fission_Fusion” and “The Matador” as where Pedigo and Chat Pile truly congeal. She frames “Fission_Fusion” as the album’s fulcrum — a cathartic wall of noise that brings the record to an uneasy equilibrium — and praises “The Matador” for scaling guitar peaks and valleys across its near-eight-minute run. For listeners searching for the best tracks on In The Earth Again, Nieto points to these epics and the collaborative high points like “A Tear For Lucas” and “The Magic of the World,” which demonstrate the pairing’s most successful synthesis. The review keeps a measured distance, noting moments where the partnership feels pasted together while celebrating the songs that transcend that divide.

Key Points

• “Fission_Fusion” is the album’s cathartic centerpiece, where noise and structure meet to create equilibrium.
• The album’s core strengths are its bold genre collision, vivid apocalyptic imagery, and moments of true collaborative chemistry.

Themes