The Best Band In Oklahoma is Cottonmouth
Back in August 2014 we asked you to help us find the best unsigned bands in America. After listening to hundreds of submissions and calling each other lots of names, we finally narrowed down our pick for the state named after people who essentially cut in line to steal Native American land. The best band in Oklahoma is Cottonmouth.
Ah, we finally come to my home state, where, uh…there are definitely things, and some bands, probably, I think. Look, we may not have a ton going on here in Oklahoma, but we definitely have at least five dudes that know how to get angry, get heavy, and have a good time. The five song EP they released last year is an excellent embodiment of the phrase “all killer no filler.” They don’t waste a single second in establishing their angular brand of raging hardcore, and proceed to drag you through a painfully good time until the final second (save for the curious outro). I say painfully, because I can easily imagine their live show being a chaotic frenzy from start to finish.
I’ll be honest and say that I don’t have much of a hardcore background, so I’m not going to try to make some hamfisted comparison to the 3 hardcore bands I can think of. One of the things I love about these guys, though, is that they don’t fall into the typical traps I see from local hardcore bands. I’ve been to a ton of shows in Oklahoma, and I’ve seen my fair share of the exact same band over and over again, just with different members and a different name. Cottonmouth is an entirely different beast; breakdowns are atypical and thoughtful, the southern influence is raucously apparent without being annoying, and they include a wild rock and roll element that is positively addicting. Long story short, I’m going to keep my eyes open to catch these guys live, and you should all pick up their EP for a name your price download. While you’re at it, give ’em a like on Facebook. If you don’t believe dead composers like me, listen to what our other judges had to say.
Ron Deuce: Cottonmouth take the twangy guitar elements of Converge along with the southern rock parts of Every Time I Die and paint them into their canvas of traditional hardcore. They invite you to party it up or mosh it up, either way it’s the right thing to do.
Dagon: One day, a boy named Joey took off his small-sized knit mittens to type “Angular Hardcore” right beside Cottonmouth’s name. I pressed play with an exact sound in mind, and without reading a single word on their bandcamp page, the music matched my expectations. It was neat. I bobbed my head to it, carefully listening to each “noise chord” (as described by our friend Ron Deuce). Then, all of a sudden, I was a hit with a totally unexpected Southern groove. At that moment I realized these dudes were special. This is music for people that complement their all black everything with cowboy boots and hats and attend rodeos with oxen from hell instead of regular bulls, but even a pudgy dude who writes metal jibberish in his underwear can appreciate. Do yourself a favor and jam this, right now.
Honorable mentions:
Anatma: Seriously jamming instrumental prog.
Mortuary Science: Slamming brutal death. You aren’t ready for this.
The Toilet ov Hell is on an absurd quest to find the best unsigned band in each state of this glorious union. The purpose? To shine the spotlight on bands that deserve more exposure. Also, we’re going to determine once and for all the greatest state in the nation. Each state winner is decided by a collection of 25 judges. After we’ve announced the winner of each state, we’re gonna throw them all in a winner-take-all bracket and leave the votes up to you. Who will be the best unsigned band in the United States? Which state is superior? We can’t wait to find out.
Previous winners:
Alabama — Phylum
Alaska — Terraform
Arizona – Take Over And Destroy
Arkansas – Torii
California – Destroy Judas
Colorado – The Sleer
Connecticut – Autumn’s Eyes
Delaware – Sloss
Florida – Capracide
Georgia – Lost Hours
Hawaii – Darkest Path
Idaho – Rotten Hand
Illinois – Deus Ex
Indiana – Thorr-Axe
Iowa – Blizzard at Sea
Kansas – Bummer
Kentucky – Ad Infinitum
Louisiana – Withering Light
Maine – Sylvia
Maryland – Bereave
Massachusetts – Scaphism
Michigan – Blackgate
Minnesota – Noble Beast
Mississippi – Jared Moran (Yzordderrex/Uzumaki)
Missouri – Existem
Montana – Martriden
Nebraska – Borealis
Nevada – Elephant Rifle
New Hampshire – Eerie
New Jersey – Black Table
New Mexico – Void Ritual
New York – HUSH.
North Carolina – The Seduction
North Dakota – Gorgatron
