MP3 | Sleigh Bells — ‘Infinity Guitars’

Christmas is coming, and if the name Sleigh Bells is conjuring up saccharinely festive images of assorted reindeer, chestnuts roasting on an open fire, carol services and liberally strung tinsel, you’re about to be horribly mistaken. Formed of guitarist Derek Miller (formerly of hardcore band Poison The Well) and vocalist Alexis Krauss (once part of twee teen-pop group Rubyblue), Sleigh Bells are as far from pious as it is possible to be. After Poison The Well split up, Derek fell into waitering; Alexis, who was then, dauntingly, a fifth grade teacher, was one of his customers. A mere week after their meeting, they began to record together under the name of Sleigh Bells. If that sounds hasty, their sound is equally as brisk and rough around the edges. ‘Infinity Guitars’ opens on the kind of toothy, jagged guitar line that would make the Pixies envious, before breaking down into a pounding, hammered drum beat, punctuated by Alexis’s ragged, vessel-bursting howl. It’s the kind of raw, primal passion only matched by Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs at her most livid. Like any band capable of summoning such a joyously loud racket, Sleigh Bells have driven bloggers wild with comparisons being made to artists as weird and wonderful as T-Rex and Run DMC. Call them what you like, Sleigh Bells are here and they’re damned good fun. Christmas just got a whole lot louder.

FREE MP3: Sleigh Bells, ‘Infinity Guitars’ [via RCRDLBL]

BONUS MP3: Sleigh Bells, ‘Crown On The Ground’ [via Pitchfork]

visit Sleigh Bells on Myspace

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